ANTS! So fustrated.

[Toxic Tessa]

Two weeks ago, I got a phone call from the hospital to inform me that my mamma was in ICU due to an infection in her intestines that caused her to go septic. We all thought she was going to die. So I had to make an emergency trip overseas to Italy ASAP (seriously, the same day I got the phone call, completely depleted my emergency fund).

Kaa was in the middle of shed and even if she wasn't, I would not have felt like a good owner if I left her alone. I called a friend of mine who is about to head off to vet school and asked if he could watch Kaa untill I got back. He had always told me how much he loved reptiles and was looking to go into exotics. He's handled Kaa numerous times and never shown any fear. So I figured it was alright.

I explained how my set up worked, how the humidity had to be kept up since Kaa was in the process of shedding and to check under the hides each night as that is where she likes to leave her shed. Basically, I have him the lowdown on literally everything. He said he had snakes in the past.


Alright, flash forward to this morning (my mom survived but is still not exactly in the best condition, we are working on getting her healthy enough to move in with me). I flew in last night at 11pm and was exhausted and decided to wait till this morning to go pick up Kaa. 12+ hour flights leave me wonky. So I picked up Kaa, brought her home, and decided to do a full on cleaning of her enclosure as I told my friend to just spot clean since I had cleaned it a few days before leaving.

I lifted up her warm side hide to get her out and she was COVERED IN RED SUGAR ANTS. Not only that, there was a partial shed that looked as if it had been there for days and she is covered and random spots of skin that needs to be so shed. It broke my heart, she looked so miserable and not to mention stressed out. I got her out ASAP, and made sure there were no ants on her. Disposed of the shed and completely scrubbed her tank like a mad woman making sure to kill all the ants.

Now I am working on tackling the stuck shed. I pumped up the humidity to shedding ranges and am hoping that the rest comes off soon, if not I will try soaking her later. I don't want to stress her out anymore than she already is. I keep going back to check if I missed any ants, and every now and then I find another little one wandering around.

I am so frustrated, and not sure how to approach my friend about this politely. It's very obvious that he never cleaned the tank by the state of the shed I found.

Most of all, I am paranoid that I now have an ant infestation thanks to this and am not concerned about myself, but for Kaa. I work very long hours and sometimes don't come home for over a day. If I do have ants now, I don't exactly want them going straight for Kaa. I always keep my enclosure clean. I completely change everything once a week, and check for stuff each day I am home. I also take her out each night I am home and inspect her to make sure she is healthy.


Sorry for the spelling. I am so upset right now. I feel completely responsible for putting her in that situation and I feel so bad that she had to go through it.

[Fidget]

Ugh, that sounds beyond upsetting, especially on top of the emergency with your mom. Best wishes for her recovery.

As far as the ants go, since they came from your friend's place and you've cleaned them out as well as you could, there probably isn't a huge breeding colony waiting to return. I would just put out a little ant trap somewhere near Kaa's enclosure so they have an alternative destination if a few stragglers show up.

Breathe. You didn't do this to her, and you're taking the steps to make it right.

[beakin]

That's horrible! I'm very sorry that that happened. I would just confront him nicely and if he gets defensive you know he didn't a thing for your pet. Never trust him again just my 2 cents. As for the ants boric acid around the floor in a circle where the stand for you set up sits should take care of any trying to crawl up and its not toxic to humans as long as you don't eat it.

[Toxic Tessa]

Thank you both! I took run and got some of the Boric Acid just in case. Also checked on her and the shed seems to be coming off now in little chunks, So I need to just keep an eye on her. I feel much better now. I was really upset earlier.

[OmNomNom]

Yeee....and your friend wants to be a vet? o.O You poor thing, that's not what you needed to come home to after all that at all. Deep breath, chocolate, and lots of wine, sounds like your BP is going to be fine....and I wouldn't blame her if she nips your friend on the nose after all this!

I wouldn't worry about the ants, any transplants you got are not going to be breeders, so what you have is what you've got. The traps idea isn't a bad one, just to catch some random stragglers, but they should be gone soon.