How to Completely Get Rid of Snake Mites 

GoHerping posters are here! Order one now, before I run out of shipping boxes lol goherping.com/shop

That's actually not as complicated as I thought it would be , my snake doesn't have mites but its good to have this knowledge before it happens or ever happens :)

"its probably one of the worst parts of reptile keeping" you sir have clearly never changed anaconda water

Oh geez, I’ve seen snakes with black specks like that at PetCo! The employees said it was just dirt! Those poor snakes...

"From the neck down" * pauses * * sudden realization * Do they have a neck?? Lmao!!

Why am I watching this, I don't even have snakes. ...... yet

not trying to be a know it all or say your way of doing things is wrong but i wanted to share how i personally get rid of mites and how my work does. (using sunny as example) Step 1: remove the snake from its enclosure. Step 2: using one hand to cover the snakes face spray the snakes body with the mite killer. Step 3: using a dry paper towel rub the mite killer over the snakes body and belly being careful around the face and pits (mites are commonly around the heat pits) Step 4: place the snake in isolation for 5-15 minutes (the chemical kills the mites by drying them) Step 5: take the snake out of isolation and using a wet paper towel clean your snake at the same time clean the isolation chamber (plastic container) and put your snake back in isolation. Step 6: remove all hides and decor from enclosure and place in garbage bag.(be sure to wash hands and forearms after handling contaminated items) Step 7: clean the substrate out of the enclosure and use a vacuum to get the remainder. Step 8: fill the garbage bag with a 5-10% bleach mixture and let soak for 1 hour. ( this can be done in a bath tub or container of your choosing) Step 9: fill a bucket with a 5-15% bleach mixture and using a cloth apply to the enclosure.( i recommend doing this outside as bleach can ruin things but thats up to you) step 10: let enclosure dry for 10 minutes then finish drying it with a cloth step 11: using a damp cloth clean the enclosure step 12: after letting your decor and hides dry for 24 hours proceed to reassemble your enclosure. should be 100% mite free i also recommend giving the snake a soak before putting it back in the enclosure as the chemical does dehydrate their skin and can give them a nasty shed this process is fairly long and complicated but from my experience the best way to git rid of mites right away as a one time deal

Can I ask how old you are? You seem young but very educated. It's refreshing seeing someone actually educated on RU-vid- keep it up

My dog was put down today. Thank you for being you and helping bring happiness into my day. Your an inspiration to me and I hope you reach a million subs someday. R.I.P Hank, you were a good doggo.

You are literally my favorite RU-vidr ever. Thanks you for your excellent work!

The one dislike is a mite

Thank you for posting this. A work acquaintance just died in a head on collision. His girlfriend asked me to take his snakes. The ball has mites so this video was perfect! And I enjoyed your presentation. I can't sit still very long so a 20 min. video was iffy! LOL But I enjoyed yours and watched it all the way to the end.

3:30, Sunny free roaming LOL!

Tell all of your viewers Backwater reptiles is the worst. Just bought 2 Red eyed frogs from them and 1 died within an hour and the 2nd one died the next day. They looked way too young to be sold and were not packaged well, probably got thrown all over the place during shipping. I will never buy anything from them again. Pass it on

Just wanted to say that your videos have been helping me with my first reptile and you have also helped me find my major 💜💜💜

I just purchased a BCI boa about 2 weeks ago. I had her on aspen but humidity was becoming a bit of an issue so I switched to coco husk substrate. Made a massive difference. She had her first meal in her new enclosure soon after. 2 days later (a week after changing substrate) I went to check on her as I had been doing daily. Unfortunately I saw mites.. clear as day. I had a wooden enclosure for her which I have since thrown out. She is now in a brand new glass enclosure a full floor away from where her old one was. I have been using this method daily. And only sparying the paper towels and snake every 3 days, I have also added in a dawn soap soak for her which I do while I clean the enclosure. So far I'm 4 days in and have noticed a drastic drop off in the amount of dead mites in the enclosure each day. I did find one on her this morning which I will get off when I do the cleaning. I'm hoping I can have this problem handled in another week or so as long as I keep up with the cleaning daily. I think I may be stressing her out with taking her out alot. But I feel it's worth it in the long run to not have her suffer. Anyway.. thanks for the tips on this. And hopefully my sweet linguini will be back to living a mite free life soon. 🤞

On behalf of myself and my snake, thank you!! This is info/demo is super helpful.

