BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

Hi all. Tonight, I just finished cleaning Stryker's tank but when I put him back in I noticed there was a singular mite on his head. I plan to bathe him tomorrow to avoid more showing up, but what other ways can I help treat and prevent this?

What colour is it? If it’s black then it’s definitely a bad one, white and red mites are harmless but can be irritating to the skink in very large amounts. A bath won’t really get rid of them that easily because there’s potentially more hiding in the enclosure.

Y33T wrote:What colour is it? If it’s black then it’s definitely a bad one, white and red mites are harmless but can be irritating to the skink in very large amounts. A bath won’t really get rid of them that easily because there’s potentially more hiding in the enclosure.

It's a white one but the tank was only just cleaned and we're out of bedding at the moment.

If it's a bad one (which I'm doubtful of if its white and you've seen just one) unfortunately there is never just one. If your skink is imported and a recent purchase I'd advise a vet check anyway. Reptile mites are black and when you squish one it'll usually contain blood from its host and make a red spot. A warm damp white paper towel rub should tell you if there are more. White mites and springtails (sort of look like an elongated mite type thing) are harmless and actually beneficial. And agreed, a bath will do nothing if it's a bad one. Find out what it is first before you go crazy ripping everything apart.

splashy07 wrote:If it's a bad one (which I'm doubtful of if its white and you've seen just one) unfortunately there is never just one. If your skink is imported and a recent purchase I'd advise a vet check anyway. Reptile mites are black and when you squish one it'll usually contain blood from its host and make a red spot. A warm damp white paper towel rub should tell you if there are more. White mites and springtails (sort of look like an elongated mite type thing) are harmless and actually beneficial. And agreed, a bath will do nothing if it's a bad one. Find out what it is first before you go crazy ripping everything apart.

Thank you! I just finished rinsing his back and I didn't see any more thank goodness. I've had him for two weeks and he was from a licensed breeder, so I really don't know about his background beyond him being dumped by a previous family. When I saw the mite on his head I tried to get it off him but he of course wouldn't let me, since he was trying to sleep. I do plan to take him for a check-up, anyways, since he's been having respiratory issues lately.

Hello,

new bts owner here (eastern bts). I just noticed super tiny white or yellowish mites in the food bowl of my skink (the food bowl was for around 3 hours in the enclosure). There were at least a dozen of these mites in the bowl. I keep my skink on wood chips, coco husk, leaflitter (not collected, its bought and fully dried), and some topsoil around some plants . I haven't seen any mites on my skink but I will check tomorrow. The skink is captive-bred and is around 4months old.

Should I be worried? How shall I respond? Exchange all the substrate? Until now I always only changed the substrate in on half of the enclosure.

DracoDussumieri wrote:Hello,

new bts owner here (eastern bts). I just noticed super tiny white or yellowish mites in the food bowl of my skink (the food bowl was for around 3 hours in the enclosure). There were at least a dozen of these mites in the bowl. I keep my skink on wood chips, coco husk, leaflitter (not collected, its bought and fully dried), and some topsoil around some plants . I haven't seen any mites on my skink but I will check tomorrow. The skink is captive-bred and is around 4months old.

Should I be worried? How shall I respond? Exchange all the substrate? Until now I always only changed the substrate in on half of the enclosure.

Disclaimer, I do not have a BTS but i do have other reptiles and for the most part white mites are often not actually mites but springtails. I and others could better asses the situation better if you would upload an image.