8 mo. old with Mange - have questions!!!

[Pongoboy]

Well unfortunately a diagnosis of d-mange was made about a week and a half ago. I'd noticed he was starting to lose hair on his legs, but thought maybe it was due to the hot weather - he LOVES to play "fetch" so we've spent alot of time playing outdoors. . .anyway when it wasn't getting any better we took him to the vet and had d-mange confirmed. We immediately started ivermectin once a day orally - and let me tell you he hates it!!! He's getting to the pt that he's running from me and doesn't want anything to do w/ me! My vet requested that I not mix it w/ any food, but my question is has anyone else? His only reason was "I just want to make sure he's getting it all" but when he scarfs down his food (was using the canned food to hide the medicine - we feed him dry dog food so the canned is a treat for him) I don't see why it should matter? Anyone else have experience or more knowledge on how I should go about giving it to him w/out him hating me!?!?! Also, as an indoor dog, is there anything I need to know about as far as having him inside w/ mange? Will the mites get into the carpet, etc? Is it best to keep him confined to, say the Kitchen area since it's not carpted, until he's mite-free? Also, I have 3 kids so I don't want them getting bites either. Sorry - I know lots of questions but I'm a new boxer owner and definately never had experience w/ Mange before so. . .I appreciate any advice I can get!!!
Thank you!
Joe and Teresa

 

[gmacleod]

If you're confident that he'll eat it in his food, then put it in his food. It's better than not being able to get it into him at all.

As for "protecting" your home against the mite - don't bother. He will never be mite-free because ALL dogs have demodex mites ALL of the time. It's a natural relationship - and the mites don't bite, they just live in the hair follicules. Mange occurs when the mites multiply out of control - due to the dog's immune system being either defective, compromised/suppressed or underdeveloped (the latter case common in puppies). That is why the key to beating demodex is boosting the dog's immune system - usually by a combination of a high quality diet, supplements as required, and an allergen and stress-free environment.

 

[sgbtab]

poor baby. he should be fine. maybe what you can do is put some peanut butter on your finger and hide the pill in it. thats the way I give samson his medicine all the time.as far as the mites are concerned mites always live on the dog it's just that his imune system is low now and he can not keep the mites in check.what you can also do is build up his imune system with a good quality kibble and some fruits and veggies. you don't have to keep him in a crate or room the mites prefer the dog.it does take about 3 months for the mites to get under control. so be patient.

 

[BeckyNC]

Tae inhales her food, as well. After a week or two of attempting to shoot syringes of ivermectin down her throat last summer, I started putting it in with her kibble. No problems! If you feed a tiny bit of canned food, it should be even easier to get down.

Good luck!

 

[Pongoboy]

Thank you so much for all of the advice! I'm definately going to go back to putting it back into his food - it was so much easier! I hate the faces he makes when I squirt the medicine down his throat! I'm positive w/ the canned food he'll come running back to me! So what kind of supplement/dog food would you guys suggest as far as boosting his immune system?

 

[boxer]

Actually, a natural raw diet would be best. Failing that, a premium quality kibble - possibly supplemented with something like missing link.

There is some good information on how to choose a good quality dry dog food on our feeding page at www.boxerworld.com/feeding that tells you what ingredients to look for, what to avoid, and why. Any food is only as good as the ingredients that go into it...

You could also do a search for the "whole dog journal" or "WDJ*". The WDJ puts out a list of good quality dog foods each year, using selection criteria similar to that on our feeding page. The list has been posted many many times on these forums, and just about any food on that list would be a good choice.

 

[Lucymom]

We give Lucy her oral Ivermectin with yogurt. She usually doesn't leave a drop fo it so we know she's gotten the medicine. We also use missing link and fish oil in her food each meal. It all seems to be working because after about 2 weeks of the medicine we're already seeing results. It's still a long road, but hang in there!

 

[BeckyNC]

I added Missing Link Plus (sold at Petsmart and most pet stores) to Tae's kibble when she had mange. I also gave her pieces of fresh fruit whenever I ate it (no grapes, though!).

 

[Little dog]

My 6 month old grandog Luke has mange also. He is being bathed every 2 weeks in a shampoo at the vet. He will have to get this treatment for 3 months. He is also on antibiotics since he has scratched so much and gotten a secondary infection. I feel so sorry for him and for your puppy. I hope these treatments work and the mites don't erupt again.

 

[Little dog]

My daughter went to the store today to buy the Missing Link powder for Luke. She is also changing his food to the ones recommended here. She was very excited to hear about this site. Luke is not being treated for 3 months. He is getting 3 treatments, one every two weeks. I hope we all have good news when the treatments are over.