Thank you for this!! Just got an adult rosy boa 4 days ago and found mites on him today. (already super pissed at the locally owned store I got him from for not providing him hides, or feeding enough, and now this 😠) Your method seems a lot easier and safer than some I read about, got my spray ready to pick up as soon as I'm off work. Thank you

thank you so much! i'm very interested in getting a snake and i'm trying to make sure the snake i get stays as healthy as possible! thanks so much for this video. and by any chance, could you tell me what type of enclosure you but your ball python in?

Do you think boiling would work? (for the heat tolerant equipment, not the snake)

Thank you so much for the info !! Just got mites on my ball python collection this weekend and I spent two days cleaning everything. I bought the same spray you had in this video. It worked and they were dropping like flies 🤣🤣 bit thanks again ! I’ll be doing this daily for a while during the breeding season 👍🏻💯

im getting a ball python in 10 days after researching for 2 years and you've helped me alot!! thank you and you deserve so much more viewers :-) i want to draw something up for you soon so ill update you whenever i get to that.

Great Video! Thank you! Just had a question. I understand this whole processes, but how do you deal with the mites on the snakes head if you could only spray neck down?

This video helped out a lot, also baking the wooden decor at 200 degF for 20 min and putting the decor in the fridge for over a week helped kill any mites and eggs on the decor. The process took me a month to kill all mites.

I orderd a poster 2 days ago. They look so cool. Also please do another reptile room tour.

I just discovered your channel man and I love it. My ball python is healthy and all because of your advice and knowledge. Thanks Iil bro💯✊🏾

We also bought our ball at repticon and have now noticed she has mites. I appreciate the super awesome video cause I had zero clue what to do. We will be starting this tomorrow! My question is we have Kenya sand boa I haven't seen any on her or her enclosure but should we treat her cage as well or just monitor it really close?

Thank you for posting this, it's very helpful. Unfortunately I just realized the baby Coral Glow BP I got for my bday last week has mites. 😑 I got him from a very large reptile distributor, that I have purchased from a few times before, so it's super disappointing. Now im off to clean.

Great vid man! Better than most about this topic. Nice n detailed. Also the worst part of reptile keeping is obviously just getting one... it's an addiction!

I've watched so many videos this was the most helpful thank u so much

This is the best channel for reptiles owners

Great video. Proud of you bro!

I just found out my ball python has mites.i was hoping you had a video about this subject.i really enjoy watching your videos and you are pretty much my go to you tuber if Info for my reptiles. thanks and keep up the good work

This video really helped! Thank you 😊

Thank you sooooo much i need this right now.

I used olive oil on my rat snake--just put a generous amount on my hands and let it slide through to rub it in. I then thoroughly cleaned the tank. He was fine after one treatment. But it wasn't like he had a lot of mites; I caught it early. We both had smooth skin afterward. :)

How easily will they migrate to another enclosure? I just found Mites on BP and ordered the spray you recommended. I also have leopard geckos in the same room, should I treat both? I have not seen any in the LG's enclosure. yet... Great video by the way! Thanks for the information.

Thank you so much you helped my snake live and get rid of the mites.

Lol that snake escaping in the back is my favorite part. Shoulda left the blooper reel of you trying to find it

Would you like to do an updated Version of this? Got some mites at the moment and I think you might have some new/ better information of the subject. Also free video idea ;)

Great video thanks for the help

Would it work to put the hide and water bowl in the oven at a low temp to burn the mites off? I don’t even have a snake yet, but I’m getting a ball python in about 2 weeks! Super excited!!

Thank you so much I needed this!

I am hoping my parents will allow me to get a ball python! Your videos have REALLY helped with my research!

I like how Sonny chilled on the tank behind you & started climbing between the metal shelves 😂😍

Thank you so much for this video!!

This mite work for me, great advice!

Your voice is the most soothing thing ever😂

Love the vids G stay lit😎🤘🏽

Very informative video! Enjoyed it much!

Thank god this helped. I will get rid of these mites for ever

If the snake doesnt have mites should u still spray the enclosure to be extra sure?

You should do posters with black or grey background it's more pleasant to the eye. Will definitely get one. Keep up the good work!

