Crazy Bug Lady Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 I'm getting itchy, almost blister-like marks on my hands after handling members of my hisser colony. Can grain mites bite? Or could it be a reaction to the hissers themselves? I'm planning to give the enclosure a good cleaning, but I wanted to see if anyone else had experienced this issue. I feed fruit (oranges) and veggies (carrots) along with a mixture I bought for hissers. As it says in the title, I am a blind hisser keeper, so I need to handle them to see if they are alive, healthy and so on. Thanks for any help with this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
All About Arthropods Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 It sounds like you are unfortunately developing allergies to your hissers. Itchy bumps/hives are a common reaction hobbyists report when dealing with roaches they're allergic to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hisserdude Posted May 8, 2022 Share Posted May 8, 2022 Unfortunately that 100% sounds like an allergy to hissers... That's what happens to me when I handle my hissers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Bug Lady Posted May 9, 2022 Author Share Posted May 9, 2022 That's too bad. It's nowhere near bad enough for me to not want to handle them. Perhaps some over the counter medication will help, along with washing my hands for longer after handling them. I don't even get it all the time, and I'm honestly glad it's likely not some mite or something bothering them. Thanks for the help! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hisserdude Posted May 20, 2022 Share Posted May 20, 2022 On 5/9/2022 at 1:41 PM, Crazy Bug Lady said: That's too bad. It's nowhere near bad enough for me to not want to handle them. Perhaps some over the counter medication will help, along with washing my hands for longer after handling them. I don't even get it all the time, and I'm honestly glad it's likely not some mite or something bothering them. Thanks for the help! A buddy of mine who's also allergic to hissers says antihistamines do indeed work for this, and that he's able to touch hissers and do maintenance on their setups like normal again. Might be different for everyone though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allpet Roaches Posted June 8, 2022 Share Posted June 8, 2022 The sqeaky pillbugs are a lot smaller but they might be a great alternative unless you're allergic to shrimp. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Bug Lady Posted June 14, 2022 Author Share Posted June 14, 2022 I'm still able to handle my small colony and individuals. I would like to sometime try some of those pill bugs for pets 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogpack Posted August 16, 2022 Share Posted August 16, 2022 I have limited hearing and vision and use a wheelchair. Have you considered trying medical gloves? They are thing which allows you to feel reasonably what you are handling. The gloves that fit snugly and are a bit stretchy will probably work the best for working with your hissers, or any other animals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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