Little White bugs on him

[brandychams]

sounds like springtails to me or wood lice and a lot of keepers use them as a clean up crew for terrarriums so they are not harmful and if conditions dry out enough they should die on thier own since they need a moist place to live

 

[Leon911]

Well there is wood and a plastic vine as well as a potted plant in the cage, I thought substrate referred to things on the bottom of the cage?

Still not really sure what to do about the mites/bugs on him.. there seams to be some debate as to whether or not the reptile can be harmed with it.

 

[brandychams]

mites can and will harm your cham but if they are white they arent mites theyre wood lice which can be found in many types of wood or organic matter and they require wet conditions to survive so if you were to let your cage dry out between mistings they should die out on thier own if they persist you can bake all twigs in an 350 oven for a little bit and it will kill any pests and you can wash and repot plants in organic soil to rid any there just try to keep the soil from getting too wet or you could have the same problem again hope this helps

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

No offense, but I feel as if you are missing my point. Unless the problem will resolve itself, then I feel it shows a lack of proper husbandry to not treat. The same as a flea poses no threat to a dog on heartworm meds or head lice pose no real threat to a child but we still treat.

Then cleaning the cage is fine. The point is the mites are not infecting the chameleon so why treat it. Cleaning and getting rid of infested items in the cage is enough. No need to poison the animal. soak the chameleon to get the bugs off.

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

mites can and will harm your cham but if they are white they arent mites theyre wood lice

There are such things as WOOD MITES and they are white

http://www.typesofmites.com/wood_mites/wood_mites.html

not all mites feed off of reptiles.

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

Still not really sure what to do about the mites/bugs on him.. there seams to be some debate as to whether or not the reptile can be harmed with it.

Just soak him in luke warm water to wash them off.

 

[brandychams]

not to be argumentative but wood mites/wood lice/ springtails these are all the same critter wich are harmless right? not to be confused with the mites that will feed of your herp ?

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

not to be argumentative but wood mites/wood lice/ springtails these are all the same critter wich are harmless right? not to be confused with the mites that will feed of your herp ?

Wood mites and springtails are not the same thing but are both harmless to the reptile itself. The wood mites are not really doing any good like the springtails do.

To be honest I don't know if wood lice are the same as the mites. Maybe a different name for them

You are right that they all should not be confused with mites that are harmful to your reptile. You do not need to treat them in the same way. Them crawling on the chameleon is only because there is an infestation.

 

[brandychams]

thanks for clatifying

 

[Leon911]

ohhhhh boy... I really have no way to determine what species the bugs are but some a white, and one or 2 is black. I guess I'll just clean the cage up and stop misting for a day.... How should I get my chameleon water? Hold a straw in front of his mouth? I don't have a syringe.

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

ohhhhh boy... I really have no way to determine what species the bugs are but some a white, and one or 2 is black. I guess I'll just clean the cage up and stop misting for a day.... How should I get my chameleon water? Hold a straw in front of his mouth? I don't have a syringe.

Keep misting , you don't want to stop that. Take everything out of the cage. If its wood bake it in the oven. If its plastic soak it in bleach. Use a bleach solution to wipe down the cage and get into every nook and cranny.

Soak the chameleon in a shallow luke warm bath to get the bugs off before you put him back in the cage. You should be fine after all that.

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

Keep misting , you don't want to stop that. Take everything out of the cage. If its wood bake it in the oven. If its plastic soak it in bleach. Use a bleach solution to wipe down the cage and get into every nook and cranny.

Soak the chameleon in a shallow luke warm bath to get the bugs off before you put him back in the cage. You should be fine after all that.

You need to wipe out the eggs. That is why they keep coming back.

 

[Leon911]

Okay, I have a giant plant in the cage too, what should I do about the plant?

Won't the chameleon get really pissed off if I soak him in water?

I'll place the wood stick in the oven and wipe the cage with bleach.

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

Okay, I have a giant plant in the cage too, what should I do about the plant?

Won't the chameleon get really pissed off if I soak him in water?

I'll place the wood stick in the oven and wipe the cage with bleach.

If I were you I would trash the plant and get a new one. If that is not possible. Bake some soil to repot it and wash it off with soap and water. Let the soap sit on it for 10 min or so then rinse it off really well.

You will want to repot it as well. If not the bugs will probably return.

 

[Leon911]

I guess I could get a new plant, however I've only had it for about a month because I had to replace it due to other black bugs growing on the other one.

 

[Ryan Jarosek]

I guess I could get a new plant, however I've only had it for about a month because I had to replace it due to other black bugs growing on the other one.

Then you might be better off treating the plant you have. Most likely the bugs are in the soil.

 

[Leon911]

I stopped misting heavily and they went away but now are back in fewer numbers.

 

[Rebbi]

Chameleon Info:

* Your Chameleon - Male Veiled about 2-3 months old
* Handling - Not regularly. Only when he climbs on the mesh ceiling too close to the uva bulb
* Feeding - 1/4inch crickets gut loaded with the green supplements. He eats ALOT, I dust them with calcium every other day and a vitamine once a week.
* Supplements - Calcium and vitamine with d3
* Watering - Misting, twice a day whenever it seams dry. I usually watch him drink to make sure
* Fecal Description - Normal I think, poos once a day in the morning, sometimes the white thing is a shade of yellow
* History - Got him from a pet store who bought him from a private breeder at 3 weeks old

Cage Info:

* Cage Type - Glass aquarium. Was told that this was okay for untill he reaches 6 months
* Lighting - Heat lamp and uva light. 12 hours on 12 off
* Temperature - mid 70s durring day and low 70s durring night. Thermometer on probe to measure
* Humidity - It varies from when I mist
* Plants - Yes, I checked the plant site and selected one that was chameleon safe
* Placement - On desk table, relatively high up
* Location - Toronto, Canada

Problem. If I look very closely at my chameleon I can see these tiny nearly microscophic bugs that look like tics or flees... Im not sure what they are if they are harmful or a parasite or how to get rid of them. He doesn't seam to mind them but I am still worried.

Sounds like mites. Take him to the vet if u can. There are sprays for reptiles for mites,just make sure it's safe for your cham. My snake had them once. Clean your cage out w vinager n water mixture.

 

[Kaizen]

Sounds like mites. Take him to the vet if u can. There are sprays for reptiles for mites,just make sure it's safe for your cham. My snake had them once. Clean your cage out w vinager n water mixture.

Just an FYI, this thread is from 2011.