How to get mites of your snake?

[Ballpython2000]

So i have found a mite in one of my snakes bowls so i need to treat the others now as well. i have some callington mite spray that should kill the mites in the enclosure but how will i kill the mites on the snake?

[bcr229]

You can give your snake a bath in some lukewarm - not hot! - water with a drop or two of mild dish soap added. The soap is to decrease the surface tension of the water so it drowns the mites; your snake should not look like it's taking a bubble bath.

After the bath you can wipe your snake with Reptile Spray. If you don't have that in the UK I've heard that people here in the US have used Frontline (active ingredient fipronil) spray successfully. Don't spray it directly on the snake, spray a paper towel and wipe it on the snake from neck to tail. You don't want the snake ingesting either product so use a very small water bowl that the snake can't soak in afterward.

[Ballpython2000]

I have heard that you can use olive oil as well to wipe the mites of a snake. would you say this is just as effective?

[cchardwick]

I had a heavy mite infestation at one point, that was before I even knew what a mite was LOL. I literally had thousands of them all over the place, mostly in my snake tubs but I also found out that they can crawl out of the tub and even across the room! One can even hitch a ride on your shirt if you visit a reptile show, that's how you can get infected. After a show you should wash all of your clothes before going near your snakes. And I would vacuum your carpet around your snakes every day or two until the mites are gone.

As far as chemicals I used 'Natural Chemistry Reptile Spray', but it does have some downsides. It took months to get rid of them, sneaky little buggers. I put all my snakes on paper towels and if I saw a mite on a snake I would wipe him down with the reptile spray. I'd change out all the paper towels every other day and spray the tubs down with reptile spray. I had one snake that was covered in black specs, looked like a natural pattern, but when I soaked a paper towel and wiped him down real good in about 10 minutes all the mites came out of his scales and were crawling all over the tub, it was pretty creepy.

My worst snake was my Fire Pied, I thought I almost killed him with that reptile spray because I wiped him down several days in a row. I think the instructions say to not wipe that often, he was so lethargic I almost thought he was dead, but he came out of it.

Since then I've seen videos of people using Provent a Mite spray, but have also heard that that can kill a snake if sprayed directly on the snake or used incorrectly. I'd probably use it now though, it looks easy, just remove the snake and water, keep your cypress / substrate in the tub, then lightly spray, wait a few minutes (I'd wait at least 20 minutes), then put the snake and fresh water back in the tub.

What this video from Brian B, a big snake breeder:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJCnPfuqaBM

[CALM Pythons]

I have heard that you can use olive oil as well to wipe the mites of a snake. would you say this is just as effective?

Seems to be big in the UK as ive heard about it several times. BALLS2U has a video on it so I tried it when I was quarantineing a Hatchling I brought home. I understand the logic of seeing the Mites as you wipe with the damp paper towel.

[Stewart_Reptiles]

I have heard that you can use olive oil as well to wipe the mites of a snake. would you say this is just as effective?

Not a good idea.

1/ It only takes care of the mites that are on the snake, it does not take care of the egg therefore re-infestation will re-occur in 30 days.

2/ Any type all oil use on a snake can loosen up scales, leading to scale loss.

There are tons of homemade recipe however you MUST know what you are doing when dealing with pesticide. If you have live and bug spray bedding in the UK there is a big chance that you can use that, many do this in the US where product such as PAM is not available. In this case you remove the snake spray the enclosure, let it dry completely before placing the snake back.

If you can get permethrin 10% you can also make your own brew, again know what you are doing.