Quarantine Procedures
- While two completely separate facilities are best most do not have that luxury. So at the very least you need two separate rooms. One for established reptiles and one for new reptiles. New reptiles should never be in contact with established reptiles.
- 90 days quarantine minimum. If a reptile is in the quarantine room for 30 days and then you bring a new reptile into the room, every animal should start over on day one of quarantine. This is done because their would be no way to identify which animal had a disease/infection if one were to come up.
- Treat for mites! It is always a good idea, as a preventative, to treat all new arrivals for mites. A stray mite here or there can be easily overlooked.
- Take care of your established animals first; water changes, feedings, cleaning, etc. Do not take care of quarantine animals and then established animals.
- Always wash your hands thoroughly (20 seconds of scrubbing with an anti-bacterial soap) before and after handling any of your animals or doing any type of upkeep with them, particularly after working with quarantine. If your hands are not specifically dirty, an alcohol based hand sanitizer can be used between animals.
- Do not offer uneaten food between animals. If you feed live never return uneaten feeders back into your rodent colony.
- Two of everything! Separate paper towels, tongs, thermometers, scales, water dishes, hides, etc, for each room.
Purchasing from a reputable breeder does not negate the need for proper quarantine. All new reptiles should be in a minimum of a 90 day quarantine no matter who you get them from.
