# Treating for mites (quite possibly in the chigger family)...



## Jenk (Sep 29, 2011)

Three years ago, our household had a mite infestation that created a 9-month-long ordeal; I'm remiss to say that we're facing the same type of situation.

Our cat and two rabbits started showing signs of parasitic infestation during the past week; we humans started feeling biting sensatinos in the last 48 hours.

Today, the vet found a mite larva on one of our rabbits. She couldn't identify it, but conditions/circumstances point to a type of Trombicula (chigger) mite.

Has anyone successfully treated your animals and home for this type of mite? What exactly did you do, and in what time frame did you do it (especially "bomb" the house)?

I've read that the chigger generally has 2-3 generations per year; other websites state that the chigger life cycle is 1-12 months, especially in warmer climates.:shock: (I'm in the Midwest and, so, hope to be done with this after following a specific treatment protocol.)

The vet wants us to apply Revolution to the pets every two weeks, as we start to get the bombing of our house underway; she said if the issue doesn't resolve in that time, we could switch to Ivermectin. (We're thinking of bombing our house three times, every two weeks, same as we did three years ago; we're not certain that treatment is most effective for chigger-type mites.)

Thank you,

Jenk


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## Sweetie (Sep 29, 2011)

Revolution is used on rabbits as well as cats and dogs once every month. Not every two weeks as I believe can harm the rabbits as it is an insecticide that kills parasites. I would go with the ivermectin every two weeks as it is safer to use every two weeks than revolution is. I would use the revolution once a month.


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## tonyshuman (Sep 29, 2011)

Ivermectin is in no way safer than Revolution (selamectin). They are very similar drugs (note that the names are similar), and in fact fewer bad reactions are observed with Revolution than ivermectin. The treatment for an animal showing signs of parasites is to give ivermectin or selamectin every 10-14 days until they clear up. A monthly treatment is done only as a preventative. For dogs and cats, Advantage, Revolution, or Frontline (which should never be used on rabbits), is applied monthly as a preventative measure. If they are showing signs of an infestation, they too are treated biweekly, as that is the life cycle of most parasites.

Have you read the Medirabbit articles on external parasites?
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/Mange/Sarcoptes.htm
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/furmite/fur_mite.htm
http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/Uncommon/Other_mite.htm

I don't think there is a difference between the treatment profiles of selamectin and ivermectin, and fewer adverse events are reported with selamectin. I would use it instead of ivermectin. If your bunnies have any dutch, vienna, or blue eyes in their genetic background, I would not use either as these breeds/characteristics are often good predictors of an adverse reaction to ivermectin, and the two drugs are so similar that a bunny sensitive to ivermectin might also be sensitive to selamectin.

Chiggers leave very characteristic looking bites, which are often found where elastic touches the skin, for instance where the elastic of underpants is. Chiggers typically only live in tall grass and will not set up home in your carpet, drapes, or upholstery, unlike some mites found on rabbits.


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## Jenk (Sep 29, 2011)

*tonyshuman wrote: *


> Ivermectin is in no way safer than Revolution (selamectin). They are very similar drugs (note that the names are similar), and in fact fewer bad reactions are observed with Revolution than ivermectin. The treatment for an animal showing signs of parasites is to give ivermectin or selamectin every 10-14 days until they clear up. A monthly treatment is done only as a preventative. For dogs and cats, Advantage, Revolution, or Frontline (which should never be used on rabbits), is applied monthly as a preventative measure. If they are showing signs of an infestation, they too are treated biweekly, as that is the life cycle of most parasites.


I agree; vets by me seem to rely more on bi-monthly Revolution treatment nowadays, if it all possible. If it doesn't prove helpful, then they tend to turn to Ivermectin.



> Have you read the Medirabbit articles on external parasites? http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/Mange/Sarcoptes.htm http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/furmite/fur_mite.htm http://www.medirabbit.com/EN/Skin_diseases/Parasitic/Uncommon/Other_mite.htm


These articles are from where I got the idea that we may be dealing with Trombicula (chigger) mites. The vet wasn't certain what mite type she saw; it was in the larva stage and didn't appear (to me) to have any legs. If it were at a more advanced stage, I suspect it would've been easier to identify.



