| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| speedy231278 |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 17:03:58
After the success of the first feed, typically Patsy decided to turn her nose up at her next meal a couple of nights ago. Last night she took up residence in her water dish, and apparently is still in there now, which makes about 17 hours! She's been out quite often and has felt a little 'crunchy' which is usally a sign from our corns that tey are about ready to go into shedding mode.
Temp has been a nice steady 90/77 gradient for the last week or so, however the humidity is rather low at 35/37%. I did add some extra bark this morning to try and raise it, but I'll probably have to get some moss and/or do a bit of spraying to help in that respect. I've not noticed any signs of mites whenever she's been out, so unless I've missed any obvious signs, I'm going to assume either the low humidity has prmoted her to have a soak, or it's because she's feeling a little irritated coming up for her shed. She has two nice snug hides that she alternates between, so I don't think she's feeling insecure.
Feel free to tell me otherwise!
She's going to be evicted when I get back so I can check to make sure there's nothing suspicious in the water or on her, just to be on the safe side.... Besides, it was due to be changed last night anyway, however she had other ideas! |
| 17 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| speedy231278 |
Posted - 17/01/2011 : 14:17:12
After ending with a household score of 4-1 with our corn snakes (ie my missus only got crapped on once) we've developed a tactic to avoid excess washing. Neither Neil nor Missus are allowed out to play until the last mouse is lying in a nasty smelling heap... Once or twice they have been known to produce a second helping, but usually the carpet has been the recipient of that. Needless to say, I'm always wary when they stop and think for a moment or two... lol |
| n/a |
Posted - 17/01/2011 : 11:55:05
LOL - that's why she wanted to come out for a visit! I'm sure snakes are always prouder of it when they manage to do it in a human lap. Lucky you got her back in just in time. Saffron (4' corn) had the same notion last night - and I wasn't so lucky. She's such a peaceful girl; she lulls you into a false sense of security. Her finest hour was when she left what looked like half a pint of cat diarrohea in my sleeve. Thought I was safe last night though, as it's her feeding day today and nature had already taken its course, but it seems she had a generous amount stored up in a reserve tank ...oh no? Oh yes ...
Glad you managed to sort out Patsy's viv, and hope you never see any more nasty little critters. Keeping my fingers crossed for you ... right, just off to do the laundry ... |
| speedy231278 |
Posted - 17/01/2011 : 11:21:46
Finally managed to get the job done yesterday. Removed Patsy to a temporary RUB, took everything out of the viv (if two pieces of bark, a water dish and some kitchen towel are 'everything' lol) and blasted the viv with the mite spray. Instructions weren't exactly clear on what to do afterwards apart from redose in a week, not reintroduce the water for 24 hours and not spray the snake! I figured the longer I left it to dry off the better, so she was put back about three hours later. The bark hides were baked in the oven, and due to a litte overenthusiasm from our oven which seems to think the temperature needs to be twice what it says on the dial, one was deemed written off and had to be replaced!
Anyway, Patsy decided she wanted to come back out for a bit later on, and on replacement showed her appreciation by producing the most comical raspberry sound which seemed to go on forever, then what can only be described as the sound of a urinal flushing, plus a similar effect, topped off with marshmallow in the middle. Lovely....! The instructions on the spray say not to rinse the viv after application, but obviously I had no choice but to clear up the mess. I guess this will reduce or eliminate the effectiveness of the spray in the area concerned, so we shall have to wait and see. Still not seen any nasties since that rogue one the other night. |
| blackskull |
Posted - 16/01/2011 : 10:03:53
just for future info i found the callington mite spray in my local jollies of all places, but it didn't have a price on it |
| Royalbob |
Posted - 14/01/2011 : 01:11:24
wow, thats not good delivery times, prob out of stock. Sounds really promising that you've only seen 1 and she's not soaking, plus still eating. just treat and knock em on the head. |
| n/a |
Posted - 13/01/2011 : 22:49:34
Good luck, and fingers crossed, and death to any lingering mites, grrrrr! |
| speedy231278 |
Posted - 13/01/2011 : 22:34:57
Well, a week after ordering the stuff it's finally been sent today - not exactly impressive in my opinion. Since my last post, I've managed to find a single mite, and she's not soaked herself again either. I have no idea what the life cycle of a mite is, so I'm going to treat the viv when the spray (theoretically) turns up tomorrow as that single mite may have many friends lurking somewhere.
