Red Mange

"Red mange" now we are really talking about a little bugger here. When the immune system is compromised for any reason such as when a dog is a young, short haired, malnourished or in ill health the mites can become numerous in hair follicles. In normal skin the immune system of the host prevents the mites from reaching large numbers. They are always being held to relatively small numbers. In puppies with developing immune systems or in older dogs the situation can get out of control. The mites are allowed to proliferate and cause the skin disease often referred to as "Red Mange".

Red mange centers on the fore quarters with lesions first on the head and neck and then on the forelimbs. The early lesions resemble a "rug burn" hence the name "red mange". The "dry form" of the disease usually occurs in pups 3 to 12 months of age. It starts as scaly, rough dry areas on the skin with some hair loss. With red mange at this stage of the disease, you will see that the skin becomes greasy, red, swollen and scabby. Itchiness from the secondary bacterial infection occurs. Your dog appears "mangy and ugly. Lymph nodes enlarge due to the systemic spread of the mites and bacteria. From there, the mites and bacteria can enter the blood stream and affect other organs. If allowed to progress, the condition may become fatal due to the overwhelming sepsis.

Verification of red mange is done by deep skin scraping in several affected areas. The skin is pinched up to squeeze mites out of the hair follicles, mineral oil is then applied and the skin is scraped down until lightly bleeding. The material scraped up is placed on a microscope slide and is examined for the presence of these little buggers. If large numbers of mites are present and your dog has the signs listed above a diagnosis is made. If no mites are found and the signs are present then another scraping needs to be done since the mites are often difficult to find if the skin is thickened and severely irritated. Sometimes a skin biopsy must be taken to find the mites.

Types of treatment for red mange include clipping the hair from the affected areas and then shampooing the skin with a good quality degreasing shampoo. The skin is then rinsed with clear water and towel dried. A dip solution containing amitraz (Tactik or Mitoban�) is then sponged over the entire dog and allowed to air dry. This process is repeated every two weeks until skin scrapings reveal all dead mites. This may take from 4 to 8 treatments. If bacterial infections are present, appropriate antibiotics are also administered. It is very important to not stop treatment too soon. I would suggest that the dips be continued on two separate occasions two weeks apart AFTER skin scrapings reveal all dead mites. This ensures a complete kill of all stages of the red mange mite.

In closing I must recommend that you see your vet for proper treatment of red mange and follow the instructions given to you by your vet. The dipping solutions mentioned above are not to be played around with they are toxic and certain precautions must be made when dealing with them. Now then, if you would like some more valuable information on all aspects of dog heath please visit this link to the Ultimate Guide to Dog Health. I know you will love it!