# Grain mites.



## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

I believe I have grain/flour/mold mites (think all the same thing) on my rats cage and the surrounding area. They have multiplied extremely quickly even though I have washed it down. I am sure they're grain mites as they're all over the outside of the cage and I can't see any red mites at all to indicate that they're feeding off the rats or anything. 
I've read these have suckers underneath though to stuck to insects and other animals. So I'm unsure as to wether a lukewarm bath upon transferring my rats to their new cage will help rid of any that may be crawling or suctioned to them? 
I got them a new cage the other day. They are moving back into the bedroom today later in their new cage which is near to my parrotlets cage when she's in bed all night


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

Kinda look like these

birdspider.de • Thema anzeigen - Futtermilben / Vorratsmilben bei Schaben (grain/mold mites)


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

Anyone please think I should bathe them on their way in? Just worried about transferring them to their new cage and therefore my parrotlets cage too. Their new cage is all setup and ready for them so I need to do it ASAP. Thanks.


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

The single hardest thing to get rid of in the world. They will take over your house. VILE VILE things. 

It took just over a year to get rid of them in my house, and the only way i did that was by chucking EVERYTHING out.


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

Oh no  would you be giving your rats a bath of it were you? I don't bathe them and I'm worried that they may bite (never bitten). I don't know if any mites will just come off then. Were there any mites on your actual animals?
I'm sure they probably crawl on them from time to time but so long as they are grain mites then they're not living on them themselves. Did you have a huge infestation too on your pet cage and areas surrounding? 
They're even on the computer table that's not even touching the cage!


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

BlackRose said:


> Oh no  would you be giving your rats a bath of it were you? I don't bathe them and I'm worried that they may bite (never bitten). I don't know if any mites will just come off then. Were there any mites on your actual animals?
> I'm sure they probably crawl on them from time to time but so long as they are grain mites then they're not living on them themselves. Did you have a huge infestation too on your pet cage and areas surrounding?
> They're even on the computer table that's not even touching the cage!


They infested everything, from the sofa to the carpet to the limo, to the curtains, they live dark spots, they were even under my viv stacks!


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

So they were on your rats themselves too? It's good I got a new cage and everything in a seperate room ready for mine to go into right? Should I bathe them?


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## Mollie100 (Dec 17, 2013)

Hi! I had these once too - though luckily my rats were living in a shed outdoors at the time!

I used a bleach solution to clean everything off and as has been said - chucked any possibly-infested-food and bedding (cardboard squares - they were in all of that).

They were sort of like 'moving dust' they were so small!

But - I didn't treat my rats and had no reason to bath them as I don't think it would have made any difference. If you are really concerned maybe use the Beaphar spot-on for mites / lice - I know these are different but I would have thought the ingredients would work on them the same?

I don't know if you can get grain mite traps but they might be worth looking into. I've used the meal moth traps in the past which worked really well! There are usually a few weevils of some description wandering round the pet room too lol but I don't worry about those tbh. 

Hope you are successful in getting rid of the horrors! Oh - any wooden toys I'd be inclined to chuck. Plastic ones that can be fully washed down should be fine.


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

Thanks. There are literally thousands of them plastered all over the base mainly and now all up the bars on the whole cage, water bottle included! I had to get new everything! But I'm worried about the rats picking up some from the bars on their way out of the cage and then transferring them to their new cage in the process you see. Then so long as there's food and a drippy water bottle in the cage and if course seed etc in the nearby parrotlets cage they will be multiplying in there anyway.

Just gonna chuck the lot once they're moved..the whole cage etc and then wash down/chuck what I can of anything else in the room!

Why are they on other stuff not connected to the rat cage too?? There's no heat sources in the room or anything like that. Really don't know how many are actually in the rat cage itself. So the rats are unlikely to have any on them then?


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

Oh also thing is we arnt finding them in any room apart from wherever the rats! The parrot cage used to have the odd few on when the rats had them before but since moving the rats out the room there's been none there it in the bedroom. But instead they've gotten to an extreme point on the spare room! I have never seen so many and I dread even feeding and watering them now! 

We do have a mold problem in the bathroom and one of the halls but no bugs there..only where the rats are! I really don't want to have to find then on my parrotlet cage etc too and got nowhere else to keep them but near each other while the bugs are infesting the other room.


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

I Didn't have rats. I had them in my reptile room. The infestation was horrendous. And very very quick growing. When everything you touch becomes slimy, sticky or dusty that's when you need to worry. Be careful they haven't made it to your kitchen too.


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## Mollie100 (Dec 17, 2013)

They will probably have spread via the bedding / substrate in the rats' cage and may even have bred in there. They were on all the plastic boxes etc when I had them.

I now keep *all* my foodstuffs in airtight containers, by the way. I used the Ikea Sortera containers before for my rat food but after the grain mite experiences I used only airtight containers! I did find some in a tub once but they hadn't got out thankfully.

If you're concerned you can always freeze food prior to feeding it to your rats - this should kill any mites etc off

Getting itchy thinking about them! Yuck!


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

They arnt in any other room anywhere. I just don't know what to do to get the rats in the new cage without the mites being on their fur or brushing into then from the bars on the way through the door. I think I'm going to keep my parrotlet in with me tonight in the living room and then check the new rat cage in the morning to see if any have made it in there


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## Mollie100 (Dec 17, 2013)

freekygeeky said:


> I Didn't have rats. I had them in my reptile room. The infestation was horrendous. And very very quick growing. When everything you touch becomes slimy, sticky or dusty that's when you need to worry. Be careful they haven't made it to your kitchen too.