> Chiggers leave very characteristic looking bites, which are often found where elastic touches the skin, for instance where the elastic of underpants is. Chiggers typically only live in tall grass and will not set up home in your carpet, drapes, or upholstery, unlike some mites found on rabbits.


We're at the early stage of whatever this is, which is why I want to start treatment--and likely pesticide treatment of our home--ASAP. But I wish I knew what we we're dealing with, since bite marks weren't viewed on Pinkerton, the one inspected by the vet today.

What I know is that our cat and two rabbits are scratching at their face/neck/ear area. Our cat and Pinkerton both seem to fixate on their chest area, as well. And I've caught Pinkerton excessively grooming his feet, especially the front ones. It was from his front leg/foot that the larva was found today. 

I wish I knew what mite we're dealing with because I don't want to over-medicate/ over-treat our house if we don't have to. And the last mite issue cost us at least $1,500; I don't want to undergo that level of expense if it's unnecessary. But, again, I don't know what mite-type we have. (I do know that we humans are feeling mite "pinches.")


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## tonyshuman (Sep 29, 2011)

Well, just thinking about external parasites gives me the "crawlies" on my skin, so I would be cautious to use that as an indicator that you have them. Actual bite marks on humans or animals would be important, I think. If you pay a lot of attention to your animals, it looks like they're always cleaning/scratching. It seems that chiggers are so small they can hardly be seen. I would doubt that the larvae are at all visible to the naked eye. Even if it is chiggers, for them to be living in your house, they would have to have a dark, wet area (like a clump of tall grass) to live in--not commonly found in the house. It seems that they do not often live indoors. They can ride indoors on people, but they soon fall off, leaving welts, and the next life stage does not live well inside the house so it will die or go outside. I doubt that, even if you do have chiggers on the people or animals in the house, you will have to do a pesticide treatment of the house to get rid of them. Simply wash the bedding of the affected individuals. After a few days of causing trouble, chiggers will fall off and die or go outside.


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## Jenk (Sep 30, 2011)

*tonyshuman wrote: *


> Well, just thinking about external parasites gives me the "crawlies" on my skin, so I would be cautious to use that as an indicator that you have them.


We aren't really feeling "crawlies" this time. (I definitely felt them the last time around. And it wasn't in my head; I could actually feel the tingling sensation at my hairline, where mites tend to migrate.) 

This time, we've been feeling sharp pinches at times. Two nights ago, I awoke a few times from sharper pinches. We've since started keeping our cat off the bed--or at least kicking him off the bed when he jumps up there. And I plan to change the bedding frequently--though I may not do it daily, which is what I did for nine months three years ago. That daily routine--which included vacuuming about three days per week--really sucked....



> Actual bite marks on humans or animals would be important, I think. If you pay a lot of attention to your animals, it looks like they're always cleaning/scratching.


Our pet crew is definitely scratching/grooming more than normal. Since a mite larva was found, we know we're not imagining extra cleaning/scratching. Another tip-off is how vigorously our male bun goes for his ears when mites are an issue; he jams his hind claws inside of his ear--much harder than normal. And our female bun stopped three times in mid-stride to scratch at her face, which is unusual behavior for her.



> It seems that chiggers are so small they can hardly be seen. I would doubt that the larvae are at all visible to the naked eye. Even if it is chiggers, for them to be living in your house, they would have to have a dark, wet area (like a clump of tall grass) to live in--not commonly found in the house. It seems that they do not often live indoors. They can ride indoors on people, but they soon fall off, leaving welts, and the next life stage does not live well inside the house so it will die or go outside. I doubt that, even if you do have chiggers on the people or animals in the house, you will have to do a pesticide treatment of the house to get rid of them. Simply wash the bedding of the affected individuals. After a few days of causing trouble, chiggers will fall off and die or go outside.


From what I've read, chigger larvae can be seen with the naked eye. The larva taken off of Pink yesterday was hard to see, but we could see it. We just couldn't tell what it was--a parasite, piece of particulate, etc.--until it was under the microscope.

This may not be a chigger infestation, which scares me; I know scabies mites go for animals' feet, and Pink's been over-grooming his front feet. And the larva was found just above his foot, and the vet could see what looked like more larvae on his feet. From what I've read, certain mites concentrate on the areas affected for our guys: the base of the tail, ears, face, neck, chest, and feet. In other words, I don't think we're looking at ear mites, and I'm scared that it could be something worse than chiggers. 