We use Styrofoam packing peanuts as a clean burrowing substrate for a short time. It works great. It's cheap, bright white and so easy to burrow in... Thanks for your channel

I might be getting a corn snake! My cousin recommended your channel and I made a playlist about corn snakes. I didn't know that snakes could get mites. (I dont know a lot about mites, care for snakes, or how to feed them.) But i have only watched a few of your videos and its really helped me! I'm still young I'm only 10. Maybe in a few years I should get a corn snake? I really think snakes are super cute. But I don't know if I should get one soon because I'm still young. Maybe when I'm 13? :)

I have the same type of snake recently got him a month ago his name is Sami and I recently seen some mites thank you for the tips

So I got my first snake a month ago. When I first got him I didn't see any signs of blood mites, but he is a Cali king snake so most of him is black so it'd be hard spot them.Then today (a month later) when I went to clean out his water bowl there were probably twenty black little bugs floating in the water. I don't really know what else it could be but it's odd how I only notice now. I never saw him soaking or anything on him when I take him out to hold him. I got Bandit from snakes at sunset (there aren't any reptile places that sold king snakes by me) so maybe he had them from the beginning? Also it could only really be blood mites, right?

Watching this video was super helpful! I do have a couple of questions though just to clarify, GoHerping! We got our Ball Python, Annabelle, about a week ago from Petsmart and I just noticed a few mites (only seen 2 total so far). In the cleaning process of this, would you put the snake in an isolation area such as a plastic container before cleaning them? Also, for any wood hides, would you recommend spraying them as well, or just completely disposing of them? I would like to get rid of the few mites we have as soon as possible so they don't get out of hand. Thanks in advance for your help! :)

Thank you for the video. My one year old ball python has mites, and they are getting worse. I will try this.

I was wondering if this type of tank setup would work for breeding or quarantining. I dont currently have reptiles but have had them in the past and am contemplating getting a BP after i move out of my parent's house

I got a cute little corn snake from petsmart recently because no one was buying it and I felt bad considering it's living conditions. Turns out it has mites and has now transfered those to my sweet ball python. I didn't figure it out till she started soaking in water for long period of time and she skipped a couple meals which she hasn't done before. So I take them and give them both a seperate thorough look over and my corn has a ton while my ball seems to just be getting them. Been stressing out about it big time and doing tons of research. Thanks for the video! Any and all tips will be welcomed 🙏

I have a fake rock hide an a wood hide that have holes an cracks in them, do u think if I soke them both in water mix with the mite spray an then bake then both in the oven for a bit, do u think it would help kill any mites in them so I don’t have to buy more hides?

What stuff do u use to treat the mites and where could i get some

An alternative a friend of mine found was to basically give your snake an sunflower (I think) oil bath, after 5 minutes the mites would have suffocated. Although you do need to make sure to rub the oil into the snake's scales so every nook and cranny is covered. Then just give them a normal water bath to wash all the oil off and all the mite bodies will come out with the next shed or when you dry the snake off. Also instead of using chemicals you can just out everything in boiling water, if possible, to cook the mites inside the enclosure

Dont throw your hide or bowl away. Clean them as best you can, place them in a trash bag and then into the freezer for a few days... If your super paranoid wait 5 days then you know you're good.

Thank you!!

I just did this today! Does this work for wood mites too? There's no mites on my snake, but I noticed little mites in the enclosure and read they should be wood mites?

I have a 9 month old black pewter. He's absolutely the love of my life. Because of his coloring I can't completely tell if I'm being over protective or if he has mites. He hasn't been eating as much recently as well so I'm getting scared. Anyone have any advice?

if i had a rocky water dish that was hard to clean would boiling it be ok to sterilise it? or is there a chance they might come back

Is it possible to use different enclosure or like a tub while you clean the enclosure they're originally in? So basically clean both the snake and its enclosure at the same time? Or just while he/she hanging about so they dont get hurt while you focus on cleaning the enclosure?

Best thing I found was olive oil, you rub it all over the snake, it traps all the mites and makes all the smaller ones under the scales come up for air and get trapped as well. One of the best snake keepers I ever knew taught me this, you just have to soak them afterwards and its completely safe for them. after a few days of doing that, they were mite free. Also a good way to clean the cage that way too.

