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Came home tonight and discovered that Apollo's enclosure is infested with mites. (At least I assume that's what they are. They look very much like the ones I've seen on plants).

Will they harm him? Do I need to do anything to protect/clean him?

The dirt is getting dumped right now, but all I have to replace it with is a half bag each of reptibark and eco earth. I won't have time to get anything more until at least Friday night.

What can I use in place of topsoil? I've been using it as the base for years, but I'm really fed up with it. I've found bits of glass and plastic in there, sticks, rocks, and these little yellow round balls that I can't identify. Maybe I just got a bad batch or something but if there's a better alternative I'm ready to switch.

Hi.

Perhaps you can find some useful info here:

http://www.anapsid.org/mites.html

http://www.anapsid.org/boxheal.html

I use coco fiber in expandable bricks, sold in pet shops & marketed under the names "bed-a-beast" or "Eco-earth" for my box turtle

it's also a good idea to freeze those bricks of coco fibre for 24hrs before using. i've heard of bugs/mites sneaking in before packaging

Thanks for all the tips!