Does anyone have any information on demodex mange in pit...

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Question by Gyp
Submitted on 5/8/2004
Related FAQ: rec.pets.dogs: American Pit Bull Terriers Breed-FAQ, Part 2/3
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Does anyone have any information on demodex mange in pit bulls. About four years age I rescued a female Pit with Demodex. Recently I had to have her put to sleep after spending thousands of dollars on treatments with no positive results. About two months ago I bought another puppy and when I took her to the vet found out she also had Demodex. The vet said that the worst cases he had ever seen were all pits including the dog I had to have put down. He said he did not know why but when pits have Demodex it is always worst than other breeds and harder to get under control. If anyone has any information I would be grateful.

Answer by davmeli
Submitted on 5/27/2004
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This is long, but I just had to tell people about my experience ! My pyrenees/dane mix was diagnosed with demodex as a puppy. The vet dipped her, which made her very,very ill. We thought she was going to die. My husband and I also got very ill after handling her. We were told not to bathe her for a month, but she was not getting well, and we couldn't stand to see her so sick from the dip, so we bathed her anyway to get that chemical off of her! It took about a week and a half for her to get better and about a month for her to get back to normal. The mange seemed to clear up, but it came back with a vengeance after her 1st heat. It was awful to see her beautiful snow white fur falling out. She had patches all over her sides, her legs,and her back with scabs and no fur, her belly and nipples were raw, and she was losing more fur every day. She didn't seem to itch too much,but it did itch her a little. It just looked awful and it was spreading like wildfire. We didn't want to get her dipped again after the last experience. We didn't know what to do. We feed her regular large breed dry dog food, but no vitamins.After some research on the net, I decided to try a natural approach.I read it attacks dogs with suppressed immune systems. I had an abundance of aloe vera growing, so I started applying fresh aloe vera gel from cut leaves on every furless spot. It seemed to soothe it for her. Then, I bought some regular doggy vitamins from Wal-Mart, (the only brand they had) and starting giving her the dosage for sick or pregnant/nursing dogs. (she has never been pregnant) I also started giving her fish oil capsules, which she loves (about 3 1200 mg. a day or more). I had stopped with the aloe vera, because she didn't seem to be itchy. It started getting a little better, and it didn't seem to be spreading as much. After about 2 weeks of that, I realized I was missing something. I bought a bottle of 400 IU capsules of vitamin E. I started giving her 2-3 a day, along with the vitamins and fish oil. It was amazing ! Within days it stopped spreading, and her fur started growing back thick. It has been around 2 weeks since we started on the E, and her fur is almost completely normal again. She has no more spots starting, and it is like she never had it. Her fur is growing so thick and pretty. We lowered the vitamin dosage to the normal dosage, and give her 2 fish oil and 2 E a day. She is around 90 pounds so you may need to adjust the dosage for your dog. As far as I know, you can't really go wrong with 800 IU a day of E and 2000 mg of fish oil a day for your dog. Just use the dosage on the label of the dog vitamins for your size of dog. My husband and I have also started taking the fish oil and E. His dandruff has also cleared up !! I hope this helps some one else avoid the chemical dip. also, we are getting her spayed-I have heard it will help avoid future outbreaks....

