Some parasites

Paladin

Arachnobaron
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i bought my Rose HAir today and noticed a couple of things. First, small flies. Didnt think too much of it. Next, small yellow grub things that were about 1mm or smaller. WHat are those? And finally, some white mold. I was kind of dissapointed with this but it was a pet store after all and i was gonna give it a better home anyway

so any info would be nice

thanx
 

MrT

Arachnoking
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Originally posted by Paladin
i bought my Rose HAir today and noticed a couple of things. First, small flies. Didnt think too much of it. Next, small yellow grub things that were about 1mm or smaller. WHat are those? And finally, some white mold. I was kind of dissapointed with this but it was a pet store after all and i was gonna give it a better home anyway

so any info would be nice

thanx
Did you get the container with your rosea? Or were these bugs on the T?

Ernie
 

kellygirl

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oh my gosh! that's awful. too bad that if you wanted to report the pet store for mistreatment of the animals you'd probably get laughed at... :(

kellygirl
 

whoami?

Arachnoknight
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Originally posted by kellygirl
oh my gosh! that's awful. too bad that if you wanted to report the pet store for mistreatment of the animals you'd probably get laughed at... :(

kellygirl
Ah, that's not even that bad.

I've seen pet stores where the iguana tanks had dessicated mummies in them.

This same pet store had some kind of water snake that was labeled as a corn snake.

Actually, I think that's even more disturbing than the mummified iguanas.

I've had an urge to capture a copperhead, and try to sell it to that pet store, telling them that it is a "eastern banded oak snake".

I wonder if they would buy it.

I wonder if they would then sell it.

I wonder who would then be in really big trouble if the customer who buys it gets bitten and then dies.

But back to topic, yes, vermin are nasty.

But to answer Paladin's question, I don't have the damndest clue what those things are.

My guess is that the little flies are...some kind of little fly.

And I'm guessing that the little grubs are the larvae (maggots) of the little flies that you saw.

But as to what they are, it beats the hell out of me. Hey, it's not like I saw them.

Anyway, all you can really do is change the substrate and clean out the entire cage really well. Even neglecting to consider the flies and grubs, there was mold in the cage. Some molds can go dormant for long dry periods, and continuing to grow when conditions are once again favourable. So since you already have mold in the tank, just thclean out the tank really well.

Actually, I have no idea what I'm talking about.

But I can make a guess, can't I?
 

Paladin

Arachnobaron
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lol i figured that the little flies were indeed little flies. This was only after hours of research which produced nothing. I was left with a mystery bug with wings and it was black...hm....lol

anyway i would rather not say the pet store because i believe it was just that container with them. (judging from the 6 or seven that i saw.)

but im happy to say that after an hour of being in its new home, the T took down a cricket. So i think it'll be fine.
 

Paladin

Arachnobaron
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it was just in the deli cup it came in (thank god)
 

Code Monkey

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Since you're in California, the most likely culprit was scuttle flies and their larvae. Scuttle flies are a great pest in some parts of the North America with inverts, herps, etc. because they can breed like mad in moist substrate with any organic matter (milli cages are apparently like scuttle fly heaven). They are not directly parasitic, but they will opportunistically lay their eggs on an already weakened or injured T which can result in a maggot infestation and possible death. They also apparently can play havoc with very young slings.

If the T appears healthy and normal than they were probably just stowaways. Hopefully you didn't get any in your place because they can be a pain to get rid of if they establish themselves.

As for the mold, I really don't understand the paranoia about mold. Is it *good*? - well, no. Is it *bad* though? - probably not. The mold was just in there munching on the same bug remains as the scuttle flies.
 
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