rabidg

Hey thanks for the help Alan. I'll Try to pick up that book as soon as I get
some more cash rolling in. And yea I only own one snake (or reptile).

Turns out the mites came from the substrate itself (Repti-Bark or something
like that?). I hadn't realized that you had to freeze the bag first. I went
back to Petco today and the same guy was there from before and apparently he
had told me that little detail when I first bought the snake. I guess I
mightv'e been a bit overwhelmed at the time (I was buying everything I
needed in one go). Well I looked up what to do on the net, which took time
cause there were so many different methods of getting rid of mites. I
finally decided on cleaning out the aquarium, cleaning the snake in warm
water, and soaking him in oil for a bit. Suffocates the mites that didn't
wash off.

More good news is that I fed my snake (cornsnake) a pinkie (or pinky?)
today! And he ate without any problem. At first he didn't notice it and went
hiding but after about an hour I kinda "showed it to him" (let his nose
touch it) and he almost immediately started swallowing! He tried it sideways
but quickly decided to do the traditional "headfirst" thing. And as I look
over there now it looks like he went hiding again. He just swallowed about
15 min ago!
Sorry for babbling but its my first snake and I'm excited.

Thanks again Alan!.............and fr0glet too.

-RabidG

cindy

Freeze the bag first?? Since when? Sounds like a pile of crap to me. I've
never yet frozen or been told to freeze a bag of substrate, and have never
gotten a mite infestation from anything except a new animal that I didn't
check out carefully enough. Has anyone else?

I think your salesperson sold you a line of bull, and your snake had mites
when you got it. Either that or the entire store is so infested with them
that they are even in the bags of substrate! Not a good thing either way.
Beware.

Cindy

julian hales

I have never once froze or checked substrate for mites, maybe its US thing.
CB corns shouldnt have mites full stop

slither factory

Excuse me?
The mites came from the bag of Repti-Bark?
So you have to freeze the bag first?

What a crock of CRAPOLLA!

Unless PETCO is so inundated with reptilian mites that they can be found in
their dry goods, you were handed a bigger load of bull than a rodeo clown!

First and foremost, mites could not survive for extended periods of time
without a host (reptile).They survive by sucking the blood of their host,
and can breed in substrate(s) in or near infected animals, but they are not
a parasite that is "in" Repti-Bark or any other type of substrate when
purchased (and stored) separately from reptiles.

I am sure that ZooMed would be tickled to hear that PETCO (and their
employees) are telling customers that their product "contains mites and
needs to be frozen" before use.

Sounds to me like the animal you purchased at PETCO was already infected
with mites at the time of purchase. I know that would be hard to
believe...PETCO, crappy animals, worse care, and uneducated boobs selling
animals. I would imagine, that by this morons answer to you, this is a
problem they are well aware of, and have devised a line to tell the new or
uninformed customers anything so they (PETCO) doesn't have to take
responsibility for the sub-standard care of their animals.

~Wade

fr0glet

Slither Factory <slither@comcast.net> blurted:


Again, there can be all sorts of insects living in bark or forest
floor shit. The chances of those being SNAKE MITES are virtually nil.
I wouldn't doubt that the snake DID contract mites while in the care
of that particular store. It's certainly not unheard of. I'm sure
you've had mites at your house too, right Wade? It only takes one
infested animal with poor quarantine/preventative techniques to start an outbreak.

Just need to say the following:

#1. I am not an uneducated boob. I have boobs, but they're educated.
#2. There are over 600 petco stores nationwide. There is no statement
that covers every store, especially not "sub-standard care of their
animals". My store wins awards on a regular basis for our animal care,
as do lots of other petcos.

Your blanket insults suck, Wade.

fr0glet

slither factory

True...but I'm not twit enough to blame it on the substrate.

Here is an excerpt that you may find interesting:

"Other stores like PetCo and Petsmart are a step up [from puppy mills] and
work with local shelters to "adopt" homeless animals instead of selling them
for profit, however, both of these chains contribute to the misery of the
exotic pet trade. PetCo, in particular, is notorious for substandard animal
care." - San Diego District Attorney

Isn't it funny, the biggest supporters of Big-box pet stores are their
employees? I wonder why then, with ALL their awards (according to your
response), they don't advertise on Kingsnake, or the Fauna Forums; or in
Reptiles magazine?

How many PETCO booths have you seen at reptile shows? I've been to reptile
shows in Florida, Ohio, Utah, California, Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, and New
York...I have yet to see a PETCO booth? I wonder why that is?

Why is it, if you do a search for PETCO, other than their own advertising,
the bulk of the 509,000 entries/sites with the word PETCO is not favorable.

.....I discount all the Animal Rights wacko's....they don't like anyone.

Are you a boob?
Maybe not, but a little over-sensitive.

Facts are facts however...you are working for a company that has such a HUGE
reputation for animal neglect/care, that you will always be on the defensive
whenever anyone dares to voice that aspect of the business.

This is the deadweight employees like you have to carry around when working
for pet store chains like these. Regardless of how good a job an individual
may be doing, or their experience level, that person aquires PETCO's
reputation, not vice-versa.

Should PETCO be shut down?
NO. That would just be a victory for Animal Rights groups.
They should, however, stick to selling dry and non-perishable goods.

~Wade