Anyway, as I type this she is having dinner, so that's another weight off my mind. |
| Royalbob |
Posted - 07/01/2011 : 12:03:44
That's great news that she's not soaking any more. Have you spotted any critters on the kitchen towel? She will probably put herself into shed as well very soon. People swear by the stuff speedy that's why i just posted that link. Gonna be cheaper than buying twice if another product doesn't work as well. Never had the little critters touch wood. Yep sphagnum moss is great for an increase in humidity. i dampen it and put it in a bowl on the hot side or under their hot hide the day that their eyes clear after going blue. raises humidity about 10% and i get a clean shed every time. Never used the bark, i just keep all mine on newspaper or kitchen towel. Make sure you bake the bark to kill any nasties that can be transfered to your snake. |
| speedy231278 |
Posted - 07/01/2011 : 11:29:20
Right, I've got some on order. Seems pretty pricey and they're a cheap shop! However, as they didn't bump up the shipping for adding stuff (I think four quid to send a tiny bottle is a bit steep) I've added a 4.5L pack of sphagnum moss and 70L of orchid bark, seeing as the former is recommended to increase the humidity and I'm almost out of the latter.
She's not returned to her water dish for another bath, so I guess things aren't that bad at the moment. Fingers crossed! |
| blackskull |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 21:46:24
i can vouch for the callington mite spray, used it on my royal and jungle carpet python. not seen any mites for a while now |
| Royalbob |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 21:42:02
Hiya speedy, sorry to hear that but at least you seemed to of caught it early. Reptile disinfectant won't kill the mites or eggs. You need to get some good quality mite spray such as http://www.surreypetsupplies.co.uk/callington-mite-spray-100g.html and treat her, the viv and decor according to the directions.. remove her and the viv away from your corns if possible until you know the mites have gone . hope that helps. |
| speedy231278 |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 21:05:22
Well, at least she hasn't gone straight back into her bowl. In fact, she's acting more like she wants to come back out for a cuddle, so I guess she can't be feeling too grotty!
I guess as I've only had her a fortnight there's a good chance whe came with them? |
| n/a |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 20:08:18
Oh no ...sorry to hear that!
Was hoping against hope it was pre-shed behaviour, but it bothered me when Bob said she'd been soaking too long.
If it is mites, do hope they get cleared up quickly, and that the corns escape. All the best. |
| speedy231278 |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 19:55:39
Well, I've had a very good look over her and can't see anything buried under the edges of the scales like the mite pic elsewhere on the forum. Although like our corns she does have some black spots on her belly they don't appear to be anything other than just colouration. Certainly the corns have never acted like they have anything wrong with them. There's no nasty stuff around her eyes either like is pictured elsewhere.
However, there were two or three black specs in the water dish, and although I couldn't make out exactly what the biggest one of them was (it was minute) it squish when pressed hard enough and gave out a very dark purply colour. So I'm going to assume the worst for the time being. All the substrate has been removed, the whole viv cleaned using pukka reptile disinfectant, the bark hides have been baked, the bowl thoroughly cleaned and disinfected and cleaned a second time, and the viv is now lined with kitchen paper to see if anything suspicious appears.
I'll get a second opinion from the local shop either tomorrow or Sunday, and if their better experienced eyes spy mites then it'll be the whole works treatment. I'm just hoping that her prolonged bath has drowned all the little buggers on her, and that the cleanup has got rid of any possible reinforcements. Otherwise it could be a long couple of weeks. I just hope that if it really is mites, the corns haven't managed to get them too! :-(
Edit: just had another look at the pics. 95% sure the thing I squished was a mite. However, unlike said pic, at least there were only two or three at worst... *sigh* |
| Royalbob |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 18:15:25
Hi speedy sorry for quick answer but gotta dash out
1. yes remove from water bowl and check over, thats too long to be sitting in there.
2 raise humidity to between 50 and 60% take it up to 65% if she's shedding
3. check if belly is pink or skin is dull. First signs of shedding.
4. check water bowl for any nasties. (black dots)
5. double check temps make sure not too hot.
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| speedy231278 |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 17:41:48
I'm sure she's not gone through the blue phase yet, she's not been out of sight long enough. Unless it's very quick with royals, but our corns usually take several days, and even before then it's very obvious.... |
| n/a |
Posted - 06/01/2011 : 17:37:02
Hi, sounds like a shed's very possible. I know what you mean about the crunchy/flaky thing. Saffy does this, and produces beautiful damp sheds with no assistance or altered humidity - but then, she's a corn.
It sounds to me as if Patsy would appreciate a damp hide in the cool end. A lidded plastic tub (if you have ice-cream fans in the household, an empty tub would be ideal) with a hole cut in the side for access and lined with damp kitchen roll (my favourite), sphagnum moss or a face-towel. Even if the snake doesn't use it, it adds extra humidity to the viv, and I put the water bowl at the warm end too (extra evaporation.)
Sometimes it's easy to miss the blue phase (they can be sneaky little gits!) but it doesn't matter - once the eyes have cleared, then it's a good idea to provide extra humidity within reason.
Do hope it is a shed and not mites! There will be other more experienced people along soon, but hope this helps for a start. |
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