Mites - Permaculture Control

I live in a warmer climate.  I have an area dedicated to our dwarf Lionshead pet rabbit, mostly herbs.  He keeps all the plants chewed down to their stems and when they re-leaf he mows them again.  It's interesting how he has learned not to kill them outright.  It looks like a stick garden and reminds me of The Addams Family movie where Morticia lops off the roses and keeps the thorny stems for the vase.  I digress.  Anyway, I noticed that there are tiny red mites (?) running around the moist soil.  They make my skin crawl and I'm trying to decide if it's a pest or a Permaculture symbiotic relationship.  Guys, Gals, DO I NEED TO AERATE THE SOIL BETTER FOR A DRYER AREA ?  OR MAKE PEACE WITH THEM?  I don't want to expose Button to an overload of them.  (And for those of you who are not vegetarian:  NO.  The solution isn't to have rabbit stew for dinner.   LOL!  )

Thanks,
Chris Ferguson
Fellow Permaculture Enthusiast

Did you ever find out whether these bugs were a problem? They sound a bit like chiggers to me - we have a few threads on them, but more as regards biting people than rabbits: here for example.

There are multiple varieties of 'red mites' with some being a bother to your critters and you while others are just living their best life without being any trouble.

I would look towards if you are seeing any mites on your rabbits themselves before getting too worried. Spider mites are the type you DON'T want but they are treatable.

it's funny this came up today. I live in a place where ear mites for rabbits are a major problem (a vet friend is amazed that I have healthy, elderly rabbits, they usually succumb to ear infections pretty early here). They are not red, and in fact I'm pretty sure you need a microscope to see them. My older rabbit does get ear infections every so often (a few times a year now, although to be fair he is about 99 years old in human years), I use a topical and occasionally an oral to make sure he's not hurting.
I'd love to hear how the OP made out and if other people have ear mite (or other mite) issues in their rabbits.

In Maine we have a bright red mite called the velvet mite that is harmless to humans and rabbits. I see them on occasion when weeding the garden. Not sure if they are the same thing. You can see them without a microscope, but they are bright red and much smaller than ants. Probably the size of the thorax on some ants (though ants are different sizes too).