Mites What worked what didnt..

[suebee]

I know many people recently had mites and worked through them.. What i would like to see is a thread where people shared what they did and what worked along with how long they isoed crabs for. I think this would be helpful for others that will be ordering crabs in the future or may find crabs that have mites in the future. I also know some are still trying to battle with mites.
If you can mention if you lost any crabs what types of crabs were lost would be good to know too. Maybe we can put together some kind of list of what types of crabs are coming in with mites and what types are not handling them well. For instance maybe straws are making it through the baths and blue berries might not be?
Did you use predatory mites to get rid of your mites?
What type of substrate do you use?
Are you still having mite problems?

Working together if we can put together a mite care sheet that would be great.

[JediMasterThrash]

I kept the crabs in gravel, and bathed the crabs every week to remove mites from them, and then washed the gravel every week to remove mites from the substrate.

Took about 1-2 months of rinse and repeat but it got rid of the mites.

That was a long time ago. Now I've just always got an assortment of crawlies in my substrate so unless it's a noticeable outbreak (or a spider!) I don't give it much thought.

[suebee]

"Now I've just always got an assortment of crawlies in my substrate" JMT, as in mites? From what i have heard they get into the gills of the crabs and do much damage? Ive never had them so i dont know. Did you lose crabs from mites? Can you not get rid of them? or is it other things in your substrate.?

[JediMasterThrash]

By crawlies I mean bio-diversity. In any active substrate, there's a number of organisms. So it's not uncommon to see an occaisional mite or other tiny crawly thing around the substrate. Not all of them are harmful to crabs.

I always check the crabs and never see bugs on them. Also make sure the food bowls and water appear clean of them. Only in the substrate if you look hard enough or long enough.

When I did have mites that I got rid of, the mites were all over the crabs. So there's definitely a world of difference. But generally, specifically if you have any coir or dirt in your substrate (a more active substrate), you will have assorted bugs as a rule.

[suebee]

ok, when you said this i pulled out my microscope.. ive been going through my substrate.. i have coir.. i have leaf litter, and worm castings..Ive looked for a long time not.. no bugs..???

[JediMasterThrash]

Then go out side and find some and put them in the tank! Lol

Your mileage may vary. But not all bugs are bad bugs.

I didn't notice them the last couple years with 100% sand. Prior to that, I had 50% coir 50% sand, and noticed them then.

I've been trying out the 5:1 ratio for about 4 months now. I'll get a verdict on bugs with that at my next deep clean.

[suebee]

Then go out side and find some and put them in the tank! Lol - lmbo...

loving that.. My substrate started with 5:1 but now i add the left over worm castings daily and when i add in bark or leaves is there is any left over i let it stay in the tank.. i do cook the leaves to make sure no bugs go into the tank and ive never seen any bugs in my worm castings. My substrate right now is about on year 2 . I do add sand when i see it getting low..when i take out the food dish i have to scoop out around it and i guess i take out more then i should because the sand level does go down pretty fast.. Also moss is in my substrate i never take moss out but i am adding it weekly. They love to eat it but it also gets buried or broken down into the substrate. Oh i have crushed oyster shell in my substrate too. Ive been having great molts so i dont want to mess with it. I have not lost a crab to a molt in this substrate at all. Knock on wood!

[Guest]

One of crabs was absolutely covered in mites about 2 months ago. I gave it a bath in the salt-water pool, and they disappeared. Like instantly. None of the other crabs got them, I didn't iso the one that DID, and they were never in the substrate. Just on that one crab. I think I got lucky...

[tigermoon89]

I found this in an old thread from when we had members that ordered from LHC during the mite problem LHC was having. This is the info that those members were given from LHC:


"

Here's a basic rundown of what I did/am doing to treat mites:

-Baths in double strength salt water followed by a rinse in plain dechlorinated water with slime coat. 2-3 times a day for 5 days.

-Wait several days to see if any eggs hatch and then give crabs another double strength salt water bath with rinse. If this comes up clear then your crabs are probably mite-free.

In the meantime, your crabs must be kept in a "sterile" environment. Mine are being kept in an iso tank with paper towel as substrate, two water bowls, cuttlebone, food dish, and hidey

".


You can find more information on mites in this thread: viewtopic.php?t=78022&highlight=mites

[tigermoon89]

This is from a thread in emergency- I just thought it would be helpful to have the info here so all the mite info is compiled into one thread:

