# How common are mites?



## Whurmy (Mar 10, 2012)

I'm really considering getting a pair of does. I've never owned mice before, but I have owned a guinea pig and hamsters before and never had mite problems, but I keep reading about them here.

How common is it for your mice to get mites? I have two cats and a dog, and an infestation of mites would be absolutely insane. Is there an FAQ or something I can read? Will my other animals get mites if my mice get them? Will they spread to my carpeting, blankets, etc?

Thanks for any and all replies. < 3


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## Laigaie (Mar 7, 2011)

Some folks seem to have mites regularly, but I've not had a run-in in two years. Mites don't seem to infest outside the cage, though I imagine bar cages would allow mites to spread more easily than solid-walled cages like tanks or bins. I've never heard of them spreading to carpeting, blankets, other animals, etc, the way that fleas do. Remember, the things you read about here are the best and the worst, because that's when we share our joy with others and seek help for the problems we've had. The vast majority of the time, it's smooth sailing.


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## mousery_girl (Nov 13, 2011)

my mice forever have fleas and once mites. the mites are easier to kill. they don't spread to other animals because they're specific to that animal


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## Whurmy (Mar 10, 2012)

I see, I see. :3 I've heard about someone freezing their bedding to eliminate the chance of mites? Should I do these as a preventative? Or is there something easier, like a power I can sprinkle in the bedding? As a preventative, of course, not treatment.


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## Laigaie (Mar 7, 2011)

DE (diatomaceous earth) is a fairly decent preventative for any insects, as are many of the mite sprays. Once they're infested, ivermectin is the way to go on getting rid of them. Having some on hand is not unwise, and ivermectin can be a great addition to a mousie first aid kid.

Honestly, all the freezing of bedding seems to be helpful if you believe your bedding to be infested, but if you've not had mites and you're using quality product, I'm not sure why the bother. I don't freeze bedding, buy it from a place where I've seen wildies, have had wildies in the house, have bought mice from pet stores before (though I do quarantine), and yet... no mites! *shrug* Maybe it's all really vital, and I'm just lucky.


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## Whurmy (Mar 10, 2012)

@Laigaie I did read about that on another thread, and I think I'll pick some up when I'm gathering supplies to bring my girl home. :3 And yes, you're right. Having a back up of some Iver would definitely be a good idea.

I see. Well goodness! That's all good news. :3 I was really worried about a mite problem, but I feel pretty at ease about it now. :3 As long as I keep an eye on them and use a preventative, I'm hoping I'll never have a run in with them. Or at least not any bad ones, anyways.

I like in a brick house in a suburban area in the city, and we've had spiders and earwigs, but we've never once seen a mouse. And we've lived here five years. I haven't seen any in the back yard (Which is really three or four back yards, since ours connects with the neighbors and none of them are fenced in.) which seems weird to me, personally, but I have seen plenty of squirrels and chipmunks. So, that could be why I don't see any wild mice.


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## moustress (Sep 25, 2009)

Iver-On or Ivermectin Injectable both work great when diluted and applied properly.

I've tried a lot of dfifferent things to get rid of mites, and nothing seems to work. Maybe having a n old house where a few wild meeces always seem to be hanging around is a factor. In any case, I've pretty much given up trying to get rid of them by freezing bedding, food etc., and just lay on with the Iver-whatever whenever I see meeces acting all itchy and scratchy. It's a good thing the mites are mouse specific, though. They will jump on a human and have a taste, and the bites are super itchy, but they don't go any farther than that, fortunately.

I use Reptile Relief to treat cages that have had infestations. It's a good thing there are relatively easy remedies as the problem always seems to crop back up just when I think I have them licked. I know some of our members treat their mousies regularly to prevent infestations.


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## Whurmy (Mar 10, 2012)

I think I'll definitely start using preventatives from day one. I certainly don't want an ongoing problem that I can't manage to kick. We had fleas years ago and lice years before that, so I know how it feels to constantly be itchy, and I definitely don't want my little mousers to go through that. D:


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