Answer by REDNOSE
Submitted on 10/3/2004
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HELLO I AM STEVEN FROM BELGIUM I HAVE A FEMALE AMERICAN STAFFORDSHIRE TERRIER AND SHE IS 1 YEAR OLD.THE DAY I HAD HER EVERYTING WAS FINE 8 WEEKS OLD JUST A DREAM. A WEEK LATER I STARTED TO SEE LITTLE BOLD PLACES ON HER HEAD. I WENT TO MY VET. AND ASKED HER WAT IT WAS AND SHE WASN'T SHOURE AT THE FIRST TIME SHE SAW IT SHE TOOK A SAMPLE IT TO SEE IT UNDER A MICROSCOPE AND SHE SAID TO ME IT IS WHAT I THAT AND YEAH DEMODEX. I NEW THAT IT WAS SERIEUS SO I DID AL THE RESEARCH I COULD TO NOW MORE ABOUT IT.MY VET. TOLD ME THAT NOT EVEN 5% OF THE VETS IN BELGIUM NOWDE ABOUT DEMODEX . I CAN TELL IT IS A PARRASIET THAT LIVES UNDER DE SKIN AND IS GIVIN FROM THE MOTHER TO THE PUP IN THE FIRST 3 DAY OF HIS LIFE. DEMODEX EXISTS IN 2 FORMS THE NORMAL FORM WHIT 1 TILL 5 LITTLE PLACES ON THE DOG BODY THIS FORM IS WURTH TO TRAY MEDICATION.THE OTHER ONE IS THE GENERAL FORM ALL OVER THE DOG BODY MOST PLACES BEGINS ON THE EARS?ROUND THE EYES,ON THE STUMIK AND MOST OF ALL THE FEET BETWEEN THE TOWES. MY DOG HAD THE NORMAL ONE.SO MY VET. GAVE ME A MEDICEN THAT I HAD TO SPRAY EVERY DAY IN HER MOUTH BUT THE WEIGHT OF THE DOG WAS VERY IMPORTANT . IT WAS 0.06MG FOR 1 KG EVERY DAY I HAD TO WEIGH MY DOG AND MULTIPLY IT WITH 0.06MG FOR INSTANCE 16KG X 0.06 = 0.96 MG AND THAT I HAD TO DO UNTILL IT GOT BETER ALMOST 4 MONTHS IN THE FIRST WEEKS YOU THINK IT HAD TO CHANGE BUT AFTHER FOR WEEKS NOTHING AND THAT IS A LIVING HELL ALMOST NO SLEEPING OR EATING I WAS DOWN BUT AFTHER 6 WEEKS IT GOT BETER NOT MUCH IT WORKS VERY SLOW. AFTHER 4 MONTHS IT WAS ALMOST GONE AND THE VET TELLED ME TO STOP WITH BECAUSE IT WORKED I WAS THAT ONE ON A 100 PEOPLE THAT HAD GOOD LUCK FOR A CANGE THOSE 4 MONTHS WHERE A REAL HELL BECAUSE YOU NOW IF IT WENT WHORSE THERE WAS NOTHING YOU CAN DO. BUT WHAT ME REALLY SHOCKED WAS THAT ONLY 10% OF THE VETS IN BELGIUM NOW WHAT DEMODEX IS EVEN WHEN THERE ARE MANY DOG WHIT DEMODEX LATELY. MOSTELY SHORT HAIRED DOGS AND A LOT OF PITBULLS HAVE IT. WHAT CAN YOU DO TO MAKE SURE YOU BUY A PUP WITHOUT IT IS: 1) THE PUP GETS DEMODEX THE FIRST 3 DAY FROM HIS MOTHER AND YOU CAN NOT SEE IT. BUT IF A PUP IS INFECTED YOU CAN SEE IT BEFORE HE GETS 10 WEEKS OLD. SO TO BE SAVE BUY A PUP THAT 10 WEEKS OLD IS !!!!!!! 2) I NOW THAT A PUP IS EXPANSIVE WHEN YOU BUY IT FROM PRO BREEDERS BUT THE CHANGE OF DEMODEX WITH THAT KIND OF BREED IS TEN TIMES SMALLER THEN WHEN YOU BUY THIS PUPS AT A BREEDER PLACE WITH ALL BREEDS FOR SALE A GOOD BREEDER BREEDS A MAX OF 3 BREEDS (PITBULL.DOG ARGENTINO.RIDGEBACK) THIS IS AN EXAMPLE BREEDS. YOU WANT A PITBULL LOOK FOR PITBULL BREEDER. YOU WANT A GERMAN SHEPPERD BUY THAT DOG AT A BREEDER THAT ONLY BREEDS GERMAN S. WHY ,??? MANY DIFFRENT BREEDS MEANS THAT THAT BREEDER BUYS HIS DOGS FROM OTHER PEOPLE AND THEN IS THE BIG PROBLEM THAT DIFFRENT BREEDS DIFFRENT SICKNESSES. NOW THATS IT I WISH YOU GOOD LUCK, AND IF YOU WANNA NOW MORE ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE THAN THIS IS MY EMAIL REDNOSE.PITBULL@SKYNET.BE