Suebee wrote:

ive been told that in order for the crabs to totally rid them self of the mites and when i say mites im thinking of the really bad ones that turn red from drinking the blood from the crabs, they hold on like a tick, that the crabs need to dig down and go through a molt.. This should be done in a iso tank in a different room from your other crab tanks.. while the crabs are under no food or water should be offered above ground so that the mites are not being fed above ground however do keep the tank humidity up to the normal 80%. A crab with mites will attempt to rinse his gills out in a pool of warm water both salt or fresh water and he will attempt to eat the needed foods to go down for a molt..provided fresh coconut crushed oyster shell and worm castings along with minerals so that the crab can eat the needed foods to ready himself for a molt. when the crab goes down to molt remove the fresh coconut from the tank.. if you see any mites on the glass of the tank use a vinegar solution 1 part vinegar to 5 parts water on a wet paper towel to wipe the glass of the tank to kill any mites and wipe them out of the iso tank. wash any dishes daily in the vinegar solution rinsing them with clear water and drying them well and replace the fresh coconut daily while the crabs are above ground.. attempt to remove any mites you see on the crab with a soft paint brush. Do not keep crabs with mites in the same room as any crabs that do not have mites, mites will jump from tank to tank very easy and will even travel on your shirt or other clothing..

hope that helps.. Sue

From this thread:
viewtopic.php?t=80597

[tigermoon89]

Mites are a natural occurance in the wild and unfortunately sometimes cannot be avoided. The c. perlatus that I received had a few mites on them and I just wanted to post a couple of additional tips that I have found to work.

First I followed the advice given from Livehermitcrabs.com:

Isolate all new crabs for at least 5 days. Bathe the crabs in luke warm, double strength salt water prior to placing them in iso.

If you don't find anything, bathe in dechlorinated water to remove excess salt and repeat in 3-5 days.
- If you find mites, bathe 3 times a day with double strength dechlorinated salt water for 5 days. Keep crabs in a sterile tank. I've been keeping them on wet paper towels, with a fresh and salt water dish, and containers cut into hide aways. Following the salt water treatment, bathe in dechlorinated fresh water (Using a stress coat dechlorinator). Stress coat should only be used for the hermit crabs when treating for mites.

After treating for 5 days, leave the crabs in Iso and re-check for mites in 5 days.

When I first bathed my crabs- I didn't see any mites, none in the water and none in the back of the shell or on the crabs.

I put them in a 20gal iso. I also placed spare shells in with them. They immediately inspected them and a couple of the crabs switched.

I decided to rinse out the old shells that the crabs had been wearing as one final test to see if they had mites. Unfortunately- 4 fell out of one shell and 1 from another.

So I stuck to the schedule as LHC outlined.
I also periodically place clean shells into the tank and wait for the crabs to show interest and change shells. This way you have more of a chance of getting mites out of the tank by removing the old shell and checking for mites.

After each session I soak the shells that were placed into the tank in double strength salt water. Rinse with dechlor water before placing them back in. I do this after each bathing session. I also change out the paper towel substrate and rinse the hides in hot water nightly.

[tigermoon89]

Another option for treating mites is H. Miles, a predatory mite that hunts down and eats other mites. Their lifespan is about 2 weeks. They will reproduce as long as they have a food source- other mites or mite eggs.

Here is a site that sells H. Miles and gives more information about them:
http://greenmethods.com/site/weblog/201 ... hypoaspis/

This is a link to my thread in Emergency- Wodesorel explains how the predatory mites have been effective in removing mites from the crabitat:
http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... 27&t=81644

Here are some additional tips that I've found to work:
The best advice I can offer is to give them as many hides as you can (plastic bottles cut into caves, butter tubs, etc. You can even put wet paper towels in a nest shape to help them feel like they are partially underground). Change paper towels and water every day. Rinse off objects in tank if you notice mites on them.

When dealing with exotics or crabs in poor shape that are severly stressed:

This is a method that I am currently using with my C. Perlatus and a large Purple Pincher. They were starting to become very lethargic due to all the stress of being in a new and sterile environment as well as from dealing with all of the baths.
I decided to use a substrate called coco-bark. It is pretty cheap ($10 at Petco for a large bag)- I mixed H. Miles into the coco bark- I highly recommend using this substrate- it's light weight and you can easily mix H. miles into it without having to worry about killing them (H. Miles can only dig down about 1/2 an inch into the substrate- if you feel that you have too many of the bad mites and it would only prove detrimental to allow the crabs to molt with a large infestation, stick with the sterile environment method and introduce H. Miles)- the cocobark will work well with any molters or destressers- the H. Miles will still be able to get to them when mixed into the substrate and hopefully eat any mites on the crabs. I've been doing this with my C. Perlatus since their re-introduction into iso due to a mite egg hatching- and so far it has worked quite well.

I had 3 very lethargic crabs: 2 large C. Perlatus and one Large Purple Pincher. They have been in iso with the coco bark substrate mixed with H. Miles for about a 3 weeks-4 weeks. This has allowed them time to destress. I have reduced bathing to 1-2x per day depending on if mites are spotted. I saw two mites last week- so far none this week Without this method, I'm sure that I would have lost the three mentioned.

I would also like to add that since dealing with mites (babies as well as adults) you will definitely want to use a magnifying glass and bright light- the babies are incredibly hard to spot- if near impossible without these tools! I've also noticed that the babies literally walk across water!

