Snake mites, the bind of any snake keepers life. Lets face it nobody fancies the thought of any mite like creature in their home. However, just like fleas for cats and dogs, if you have a snake you may find yourself needing to eradicate snake mites. It’s not just snakes either, we have seen mites on several “non-snake” reptile species. Where do they come from? More often than not it’s a mystery, even a household with only one snake can suddenly find themselves with an outbreak. Luckily, it’s not frequent, and when they do occur they cannot cause humans any problems – unlike fleas. I did hear of one report of human infestation, but its rather debatable – over all the years of being involved in the hobby I’ve not heard similar tales, nor experienced similar. So, no worries in that concern.
However, we do need to eradicate the mites for the health of the snake. Severe infestations can cause severe problems for the snake, and there is also debate on whether mites contribute to the transmission of such snake ailments as IBD (Inclusion Body Disease) and ophidian paramyxovirus. So it is critical for mites to be treated. Over the years there have been many chemical treatments (sprays and the like) and treatments based on desiccation (substrates etc) but by far the most appealing is the natural option of using a mite that predates on snake mite. Once the snake mites are all gone the predatory mite then dies out – simple.
TAURRUS Instructions The packaging contains living product, natural enemies of the reptile mite. To maximise the success of the biological control treatment, please follow these instructions carefully. I have used Taurrus successfully several times, and find they are relatively successful. There are sometimes comments made, mainly on social media groups, they are not effective, but I suspect that is mainly down to not following the instructions carefully.
These are the official instructions;
BEFORE APPLICATION: Use the product as soon as possible. Store the product in a fridge between 5 – 15 °C for max. 2 days after arrival. Do not use Taurrus if chemical treatment was used in the vivarium within the past 2 weeks.
APPLYING THE PRODUCT: If possible remove and replace the substrate This will accelerate the effect of Taurrus. A natural substrate such as wood shavings, bark or cocopeat is ideal for Taurrus. Taurrus can be used to cure a snake mite infestation or to prevent one. The Taurrus M container is generally sufficient for treating a regular sized terrarium. Before usage, gently shake the Taurrus container for 20 seconds to blend the contents thoroughly. Remove old substrate from the vivarium whenever possible, to decrease the level of infestation and to accelerate the effects of Taurrus. (but not compulsory for Taurrus to work effectively). Taurrus mite predators like organic substrates, empty housing is not ideal, please add some fresh wood shavings, bark or cocopeat etc. The container can be adapted to use as a shaker if the middle section of the lid is pushed out. A cup is supplied with Taurrus L/XL to distribute the predators. Additionally the PREVORUS slow release tube can be used to take the mite predators closer to the snake. The more product used, the quicker the results, no risk of overdosing.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? Taurrus predators will consume up to 95{cb5d0a8cf0c44aef2db327d9ab0dba08dd09aed1126b509e5fa01d3aaa87fe47} of the snake mites within 10 days and stay active for about 3 weeks.. The predators will die after they have consumed the snake mites. Breeders ideally use Taurrus as a preventive solution every 4- 8 weeks. Mould may be seen inside the terrarium after Taurrus is used, due to humidity. No secondary effects on the reptiles have been reported after the use of Taurrus.