How do you clean the original hides and water bowls, to get them ready for putting back in tank at the end

Is the Amazon affiliate link still active from a few videos ago for the temp gun? I need a temp gun and wanted to help out a little too lol awesome video by the way!

Hi! I just recently got a ball python and have been watching many youtube videos about care for them. When I went to pick up my baby I checked for mites and thought I didn't see any but as it turns out he has them. I have been taking extra care to get rid of them (basically doing this every day and cleaning him for two days in a row and then a break on the third). I believe I am making progress (no more spots on his paper towel bedding and he seems less irritated. He is eating very well though) but he still has a few red spots on his belly. Is this from mite bites or something else? I wanted to ask if you can SEE mite eggs. While cleaning around is cage today (the shelf above his) I saw what looked like eggs. When I roll my finger nail on them they pop. Granted, I have two cats and we are dealing with fleas at the moment as well. They look like flea eggs, but I'm worried that they are mite eggs? Again, I'm finding them on the shelf above his tank. One of my cats does jump up there. Thank you so much for your videos!

I use provent a mite, it’s great

In the past I treated my snakes for mites. But what about mites getting in the eyes? I lost all my snakes due to the fact that mites got in behind their eyes. I used spray but avoided the head. What can we do to fix this?

I have birds in my room as well. Could they find their way over onto them? Or would they not bother them?

Could you damp some paper towel with the mite spray and wipe down the snake with that?

For the tank I would suggest submerging it in the tub, for the lid crazy glue can cover up the screen lid gaps. I would also suggest getting aquarium silicone and going over the original silicone if the tank is old to cover any gaps from aging.

Your snake in the background just slithering around lmao

I don't even own a snake, much less one with mites... Yet I still watched this lol

@GoHerping So I unfortunately have mites on multiple animals, I have a MilkSnake (The Culprit of it all) that I had rescued and was in bad shape. I have my first little baby female (Pastel Ball Python) that's about 8 1/2 months old. I also have a Leopard gecko and a Veiled Chameleon. Fortunately the cham and the gecko are clean. (Thank the lord). Unfortunately this is the second time I've had to deal with them in a 4 month period. I'm guessing that I didn't clean them enough? I only used the NC Reptile spray for a few days the first go around, but this time I've used it for about 2 weeks and I'm still not seeing any improvement whatsoever. It seems like there are more! Please help! I'm lost and I don't want them getting sick!

Hi! My new baby albino Pueblan milk snake got mites. I'm not gonna return him but how do I keep the mites from my other herps!??

Q the escaping ball 😂😂

7:27 meanwhile in the background a ball python escapes

3:33 Escapeing snake! xD

Perfect!

I love your videos

I love sunny in the tank like "dad wtf this better not be the new set up fREE ME"

Can I still use my lights with the towels in there

What do you do if you have a bioactive setup

I did a light spray over everything and when I returned him to his enclosure, he was acting like he wants out. Is that normal? I was thinking maybe the fumes are too strong, hes a baby still

thank you - great info - but its gonna be hard as I have a 6x2x2 foot enclosure and another 50 gallon tank :(

"Wheres the neck and wheres the tail." I died.

Please reply....but can you use paper towel or newspaper for its everyday bedding is it safe? and do ball pythons need to burrow into something or is something that's not necessarily needed...?

Nice mite pun,so that reptile spray u got is very mighty.

For burrowing species you could heat or freeze the substrate. I put my substrate in a rubber made bin then poured several large pots of boiling water over it. I let it sit until the water cooled, then did it again. If freezing, I'd freeze for at least 48 hrs.

Hello- I am strongly considering adopting a Ball Python in the near future. I've never owned a snake before and so I have one question that no one seems to agree on. For the snake enclosure I have a rather large, approximately 40 gallon take ready to use and another smaller 30 gallon as well. They both have lids that are solid sliding lids at the top and neither are mesh/ screen. With this in mind, my question is, do these enclosures need solid lids to keep humidity in as some websites advise, or screens for air as others recommend? It would be rather easy to find a strong, "escape proof" screen lid to fit these tanks, but I need to know if that's necessary or even advised. please answer and thanks in advance to anyone who does -a very concerned first time potential reptile owner

your my favorite RU-vidr

I love this kid he makes me laugh lol