Also: You can tell the difference between H. Miles and the bad mites.
`H. Miles is brown and white in coloring and more angular.
` The bad mites are more circular, bright white or red, and look like tiny grains of thin sand with legs. The babies look like an opaque white.

[tigermoon89]

More helpful links for identifying mites:

Are the mites seen on the food or are they mainly on the crabs?

This thread details more on how to deal with harmful mites:
http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... hp?t=79255

This thread details mites and other bugs that can invade the crabitat:
http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... hp?t=30282

This thread has photos of food mites:
http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... hp?t=80388
and
http://hermitcrabassociation.com/phpBB/ ... c&start=15

[CrabAddict99]

Hey fellow crabbers! I was asked to offer my experience(s) with mites that I dealt with twice this past year. Here's some background info:
http://www.hermitcrabassociation.com/ph ... 30&t=82284

`What species of crab(s) were you treating for mites and did you notice that certain colored mites seemed to come off of certain specific species of crabs over others?

The first time I treated C. perlatus, C. violascens, C. brevimanus, C. purpureus, C. clypeatus and C. compressus.

The second time I treated all the above mentioned minus C. purpureus.

I noticed C. perlatus were infested with the most varieties of mite I ever came in contact with. Which included small and large red, round bodied mites who's legs were easily made out with the naked eye. This type of mite moved very fast across a paper towel and the affected crab. They floated in a strong solution of salt water seemingly uneffected. They were quickly dispatched after several salt water baths dispite their large numbers.

Tan/yellow mites also were found on my perlatus crabs. Their shape differed from the red mites. They had two forward pairs and two rear pairs of legs. These mites were a bit smaller and floated in the bath water. This tan/yellow mite proved to be the hardest to erradicate.

White mites were also found. Some were extremely tiny while others were very large. I needed the help of a magnifying glass and a black background to see these tiny white ones. The larger white mite was about 1/4 the size of a pencil eraser. I was able to clearly see legs and an abdomen which had ridges and was pink in the center. Not all the large white ones were this large though. I filled a plastic bowl with hot water and using a platic spoon put the larger white mite in, they seemed uneffected by the hot water.

I found one of each black, green and brown mites on only one perlatus crab I was treating. Both were large enough to see with the naked eye. Both were round bodied mites and had a shine to them. I admit I really didn't study these very long, I was completey freaked out.

C. brevimanus, C.purpureus, C. violascens, C. compressus and C. clypeatus all had white mites both large and small and the tan/yellow mites. I did not see the other types explained above and not nearly as many as my perlatus crabs.


`Did just the coloring of the mite vary or did body shape vary as well?
Please see above explanation

`Did certain colored mites have more of a resistence to the double strength salt water?
No they all seemed to float on top of the salt water, no matter what strength. They also floated on top of hot steaming water when attempted to kill them.

`If you dealt with juvenile and adult mites- did you notice any differences in reaction to water? (Ie: walking on the water, dying from the salt water, etc).
No difference, although the juvenille mites are very hard to see even with a magnifying glass.

`Anything else you would like other crabbers to know that are dealing with mites.

The best advice I can give to anyone dealing with mites is to be consistent with the baths. I tried both double and regular strength salt baths and it made no difference. Mites need to be removed manually from the crab. Dechlorinated salt water seems to be the best method along with cotton swabs if your crab(s) are not shy. Once all the adult mites are gone, and cannot lay any more eggs, you are left to deal with the newly hatching mites. Newly hatched mites cannot lay eggs, in other words don't allow them to become egg laying adults. Bath 2-3 times daily and be consistent. CHANGE THE BATH WATER AFTER EVERY CRAB! This prevents cross contamination. Bath your hermit crab until you cannot see any more mites in the bath water or crawling on the crab.

Providing extra shells greatly increased my success rate. Some shells have broken or worn out spirals preventing the mites from flushing out. I also believe the mites lay their eggs within the shell. After they'd change the old shell was removed and placed in very hot water. If the shell was not suitable (sharp edges, broken etc.) it was tossed in the trash. This method had a 100% success rate for the effected crab.

[CrabAddict99]

I thought I should mention my experiences with mites from petCo.

I once bought a perlatus that had a huge red colored mite attached on his right gill area. It was unphased by sea salt soaks. The way I removed it was using a moistened cotton swab. This particular perlatus crab was very friendly so she didn't retract into her shell often. After swabbing gently the mite finally let go leaving a round mark on my hermit crabs gill. It did not appear as a deep wound but rather superficial. The crab didn't seem bothered by it.

I had yet another perlatus that had a hole on the top part of its head. I was able to see through the crabs carapace to it's skin/flesh. Through this deformity I observed mites crawling in and out. This proved extremely difficult to rid the crab of the mites. Eventually I was successful with daily bathing and the use of cotton swabs to gently manually remove any mites.

The two perlatus crabs I mentioned above recovered well after the mites and lived in my care for over a year and a half each. I believe they faired well because they weren't in the bad conditions both environmental and parasitic for too long before I found them.