got my boa back but her scales dont look right.

[sachak]

HI guys,

Before I continue let me give a quick rundown of what has happened.

I bought a boa from a petshop, she is 6.3 feet long. when I got her I had noticed that she had a bad shed, alot of her old shed was still attached to her, her eye caps were off thank goodness, I helped her get the old skin off her head and under her mouth etc.

after having her in my care for about a week I noticed she had mites, she must have come with mites and I obviously didn't notice it as there probably was too little at the time and too few, the mite problem was very small, but I took action to get rid of them, I bathed in betadine solution, then I used mineral oil to smother them on her body as instructed from a care sheet I got from this website.

after rubbing her down with mineral oil her old skin started to fall off instantly, but the old skin was on her so long that it had obviously caused damage, as her new skin started drying out soon as the old shed started coming off.

I then gave my boa back to the petshop owner who told me that the previous owner of the boa obviously didnt have much humidity in the tank, he had only had this boa a couple days before I purchased it, anyway he took it home to try and sort it out.

NOW:

I finally got my red tail back, and she seems alot better, and alot healthier, but there are a few things I am not happy with.

because her shed didn't come off in time with her previous owner and it was still on her for sooo long, when I got alot of it off her scales underneath the old skin seem to have gone a bit dry, especially her belly scales, I am keeping her tank very humid as to try and prevent any further damage.

will this get sorted after a couple of sheds? will the scales eventually become healthy looking again or will they stay like this forever now?

they kind of look a little dried out and got small crease/wrinkles in them? its not scale rot, not of them are discoloured or filled with liquid.

The guy that took my boa in to try sort her out said this should clear after a couple of sheds?

[LukaTisus]

The oil probably dried her out a bit. It should clear up in a shed or two, like the fellow told you. Is it possible to get some pictures of it?

If the mites come back, just follow the NIX solution that's being discussed on Corneliusmom's thread. Works wonders.

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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[Stargazer]

I don't have experience with this so take what I say with a grain of salt. But I would think with good humidity and regular soaks, this should clear up in a few sheds. I'm not sure what else you could do.

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[LdyDrgn]

First thing... don't use mineral oil. It dries out skin and makes the next shed just as difficult. All you need are the regular soaks and/or higher humidity when she goes blue. Eventually (not immediately, you must be patient) the sheds and her skin will improve.

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[sachak]

Reading this is a good start to my day I am very glad to hear that it should clear up.

I will NEVER EVER EVER EVER use any type of oil on my snakes as long as I live EVER....

as for the Nix treatment I dont even know if I can get that stuff here, the stuff people use here but its expensive is Frontline, the vets suggest it and all the petshops and breeders I know tell me its the best thing since sliced bread.



I didnt use any of this to actually get rid of the mites in my enclosure, instead I went all out, I took my drift wood and put in the oven at 150 degrees Celsius for an hour. put my logs in the bath with boiling hot water and a VERY strong bleach solution and left them there over night, I threw all my corn cob away, I boiled all my plastic plants, I then washed my cage down with bleech, then I bought a dog flea collar, and hung it in my cage for 2 full days with cage doors closed, and then I took a small blower heater and put it in my tank and closed glass doors and got the temp to over 100 degrees Celsius inside the tank and did this for over an hour too, then I vacuumed the room thoroughly quite a few times, and then after all this I washed the cage walls down with boiling water to get rid of bleach smell, and then I vacuumed the cage about 8 times from top to bottom to make sure any mite eggs stuck in any small places can go live the good live in my vacuum cleaner.

after all this I threw my vacuum cleaner bag contents out and cleaned it.

I bought new corn cob and put it in big steel pots and placed them all in my oven and baked them for a long time, then just to make sure I put it in plastic tubs and put it in my microwave just to make sure anything that lived the oven got nuked!!


Mites are all gone now and hopefully wont return, I am getting some front line though, so that I can get rid of them alot quicker next time and wont have to use oil.

I will admit that the oil did work, but it did more damage than good.

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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[Vinny]

Everything should clear up nicely!! Just DO NOT use any oil's they do work but usually causes problems like you have already noticed. Just keep the cage humid, but dont keep the substrate wet-that can irritate the belly scales. And you really dont have to soak her a lot. Also when she is getting ready to shed i would'nt soak her, and see if she has a better shed than the last time. As long as she is hydrated and the humidity is over 65% she should have a good shed. Pic's would be great if possible. I wish you and you Boa the best of luck. Keep us updated on her progress!!!

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[LdyDrgn]

Natural oils are ok and work fine (olive, grapeseed, etc), they're just unnecessary. It's the petroleum based oils that cause problems.

Never heard of using Frontline for reptiles, though. Do they suggest just using the spray and treating areas around the enclosure?

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[Stargazer]

Sorry for being redundant (I have posted the same thing on several other threads too). Mites can lay eggs outside the cage that can lie dormant for months. When they hatch, they can migrate back into the cage. That is why some people have mysteriously reoccurring mite issues. I would not recommend Nix, as it is designed for human lice and not specifically for reptile mites. I would get something just for reptile mites such as Provent-a-mite and wipe a little around the entrance to the enclosure. This product is designed to have residual effects that can last 30 days or longer to keep mites from reentering the cage. From what I have heard, Nix does not have residual effects. Naturally, you will want to remove the snake when applying and keep him out until after it dries.

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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[sachak]

Provent a mite doesnt exsist here. Well as far as i know an i have looked for it at quite a few places. I did buy this rubbish called mite off. But it had no effect and that was expensive.

Frontline is very strong so it has to be diluted, all the breeders and petshops here use it and it works brilliantly, i just couldnt afford it last month as i had a very bad month.

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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[Stargazer]

A good person to talk to about mite products is Bob Pound of Pro-products. He can probably give you the best advice on this. I'm sure there is stuff you can order online.

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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[Mike Schultz]

I use Nix as it is what is used at my place of employment and it always does the trick. Just nix the snake with a nix/water solution in a rubbermaid bin or something and leave it on for a few hours (be sure to put newspaper in the bottom so there is no liquid for the snake to drink). Nix out its enclosure and rinse it all away, then set it up like new. I'd do this every few days for a week to be sure all the mites are gone, although they are usually all gone after 1 or 2 applications.

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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[Stargazer]

When talking to Bob Pound, he felt that using Nix and other human products for reptile mites could potentially result in strains of mites that are resistant to all products, even reptile products. Nix was created for human use and so does not have the same polymers a dedicated reptile mite product has. Not to say it's not effective--just passing along some information I received.

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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[sachak]

I use frontline, its extreamely powerfull for use in the enclosure and it kills the eggs too, and then you dilute it in a 1 part frontline and 10 part water solution on your snake, it works like the bomb.

I have tried Mite off and it was a joke, its like the mites were loving that stuff lol

the reptile vets here in SA recomended it to me and the petshops and all the breeders I have spoken too all use it and they wont use anything else.

but anyway, that trouble snake is gone now, it was not in good shape at all!! I made a thread on the whole situation so everything is all sorted now

	Mites Mites, close relatives of fleas and ticks

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