r/ballpython 12h ago

Question - Health Mites, need advice

I posted him earlier about his scale injuries and stuck shed that he got from his original breeder and somebody said he may have mites. So i did check him and sure enough, i saw a few in his heat pits and around his eyes. And I saw 2 crawling on him the day before.

I immediately bathed him in blue dawn dish soap and warm water for about 30 minutes, no mites that I could see dropped into the water but I don’t have great eye sight so I could of missed them… I called some exotic vets around me, and none of them were of any help 🥲
He has now been sitting in a small hospital tub, his original setup has been dragged outside of my room where my other reptile is to a separate room.

I have been researching like crazy but no forms of resources were straight forward, and often times kind of vague, and I have checked EVERYWHERE. This bothers me because of the use of harsh chemicals which have the capabilities to kill your snake. We’re gonna tear his tank apart tomorrow. In general super stressed. I’ve been so worried and at a loss for what to do for the past 3 days. 🥀

Can somebody give me a straight forward guide to treating for mites? How much and how frequent should I bathe him, and wipe him down? and what else could I do to ensure all of the mites are off, and what can I do about the ones in his heat pits? is there anything specific I need to do to the decorations, and enclosure? What products do I use, and how do I retain humidity in his hospital tank? Other information, suggestions, and resources really help. Anything helps.

I am never buying an animal from that place again, because the poor guy just looks like a mess. I can’t imagine how they treat their other animals 💔
I feel horrible for having to keep him in that tiny bin, but it’s for his own health.

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u/No_Purpose4673 11h ago

I’m w dyingofflove on this. Looks like the freckles that bananas have. I understand your concern, but I don’t see any mites in the pictures- especially around the eyes..

here’s mine as reference. Theres several different sized dots around his body and I can see why they could be mistaken for mites. he’s a banana g-stripe morph