Answer by laj
Submitted on 12/9/2004
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I have a 9 month old pit bull who had an extremely bad case of demodex...he was 95 percent bald at when he was found at 8 weeks of age and his prognosis was poor for survival (let alone to ever have hair). He was put on a course of oxydex baths and mitaban dips once a week until he had a negative skin scrape...then 3 more dips after the negative skin scrape. After his dips concluded he came back with a positive skin scrape, so....we continued bathing him weekly with Oxydex shampoo (it has benzoyle peroxide in it which flushes the folicles where the mites live), and put him on an oral ivermectin solution for two months. As far as food and nutrition goes...I highly recommend Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice dog food which has lots of linoleic acid in it which is good for coat and skin. I also used a food supplement called "Missing Link" which is good for boosting the immune system which is compromised during a bad case of demodex. The bottom line is you need to be persistent and follow exactly what the vet recommends. Don't miss even one week of treatment and don't lose hope. I've used this regimen with several foster pets now and have had great success. Hope this helps! By the way...my boy is now 9 months old, has a beautiful fawn brindle coat with white markings and is my pride and joy! He just took 2nd place in his obedience class so he's not just all good looks!

Answer by wizzie
Submitted on 9/21/2005
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I have a 4 year old Jack Russell (Jasper) who from birth suffered (demodex) or rather generalized demodicosis, profound inflammation, allergic reactions to immunizations and his feed. We gave him daily doses of ivermectin which helped less and less as he aged so we stopped. Chemicals to control fleas and kill mites set his skin on fire. We had him neutered, rubbed him down with cortisone cream, fed him vitamins, oils, etc. He was scratching and gnawing off patches of hair he did have and created sores that were getting infected. He couldn't be still to rest, he was aggressive and moody and was miserable 24 hours a day. A month ago I put him on a raw diet, no more kibble or commercial dog food, and the change has been nothing short of miraculous. His hair is growing-or it's growing back and is soft and the shedding is slowed. All his symptoms have been reduced by at minimum 75%, skin irritation is mild and rare, and skin oil is starting to be produced for the first time in his life. He rests calmly, is happy and friendly and energetic. Search the web for information on BARF, Biologically Appropriate Raw Food for dogs. There are many helpful websites. It's worth a try when you've tried everything else and the dog's life and health is at stake. Good Luck!

Answer by Krystal
Submitted on 9/22/2005
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I hope this will help. My mother has a German Shepherd that had the same problem when she was a pup. One vet told her there was no hope and she wouldn't last very long. I found a vet in Riverside, California by the name of Dr. Butchko that felt the case was so severe he wasn't sure she would make it but he treated her and she is four years old now and very healthy. I found out while at his office that people come from all over the United States and I met a woman from Switzerland with a Bull Dog there. He's very popular with the Bull Dog community. His phone number is 951-686-2242. His address is 5488 Mission Blvd., Riverside, California 92509. It's hard to get him on the phone, he's very busy. I think your best bet would be writing to him with your problem. I hope this helps. I will try to get more information on the medicatins.

Answer by K9Trainer5
Submitted on 12/6/2005
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Demodectic mange is a mite that lives in and around the hair follicle of the dog. It is passed on from mother to puppy, and it is recommended that dogs with severe (generalized) demodectic mange be sterilized to prevent the spread of the mite to offspring (and in general). Therefore, if you keep getting pit bulls with mange, it would have to be coming from the parents of the puppies, who should be sterlised to prevent further transmission. There is nothing, as far as I am aware, that makes pit bulls more "susceptible" to demodectic mange other than the fact that someone is practicing poor breeding by mating dogs that have it. Davmeli is on the right track completely by having the mix spayed to stop the transmission of the mange. It isn't fair to the puppies (who weren't asked to be born, let alone with a debilitating skin disease), it isn't fair to the unsuspecting buyers or adopters (which most people would have to be unsuspecting to acquire a dog with a debilitating skin disease), and spaying just helps dogs live longer. Good luck guys. I'm sorry you had to have this experience.

