solution for feeder mice mite problem??

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Weda737

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My mice have mites, what can I use that would still be safe to feed them to my snakes? Even if they are breeders and feeders, I still want my mice comfortable and happy, aside from the fact they can give those mites to my snakes. So any suggestions on a good safe product??
 

jackrat

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I'd have to recommend my old standby,diatomaceous earth. I'd dust the mice and their bedding with it. It's non toxic and works well on every type of bug I've tried it on.
 

jaizei

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jackrat said:
I'd have to recommend my old standby,diatomaceous earth. I'd dust the mice and their bedding with it. It's non toxic and works well on every type of bug I've tried it on.

Diatomaceous earth is non toxic if ingested. Inhalation is very dangerous so I wouldn't use it on the mice.
 

Tony the tank

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I've always used no pest strips for my reptiles...I know it's controversial.. but my experience has all been positive..
 

Len B

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My guess is if you have mites you are using aspen shavings,or one of the newer safer bedding's, Try using cedar shavings to get rid of the mites and then going back to what ever you are using. Len
 

Weda737

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Will the Mite off spray for reptiles work? Or should I even risk it?
 

Floof

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Mite sprays are NOT meant to be ingested, so I would definitely not use it on feeder mice. Try food grade diatomaceous earth in the bedding. It's probably the only way to eliminate the mites without making the mice dangerous for the snakes to eat.

The only other way to safely eliminate the mites while leaving the mice edible, that I know of, would be to break down and start from scratch. Get rid of your breeding stock (treat them with a commercial treatment and send them to pet homes, euthanize them/feed them off, whatever is the most logical solution for you), sterilize all your supplies, get new breeding stock, and start a routine of freezing new bedding and the like to try to eliminate the possibility of the mites coming back.

Also, last I checked, mite species that plague mammals will not feed on reptiles. I could be mistaken on that, but I have been told many times that mites tend to "specialize." Just like, snake mites won't feed on mammals... If you're still concerned about mite transfer, do you feed live or pre-killed? If you feed pre-killed (which, IMO, is a whole lot safer for your snakes than live), you can freeze the mice for a few days before feeding day to kill off the mites. It doesn't solve the mite problem in your mouse colonies, but it at least keeps it away from your snakes while you work on eliminating the mites.
 

Weda737

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Yes I do feed prekilled. I read that mouse mites aren't species specific and will feed on anything they can. Ugh, our pet shop here is terrible, I'm willing to bet my mice had these mites when I bought them.
 

Floof

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Like I said, I'm not 100% sure that mouse mites are or aren't species specific, but it does take a bit of a "specialty" mite to feed on a reptile; they need the instincts of where to burrow and how to get under the "armor" of scales... But, who knows, mites are tricky little buggers. I can understand where you're coming from, though. Since you do feed p/k, like I said in my last post, you can simply start freezing the feeders a few days before the actual feeding day, just remember to thaw them out before feeding. That should kill off any and all mites on the feeder mice.

As for eliminating the mites, diatomaceous earth sprinkled in the bedding or just nuke the project and start over with fresh stock from a better source than the local pet shop. Along with either of those, start freezing bedding when you get it to reduce the chance of getting mites again.

There's actually a thread going over on iHerp about this exact subject (feeder rodents infested with mites). Might be worth reading through the posts: http://iherp.com/Answers/ReptileProblem.aspx?Id=23127
 
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