help!...demodectic mange

[Burton'sMa]

Question

I have been reading everyone's responses to the question regarding demodectic mange.....my boxer had it as a puppy.....which I understand is normal...it is a mite that lives on the dog and gets "active" when the dogs stress levels rise (as explained by our vet)....yet, my baby, now 2 1/2 yrs. old is loosing hair again. Our vet said it was probably from allergies and/or stress.....yet, it is hard to imagine what he is stressed about.... he gets tons of love and attention....he is our only baby....anyhow, I was also reading about dog foods and was wondering if the kirkland brand lamb and rice had anything to do with his hairloss....he is loosing hair on his back and sides.....i have a trial bag of chicken soup and am supplementing his meal with vitacoat.....has anyone heard of a boxer my age getting this mange again??

 

[bommy]

Burtins Ma demodex mange can come back in juvenille dogs, again if their immunity is low.

As for treatments of Mange, the ivomectin didnt do anything at all for Major's mange it went from being localised to becoming generalised. We changed his diet, gave him transfer factor plus & he also got a Pfizer drug called dectomax, it was a weekly injection for 8 weeks & then fortnightly etc, until we weaned him off.

Jacqui

 

[captah]

dermatitis

reading these posts makes me want to reqquest you to ask your vet to recheck that this is not " atopic dermatitis"

my baby has been going thru it for the last 7 months and this type of dermatitis is quite a handful to deal with

it is very common and needs a completely different approach

pls do recheck

 

[Burton'sMa]

Thanks Bommy and Captah.....my boy is on Cephalexin....the dr. said he thought it may be a staph infection and wanted to put him on antibiotics for 14 days before he did the scratch test to check for demodetic. I have changed his foods and will examine the supplements and get a re-check for dermatitis.....thanks alot. P.S.- Another helpful resource is the dr foster and smith pet education website.....i like to check out his antibiotics and other medicines at that website.

 

[Shotze's Mom]

I would have to recommend Missing Link supplement, sardines, a tea tree and oatmeal HIGH QUALITY DOG shampoo, and a high quality kibble or BARF. You can also give Ester-C and other vitamins to boost the immune system. I have found that with Shotze these things I have listed worked wonders when combined with the Ivermectin orally daily. I wouldnt recommend dipping or giving ivermectin unless it is ABSOLUTELY needed. Shotzes case was horrible so I gave Ivermectin.

Your baby will get worse before better. The hair will fall out and leave bald patches. Shotze still has scarring from her case of Demodex, but I love her the same. They are the same dogs....with character.

 

[adobeboxers]

Tucker had (generalized) manage as a puppy, we first noticed it around 6 months and we treated in from 6months-8.5 months. We actually knew it was coming as it can be genetic (low immune system) and was given to us free because of this. We are lucky enough to live near a research vet school and went with Ivermectin and Vitamin E pills and Tucker did great. He didn't have any side effects...his dosage was based on his weight and he stayed on it until he had 2 negative scrappings. He is a healthy/active 2yr old with a great coat and we haven't had a re-occurance or anything since.

He looked rough for awhile, missing hair and such. He was given antibiotics when he started to get rough skin to prevent a secondary infection (due to open wounds) and a special shampoo from the vet (along with a bath 2-3 times a week to help keep the hair follicals clean and clog free).

Good luck and like everyone has said, don't worry...your baby will get better!

 

[bkidd]

Thanks!!!

Again thank you for your helpful information! Only you that have dealt with this can know what it means and how it relieves my spirits to hear he will get well with time! I've started giving GAGE small portions of fresh veggies, fruits, and sardines as well as a vitamin. He is starting to scratch pretty badly now. I've been putting vaseline on the spot close to his eye to hopefully keep the skin moist. What kind of shampoo could I get to kill off the mites and disinfect? He's still inspite of it all a happy boy./ Also we've recently purchased an underground fence system and we're trying to work with him. Will this be a "stress" that could cause more problems? Maybe we should wait? What do y'all think?
bkidd and GAGE

 

[adobeboxers]

From what I understand no shampoo is going to kill the mites...shampoo will only help keep the area clean. The problem with the scratching is that eventually he could open up his skin causing infection. Many times, vets give antibiotics to dogs with mange b/c of the high risk of secondary infections (caused not by the mites but by the scratching and opening of the skin).

From what we were told, many dogs have mites but their immune system helps keep them in check, dogs with mange usually have a lower immune system thus they can't kill or fight off the mites and they get out of control and start to cause hair loss and/or scratching which can lead to the infection. So the issues you have to deal with is the lower immune system...stress doesn't help and many times puppies get mange b/c of the stress their immune systems bodies are going through because of their growth, hormones, etc. That is why many people go with medical or chemical assistance to help their puppies fight the mites. We used ivermection because we felt it was the best way to help Tuvker fight off his mites. We were told we would have to be committed to his treatment though as it is not a quick fix (took us 3 months of treatment). However, it is up to each owner to study the facts and go with the option you are most confortable with.

Good luck!

 

[Shotze's Mom]

You can't kill the mites with a shampoo, but you can bathe him in Betadine shampoo (not the solution...the shampoo. (available at feed and tack stores)) and that will help with the infection. All it does is kill harmful bacteria at the surface. It also helps with the bad smell that usually accompanies demodex. I used it once a week, twice when the spots were severe and there were scabs. You REALLY dont want the staph to get ahold, because then you will end up at the EV and spend a fortune on meds. If you notice ANY swelling around the face, get him to a vet ASAP. Shotze's face swelled up so big that it split and she now has scars.

Keep hope. It WILL get better.

 

[bkidd]

Sorry, I thought my post didn't exist but I found it. But thanks again to Tucker's and Shotze's family for caring and your info.
bkidd