just like the title says...my 5mos old gsd pup has it. i am pretty frustrated, as this is yet another monetary expense incurred on my part, by a breeder, whom i feel is responsible for the dog's history of illnesses.

can any of you tell me if you have dealt with this before? how did your dog get it? ( i am told by the vet that 99.9% it is given to teh pup by its mother)....

my vet is using a bath/dip called Mitoban or mitaban....something like that....he says that it will take about 5-6 treatments. since the mites live in and under the fur in the follicles....

thanks for any input...

****also, this is not a slam on who and where i got the dog from....i love him, and think that he is/will be a great one for a long time....he has a great bloodline, or so it seems...lol...

thanks again....

Louis,

Sorry to hear about your pup, this website may be of some help to answer your questions.

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_demodectic_mange.html

You should contact the dog's breeder to let them know of this problem, since it is recommended not to breed a dog with this condition.

Kimberly

Louis,

My dog had it. The vet told us the same thing: he probably got it from his mother. We first noticed a bald spot on his snout, which we thought he'd scratched or something. Then we found one under his jaw, so we took him to the vet. For us, the treatment was to give him a liquid medication, which we mixed with his food. He had to keep taking the medication until he had two negative skin scrapes in a row. The skin scrapes were two weeks apart.

I can't remember exactly when we first noticed it, but we took him to the vet about it when he was 11 months old, so we probably saw the first signs 3 or 4 weeks before that, and just didn't know what it was.

Rich

My trainer treats it with Ivomec (Ivermec? forget how to spell it)... the active ingredient in heartgard. I forget the dosage but apparently you give it for 2 weeks n it treats the mange. I see dogs with it all the time.

One of my dogs had it. My vet put her on Revolution and it cleared up within a month or so. I took her off the Revolution a few months later and it came back, so I put her back on it and its never come back. It has been about two years now that she has been free of it. Our new puppy also looked like he had a little on his face, but the vet (different from the first one) said he didn't believe in treating it if it was a mild case and he wanted to watch it and see if it cleared up on its own. It did clear up in a few weeks.

 Quote: louis larose

just like the title says...my 5mos old gsd pup has it. i am pretty frustrated, as this is yet another monetary expense incurred on my part, by a breeder, whom i feel is responsible for the dog's history of illnesses...... can any of you tell me if you have dealt with this before? how did your dog get it? ( i am told by the vet that 99.9% it is given to teh pup by its mother)....

Here's a good overview*:
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_demodectic_mange.html

and
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&A=630&S=2&SourceID=42

and
http://www.vetinfo.com/dogdmite.html#Demodex%20-%20should%20you%20treat%20or%20wait?


Yes, Demodex is from the mother. The thing is that all dogs (or virtually all) have demodectic mites in their hair follicles, but only a few develop the disease (mange).

So it would be an immune system problem. I have read, though, that this deficiency is NOT an across-the-board immune system weakness; it is only an inability to self-protect against demodectic mange..... a mite-specific immunoincompetence that lets these mites colonize and cause mange.

Localized Demodex isn't generally itchy (as opposed to Sarcoptic mange, or scabies), and, unlike generalized Demodex, is (I believe) a pretty non-threatening disease.

I assume the vet did a scraping and saw the mites, right?

Mitaban (dipping) is indeed what I see as the conventional treatment for generalized Demodectic mange.

As Mike says, Ivermectin (except for Collie-type breeds) has been used with a new daily dosage protocol, I have read, but (and I quote from MarVistaVet.com): THIS MEDICATION IS NOT SAFE FOR USE IN COLLIES, SHETLAND SHEEPDOGS, AUSTRALIAN SHEPHERDS, OLD ENGLISH SHEEPDOGS, AND SOME WOULD SAY, ANY HERDING BREED.

Most Demodex is localized. I have read different estimates, but all were over 80% (that is, Demodectic mange is localized more than 80% of the time; some say 90%).

And since localized Demodex is generally spot-treated with benzoyl peroxide, etc., and your vet is dipping, then I guess your vet is saying that this is generalized?

P.S.
Revolution is for Sarcoptic mange, I think.

*Editing to say that Kimberly already posted that link, I now see. I like that site a lot for "big picture" info.

 Quote: Jeanne Woodlock

..... Our new puppy also looked like he had a little on his face, but the vet (different from the first one) said he didn't believe in treating it if it was a mild case and he wanted to watch it and see if it cleared up on its own. It did clear up in a few weeks.

Yes, that seems to be accepted procedure with mild localized Demodex -- wait and see.

Connie - add to your list of mdr1 mutant breeds the long-haired whippet and silken windhound.

http://www.busteralert.org/ (general info site)

There is a test to see if a dog is mdr1 mutant available from Washington State University. The test costs $60. The website:
http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/depts-VCPL/

 Quote:

P.S.
Revolution is for Sarcoptic mange, I think.

Generally, yes. However my vet uses it to treat both. It has worked for my dog with Demodex.

 Quote: Anne Vaini

Connie - add to your list of mdr1 mutant breeds the long-haired whippet and silken windhound.

http://www.busteralert.org/ (general info site)

There is a test to see if a dog is mdr1 mutant available from Washington State University. The test costs $60. The website:
http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/depts-VCPL/

Whoa, THANKS! I didn't know additions were being discovered.