L. Williamsi mites, things that work?

[forsbergpetter]

I am having a real problem with mites on my group of young willimasi.
I have tried "jurassi Mite" with not that much luck.
Does anyone else have any GOOD and tried out tips that actually works?

Regards
Petter

 

[Palor]

I have had excellent success with keeping mite infested geckos in a bare bottom tank and using a Q-tip with a little vegetable oil on it to remove the mites. Check for and remove mites ever couple of days. In 3-4 weeks the mites will all be gone.

This may not be practical with geckos as small as the williamsi's.

 

[Matt K]

You could try adding Hypoaspis miles (predatory mite) to your caging....they eat any other mite they can find and are harmless to reptiles. Look them up at the website for Evergreen Growers supply.

 

[forsbergpetter]

You could try adding Hypoaspis miles (predatory mite) to your caging....they eat any other mite they can find and are harmless to reptiles. Look them up at the website for Evergreen Growers supply.

I have acctually tried "Hypoaspis miles" with no success at all. Seams that they did not eat any of the mites.

 

[forsbergpetter]

Bump

 

[zohariels]

I've used the same technique as palor with success, on both larger phelsuma species and williamsii. One 'trick' I also use that was suggested by (I think!) is to use a bag where youre working to help catch the geckos if they escape. So far no escapees, although I've probably just cursed myself here! Also try to do the demiting at nightime to help them not get as stressed out.

 

[Tariq Stark]

I do not know if they are available in Sweden but predatory mites should work very well in this case. There is a Dutch company that sells them (Refona). I have very good experiences with these mites. Good luck!

Tariq

 

[coyoteluver]

I have always had great success with "Reptile Relief" spray. It kills mites and ticks. I like this product because you can use it to spray the cage and decorations as well. I worked at a pet store for a long time and we used this on many of the reptiles, none of them ever having a problem. Just do not use it for a day after they shed, I believe it says something on the bottle about that.

 

[AWW]

Ditto on the vegetable oil and q-tips. My williamsi had mites when I got them and cleared up pretty quickly after two sessions of q-tipping olive oil on the mites. I dabbed some on, then went back in a little while (10-15mins I think) and wiped each mite off with the q-tip. Obviously a gentle touch and patience are key with geckos this small. I got mite spray from a pet store and they suggested spraying heavily with water before treatment to make sure your geckos aren't thirsty before putting pesticide on them so they don't lick it off. I did this for the oil too, just in case it is harmful if ingested in large quantities (how much is a 'large quantity' for williamsi, I have no idea. ) Make sure they're in a quarantine cage, and be careful with the q-tipped mites, I hear they can travel between herp tanks fairly easily.

 

[The_Greg]

I just tried to de-mite my females and the best i could do is get some oil on one mite on one of the females. The other one has three mites on her still. I was not able to wipe off the mite from the female with one mite on her, but i did cover it well with oil.

Is there any easier way? I read briefly on here somewhere to give them a bath... Or can i swab a product that will kill the mite, so I dont have to worry about removal as well?

 

[zohariels]

After about 4 or 5 swipes the mite should come off as well. Sometimes they seem to stick pretty good. Personally I wouldn't use a bath with a williamsii just because I could see that sending it into shock.

 

[AWW]

A lot of people suggest soaking reptiles to aid shedding. I tried soaking with one of my Phelsuma when she was having trouble shedding and she basically freaked and stuck to the lid of the container I had her in. With arboreal geckos I haven't figured out a way to get them to submerge them without drowning or injuring them. For that reason I would think the bath idea is out, but maybe someone has a better way to give a climbing gecko a bath.

 

[Airedale]

For an arboreal bath, as I found with williamsi, I just put them in a small deli cup with maybe a 1/8 inch of water across the whole bottom. I hold the container sideways so the water is on one side of the container, then put in the little gecko. Then I slowly turn the container so the water rises REALLY slowly on the geckos body as high as is needed without getting it way up on the head (I stop at the neck), and just let them sit there. If you do it right, the gecko should hold still. Make sure that the water is lukewarm, so keep them from getting a shock from too cold or too hot. Let me know how it works for you.

 

[lemniscate]

"Mite Off" successful here with L. williamsi

I am having a real problem with mites on my group of young willimasi.
I have tried "jurassi Mite" with not that much luck.
Does anyone else have any GOOD and tried out tips that actually works?

Regards
Petter

I used "Mite Off". Sprayed each generously on day 1 & day 3. It`s not a pesticide, so no worries about toxicity. Also, no need to handle little beasts. Worked a treat. Dead mites fell off eventually without any intervention. It says it`s effective on whole vivarium, but I completely washed & re-set, just in case. Gave bark, artificial plants, etc. a good dunking in salt water. Seems to have done the trick.

 

[Graham_s]

I've used mite off as well, and it seems to do the trick. Not sure if you would get it in sweden though?

 

[Jerm]

Are your mites like the red ones that mine has?

 

[lemniscate]

Red mites on L.williamsi

Yes. That`s them. I used Mite Off.
You can get Mite Off on eBay or your local shop might have it or get it in for you.
When I found mine had mites, the annoying thing was having to strip down and completely clean the beautifully arranged vivarium I`d set up. No way round it, though, apparently.

Good Luck.