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Mites Update

will it still be availible? will it come back? isn't it the best way to kill mites? (and easiest... just spray the entire tank with the snake inside)

or should I continue my bleach and snake soaking technique?
 
Did you check for the Nix (or similar brand) at the drugstore? You can use it in almost the same way, just the tank and around it (no need to spray the snake). It's actually cheaper and much more available. I didn't know Black Knight was pulled, too bad!
 
I've heard that NIX has killed snakes before. I need a treatment for my snake (I will use nix for the tank and everything tho)... so what I can do for my snake.. (to get the mites round his eyes, and maybe some in his nose...)

I really love the little guy, and I don't want him to be bothered by these mites any longer...
 
Oh I see what you mean. You don't need to put anything on your snake if you're using Nix for the tank and accessories. The snake lives and crawls in the treated tank and that's enough to kill the mites. If you find them again (not likely) just repeat the spray treatment.

FYI, I did not wipe any sort of nix solution on my snake (I did aim the sprayer upwards once and let some drops fall on her, the snake doesn't drink it that way) and treatment still worked on the first try.

You can also take a q-tip, with some vaseline on the end, and wipe some around the scales on the snake's head to suffocate the mites.. but don't coat the rest of the snake of course..

The main priority is getting the tank (even around the tank) and accessories treated as that's what will stop the cycle.
 
alright, so I'll pick up a sprayer... head down to the drugstore and pick up some nix.. mix up the nix (nix is shampoo isn't it? lice shampoo?) with the water and put it in the sprayer... and then spray the tank and around the tank too? then let the nix/water mix fall on the snake like rain?
 
Right on. One thing, you do have to mix it properly, don't just dump it all into a spray bottle or the concentration will be too high. Please go to http://www.kingsnake.com/TARAS/contents/nix.doc as it will tell you exactly what you need to do.

Quickly, you can mix 1/2-3/4 of an ounce in a quart of water. I did it the way it says on the website, in a jug, and then transfered some of that solution into a spray bottle (make sure it doesn't have any harmful residues, best to just buy one while you're at the store like you intend).

And yes, you will want to take the snake out (an extra container with holes, tank etc to hold the snake in is good while you are busy), spray down the enclosure, inside and out, evey nick and cranny as that's where the nits (eggs) tend to be. Use fresh paper towel substrate, spray that as well (you can let it dry a bit before putting the snake back in, especially if it's in a rubbermaid type of container, so that the water can evaporate enough). Spray the hide, but other than that it would be simplest not to have any excess accessories in the tank until the mites are gone. Take the water dish out, spray it, put it back in with water again the next day. Spray the area around the tank, it will not harm your carpeting, etc. If you're using a human heat pad for heating, you can spray that as well. Yes, letting the solution fall like rain on your snake is also an idea.. they will tolerate that a lot better than being sprayed directly, but only a few squirts will do.

With that approach, the nasty buggers should all be dead within a few hours and you can let your snake rest. Do keep an eye out for any mites on the paper towel, hide, sides of the tank. If you find any, you can retreat. Keep the nix out of the light in storage and it will last a long time, to use again if you ever need to.

Hope that wasn't confusing. If you have any more questions, you can email me at [email protected]

Oh, one more thing. I am assuming your snake is not in a shed cycle. If it is, wait until it has shed before treatment (they will absorb from their environment while in shed).
 
Thank you so much heather, you've been such a great help. I'll be heading out today to pick up the stuff I need.. I'm so glad my little guy isn't too stressed out.. I mean, he ate a pinky really quik and he has kept it down for 2 days and I can no longer see the lump in his tummy!

Yay, things are getting a LOT better :)
Look slike he wont have to put up with mites for much longer!

Also, heather could you do a write up on how to remove the little buggers for my website... you've explained it so well :) you can e-mail me at [email protected] and you can also just post it on the forums on my site and I will transfer it over to a static page from there. It would be really great if you could :)
 
You're very welcome, and for sure I can - I would be honoured :) I always like to help. I'll give you an email.

You might be glad to know that you don't need to use distilled water. I forgot to mention that. I used just plain tap water and it did the trick. I think they say distilled water just to be on the extreme safe side, either that or the solution stays effective longer if you use distilled (for storage).

I find that we worry over the snakes and stress ourselves out more than they do over most things ;) My snake had mites when I got her as a hatchling and I was going through the same thing. She still ate fine, she probably felt a lot better once those things were gone.
 
true, and thank you for writing that page, it will help a lot of people out with snakes that have mites.. I cought the corn-snake bug so fast! (same thing happened to me with beardies and leos)... I simply love them, I won awards for the site that I had up about them (some jelous idiot spammed my entire site so bad I needed to shut it down but that's another story). I hope my site gets as busy as this one (like my other site was)...

If you don't mind stopping by and checking out my progress that would be great (ranked 60 on fauna... from like 160 in 2 hours not too bad :))

www.corn-snakes.com
 
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