Yep. It was the dust I noticed first everywhere..... then I realised some of it was moving!! :gasp:


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

I'm not keeping any of the rats food or bird seed in the same room anymore and or even the live foods


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## Mollie100 (Dec 17, 2013)

BlackRose said:


> They arnt in any other room anywhere. I just don't know what to do to get the rats in the new cage without the mites being on their fur or brushing into then from the bars on the way through the door. I think I'm going to keep my parrotlet in with me tonight in the living room and then check the new rat cage in the morning to see if any have made it in there


Can you keep them in a halfway point overnight - like a carrier or something? I know it's not ideal for the ratties but one night wouldn't hurt them. Then you can check them over prior to moving them into their new cage.


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

That's a great idea but I havnt anything smaller to keep them in. I got three adult boys you see and a small carrier isn't big enough and I havnt anything spare to feed and water them with that isn't infested


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## Mollie100 (Dec 17, 2013)

BlackRose said:


> That's a great idea but I havnt anything smaller to keep them in. I got three adult boys you see and a small carrier isn't big enough and I havnt anything spare to feed and water them with that isn't infested


I see. Well - if you're really concerned then by all means give them a quick bath - it won't hurt them so long as they're properly dried after.

They will hate you for it though lol...... but they will get over that!


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

I might do..afraid if getting bitten lol as they don't tolerate water unless it's in a bottle lol. 
I also don't want to freak them out before they go into a new strange cage. Havnt had a chance what with the infestation to slowly introduce them to it. 
I havnt even any idea when that's done how to get their huge old cage into black bags and tie them up as it's too big and how to safely get it outside without mites dropping off onto the carpets and spreading to other rooms then. 
I am mainly concerned of the allergy. I mean I get itchy but it's mainly the airborn hairs from the mites I'm worried about, especially with my parrotlet


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

How can I be sure they're grain/mold/flour mites and are they all the same thing? Some look hairy and others don't but there's no red mites as far as I can see that have blood in them or anything. Would they be all over the outside of the cage too if it were grain mites that don't live on my rats?


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## Mollie100 (Dec 17, 2013)

Mites that rats get are invisible to the naked eye and won't leave the rat. They can't spread as they can't survive off the host.

Red mites (like chickens get) you can tell easily because if you wipe a surface with them on the tissue will be red. 

The grain mites I had were just sort of like moving dust.... really small. There are also grain weevils that are a big bigger and easily visible - they are more like teeny tiny beetles. 

And yes they just spread out - looking for food I suppose. The ones we had in the shed were not in the food boxes when I found them as they'd spread out from there. I think that the eggs are in the food when you buy it but lay dormant - then perhaps heat or something triggers them to hatch and so suddenly they are bloomin' everywhere!


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

So not rat or bird mites then. Omg I dunno what to do while transferring them


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

I literally feel I'll now. I could scoop up loads and loads of dust to then find it move like a sea of evil mites! Ahhhhhh itchy!


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## Mollie100 (Dec 17, 2013)

BlackRose said:


> So not rat or bird mites then. Omg I dunno what to do while transferring them


Do you have a small brush? Or just ruffle up their fur over a piece of white paper / kitchen towel - that should tell you if they are carrying any x

I do think its unlikely they'll be on the rats though if that helps.


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

I wouldn't see the mites on paper or kitchen roll would I seeing as they're white? I'll just wipe then over in my hands and hope for the best


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

I just don't see why they're all over the outside of the cage and everywhere away from the cage as well if they're attracted to the food etc


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## freekygeeky (May 25, 2007)

BlackRose said:


> I just don't see why they're all over the outside of the cage and everywhere away from the cage as well if they're attracted to the food etc


Mine ended up no where near the food ... Horrible horrible things, mine travelled a good few meters, from up curtains, to under doors ... Eek


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

Ewww! Well the rats have just been transferred to the new cage ( hopefully with no mites!!) and they has some choc drops to keep them happy. Snatchy seemed more interested in chewing the new water bottle wire lol. Gave them an extra empty cat food box too. Left the old cage for now in the spare room to keep the mites contained. Will be chucking it out ASAP. I'm also keeping my parrotlet in the living room with us tonight and the cats in the hall, possibly for the next couple if nights if need be and checking the rats cage each morning to make sure it's ok to keep my parrotlet in there again. 
Not ideal but that's my plan.


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## Spideypidey (Jan 23, 2014)

Walking dust. The only way to get rid of them is to remove the rats from the cage, clean everything and use an anti-mite spray on the cage, objects inside the cage and the surrounding area. Then also treat the rats themselves with for example Beaphar Anti-Parasite Spot On.

Prevention is better than a cure and mites will breed in wood and paper bedding but not hemp bedding, for example Aubiose horse bedding which I use for my hamsters during the warmer months. That just leaves the nesting material as a breeding ground.

AUBIOSE HEMP BEDDING 20KG | Horse Bedding | GJW Titmuss

But if you have a farm shop or equestrian shop nearby they will probably stock Aubiose.


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## BlackRose (Jul 8, 2007)

Thankyou. There seems to be no mites in or around the new rat cage


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