Answer by jade8531
Submitted on 9/3/2006
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Thanks so much davmeli for the info.I have a 14 week old blue pit bull terrier pup that has a slight case of demodex.I had tried the topical applications of lotions and moisturizers with no help to be seen.All he had to begin with was just a small little bump on his forehead,between his ears.Then he started chewing a small spot by his tail.I bought some Douxo Chlorhexidine shampoo from the vet and the directions say to bathe him 2-3 times a week for 2 weeks.I bathed him the first time last night and he has scratched himself raw and bloody on his forehead since the shampoo.Also he has had some red rash show up on his side since the shampoo.I looked this stuff up on the net and it is common to cause some slight red rash but to continue to use.I guess it is killing the mites by some kind of acidity substance.I know someone else that used it and it did the same thing but in a week and a half,the redness was gone and the dog was much better.Now the puppy is just fine,she is a sister to my male.I am going to get the fish oil TODAY and I already have the vitamin E so that will be his new routine.I have also read online about thew quality of dog food with the proper fats is important and I would assume that the fish oil and vitamin E is taking care of this end of it.Although I do feed a 26% protein and 18% fat dog food.I'm a breeder and have been breeding for over 25 years and I have never seen demodex in any of my dogs before.This particular pup was off another breeders kennel.I must admit that this disease just scares me to death and I hope and pray that I can clear it up with the help of you fine people that were kind enough to share your story with us.I will try to post again with the results in two weeks.

Answer by Boomerlady
Submitted on 5/28/2007
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I too had a dog that I had to put to sleep and he suffered from demodex. He was a doberman and we fought it for six months at least. He died before he reached a year old and we were devestated. Now we have a 10 month old boxer and he is beginning to have the same symptoms. Our doberman was treated with mitaban dip but I refuse to use that treatment on my boxer puppy. The mitaban dip made him very lethargic and he never made any progress. We spent about 3,000 in vet bills before putting him down. By the time he had gotten to the point where we had to put him down he could barely stand, he was vomiting blood and he was not eating or drinking. I think the demodex mites along with the mitaban dip had weekended his immune system so much that it had turned into an auto immune disease. My boxer puppy only has a few bald spots on his face and in between his shoulder blades. He does have a green discharge and matted eyes. I am going to start him on a natural diet of cooked ground beef with kale mixed in and will give him fish oils, flax seed oil and vitamin e. I could not believe that two dogs in a row got this demodex and I was beginning to worry there was something in my house making my dogs sick.

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Answer by PITlover
Submitted on 12/13/2004
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my dog has demolic mange i have to spend alot of money but i wont put her to sleep cause its not that bad with the mediciane provided by my vet a day but im going to try the home remidy to see if that will work I wanted to know were to get these products listed above fish oil.

Answer by weezie
Submitted on 1/12/2005
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my dad use to get burned oil,( oil when you changed the oil in your car )and put sulfur in it and put on his dogs with mange and it always healed it

Answer by Wendigo
Submitted on 4/5/2005
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Mitaban and interceptor.Thats all you need...Nothing else seems to work no vitamins, no fish pil and vitamin e is only good for skin care nothing else

Answer by Theodd001
Submitted on 4/9/2005
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My pitt had demodex, I found out when I took him to the vet. They prescribed some anti-biotics and also gave me some stuff to "dip him" in every two weeks. After a couple follow up appt. and 2 months of dipping him he was cured! I think he recovered great and hes doing just fine.

Answer by Dante Sonzini
Submitted on 5/31/2005
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Hace muchos anos investigo acerca del parasito, en los ultimos anos tal vez devido al desaparecimiento de la capa de ozono, este esta mutando, ha visto casos de demodex que son casi inmortales, no dudo que en los proximos anos , podria ser una epidemia incontrolable incluso en seres humanos. DANTE SONZINI

Answer by pitbullx5
Submitted on 6/26/2005
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i have 2 pitbulls chino & cyrus. chino is a rednose and cyrus is brindle with a mix of lab. we have een battling this mange situation for 1 year. it went away and then came back. we have given them chemical baths and cyrus got better while chino got worse. its breaking my heart to see him in agony. please someone help me and give me some good advice. he is so itchy.

Answer by Scoon
Submitted on 7/31/2005
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I have a month and a half old pitbull puppy who was diagnosed with demodex mange and a secondary skin infection. She is currently on medication. Some hair is growing back on her face but now her back is losing hair.

Answer by blame
Submitted on 8/12/2005
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Mange is a parasite. Every puppy you get could get it if its around your place somewhere. Some manges even humans can get. My best advise for this is to clean up everywhere the dogs have been. Wait about 6 months, then you shouldn't have to worry about it. Every parasite dies after 6 months. Even parvo.

Answer by fred
Submitted on 9/15/2005
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we also have a pitbull/rotti X who had mange as a puppy. she lost a good deal of hair around and under her lower jaw. She also began losing hair on he paws as well as on isolated patches of skin. We began giving her a fish oil blend (Udo'schoice liquid form). we put it on her food. she loves it. Shortly after using it the mange disappeared, the hair grew back and she has not had the problem in almost 4 years.