I also don't want to spend the time/money to bomb our house three times, if we're talking about chiggers. I also don't want to medicate our pets more than necessary. And if you don't follow an effective protocol the first time around, you wind up having to start things all over, which is what happened last time. (We first treated the pets only with three doses of Revolution dosed every two weeks.)

This problem all began after an outdoor cat, which has been hanging around our back door, had a brief encounter with cat through said screen door. They never actually touched, and our cat was wearing a "cone of shame" at the time (due to a recent surgery). They were still a few inches from each other, and the other cat was rubbing against the screen. Two days later, our cat was scratching a lot more than usual; then the extra itching/grooming spread to our rabbits about 3-4 days later.


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## tonyshuman (Sep 30, 2011)

I have experienced chiggers before and you don't have to clean the house to get rid of them. There could be something going on, but antiparasitics can be quite dangerous, so I just advise caution unless you see irritated skin.


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## Jenk (Sep 30, 2011)

*tonyshuman wrote: *


> I have experienced chiggers before and you don't have to clean the house to get rid of them. There could be something going on, but antiparasitics can be quite dangerous, so I just advise caution unless you see irritated skin.


I have looked closely at our cat's front feet and belly and saw no redness. Even the skin on Pink's front feet--what little I can see of it when I move his fur--doesn't look irritated, in spite of the mite larva found in that location. 

By _antiparasitics_, do you mean the chemical "bombs" used in the home? Just making sure.

I'm not thrilled about the idea of resorting to chemical "bombs," and nothing is decided yet. I'm fairly certain that I've caught the issue before serious irritation had a chance to get underway. I still worry, though, about the problem not being resolved by three doses of Revolution. _*sigh*_


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## tonyshuman (Sep 30, 2011)

By antiparasitics I mean all of the compounds that are used to kill insects. The bad reactions to these compounds are usually not survivable--seizures, depressed breathing, etc. I nearly lost Tony when I gave him ivermectin and now I am very cautious about these drugs.


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## Jenk (Oct 1, 2011)

*tonyshuman wrote: *


> By antiparasitics I mean all of the compounds that are used to kill insects. The bad reactions to these compounds are usually not survivable--seizures, depressed breathing, etc. I nearly lost Tony when I gave him ivermectin and now I am very cautious about these drugs.


I'm sorry that you went through such a scare with Tony.

Still, what would you recommend if a houseful of pets has mites? They don't go away on their own when they have a comfy environment with at least three--if not five--hosts to choose from.


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## tonyshuman (Oct 3, 2011)

I would personally treat with Revolution, and use a mite treatment recommended by my vet on the carpet. I would be very careful with Revolution. Although in studies, dogs that are sensitive to ivermectin have been given revolution without problems, I would watch my bunnies closely for 6-12 hrs after giving them the drug. I would treat the house without the animals there.


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## Jenk (Oct 3, 2011)

*tonyshuman wrote: *


> I would personally treat with Revolution, and use a mite treatment recommended by my vet on the carpet. I would be very careful with Revolution. Although in studies, dogs that are sensitive to ivermectin have been given revolution without problems, I would watch my bunnies closely for 6-12 hrs after giving them the drug. I would treat the house without the animals there.


I agree with everything you've written--especially since you've described what we did the last time we had mites. Granted, the last time, the vet wound up giving Ivermectin shots when Revolution wasn't bringing relief. (The mite infestation was bad, and the mites were feasting on pets and humans alike. )

We started Revolution one week ago and hope to be able to stick with it this time around. And if we have the house chemically treated again, all pets and people will be removed for the recommended length of time--at the very least.


Jenk


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## tonyshuman (Oct 4, 2011)

IC. Also, if you know your guys have had ivermectin without problems, then they're probably safe to have it again if needed. I hope the Revolution does the trick!


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## Fogell (Nov 12, 2012)

I dealt with mites successfully on my rabbit once, it's not that hard. try using pet peeve
here's the link: http://www.domyownpestcontrol.com/pet-peeve-insect-spray-p-2636.html
It uses oils with insecticidal properties so its organic and safe to use on all pets, not just rabbits. It does stink to high heaven though.


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## Nancy McClelland (Nov 12, 2012)

ray:


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