Answer by Lisa
Submitted on 11/22/2005
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You can use Ivermectin to cure it. I work for a vet and this is what we do, however, you should check with your own veterinarian first. You use it at the rate of: .1 of a cc per 10 lbs orally for 3-6 days .1 of a cc per 5.5 lbs orally for 3-6 days .1 of a cc per 3.6 lbs orally for 30-60 days or until cleared up. It is an immune inherited disease, It is like Acne in us. You can also visit my website for more info at www.chilalisiberians.com

Answer by Teacup31
Submitted on 1/26/2006
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I know this is a late posting, but if anyone is looking on-line for an answer??? This recurring mange seems to be much worse on females and extremely bad after they go into a heat. Getting them spayed keeps their hormone levels even, not weakening their immune system and greatly reduces the risk of recurrence. Also definitely follow the vitamin ritual in the above comment, worked like a charm for me... Good luck.. Please make sure you go to the vet also

Answer by BUNNY KITTENS AKA AMBER
Submitted on 5/1/2006
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YES ACTUALLY I HAVE 29 PITTS 24 GRILS AND 5 BOYS THERE FIGHT PITTS.ONLY I HAD MORE I HAD LIKE 50 BUT SOME DIED CUZ OF DIEASES LIKE YOUR DOG.

Answer by Ava
Submitted on 7/3/2006
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I have bred & raised a lot of dogs. My father raised hunting dogs and I have had boxers, danes, vizslas, weimaraners, german shorthairs, pomsetc., they have all been AKC, very healthy, (luckly) and I have never heard of demodex. It sounds heart breaking. Is it more indigenous to certian areas?? Really, I have never even heard my vet mention it. Maybe we call it something else? I have a year old red nose pup to keep my weimaraner company (since the Vizsla died) and I don't want to worry about this...

Answer by athena
Submitted on 9/19/2006
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Fish oil worked so well clearing up our Doberman'sdemodex (30-40% body, head almost bald) and teenaged "acne" that we now take it ourselves.

Answer by suzqzzoo
Submitted on 9/30/2006
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Demodex is inherited by the parents. Never breed a demodectic positive dog as it will be passed on to the pups. There are alternatives to the usual " mitaban dips" There are medications and herbal remedies as well. Keeping them out of dirt and sand and cleaning the bedding regularly is a must. Use a mild shampoo... Aloe and Oatmeal works well. I raise Pits and live in a dense wooded area but keep my yard and dogs clean.

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Answer by KEZ
Submitted on 12/6/2006
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JUST BE CAREFUL WAT DOG OR ANIMAL YOU CHOOSE BECAUSE IT MIGHT HAVE A DISEASE LIKE ALL YOUR OTHER ANIMALS THAT YOU GOT AND YOU KEEP NEEDIN TO GETTHEM PUT DOWN AND ITS NOT FARE ON YOU OR THE ANIMAL JUST GET THE AIMAL CHEAKED STRAIGHT AWAY WHEN TOU GET IT AND IF ITS NOT HEALTHY BRING IT BACK TO THE PET SHOP OR TO THE PERSON YOU GOT IT FROM

Answer by Trish
Submitted on 1/28/2007
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I have taken in a bullmastiff/german shepard mix that has Demodex. I have never encountered this nor have I ever heard of it. I dont know how to treat her. What to not do. When she will be fully healed and i can not find any infomation about her breed with this. So if anyone can find any information about her or any advise, please email me at trish.brown@cms-student.org

Answer by scott
Submitted on 2/23/2007
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We have a dog that was being raised to be a bomb sniffing dog. She had a very bad case, and she swims everyday in the pool this eventualy went away due to the chemicals in the pool and her swimming activity. She is one happy lab and is no longer in the lab puppy program she was medically discharged. Their loss our gain.

Answer by Jessica
Submitted on 6/19/2007
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I had a blue pitbull who had demodex and because it is passed through parents i had to fix her and retire her from the kennel we own. But you should haven't to put you dog to sleep. I got her demodex undercontrol with a very expensive dip that had to be done every two weeks for six weeks. The thing is though is the demodex can come back if the dog gets stressed out and anything can stress a dog out such a movig.