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lorihuntdvm May 26th, 2008

I have a great little Frenchie pup, 6 months old, neutered and just a delight. My question is:

We got him at about 4 1/2 months and he had a tiny little patch of thinning hair on his head and one on the back of his neck. When he had his first checkup our Vet did a scraping of it (I hadn’t even noticed it was there), but it came back negative.

The scraped area grew back, but now he is getting more thinning spots. I don’t see him scratching and he is with me almost all day. If this keeps up he is going to get pretty funny looking. Nothing has changed in our home and he is eating an all natural food (Spots stew - dry puppy formula)

Nobody seems to have any idea including the breeder we got him from and she is a Vet herself. She did mention that his sister (she kept her to show) had a few thin spots that grew back, but she just thought the other dogs might have been chewing on her.

I do not use any over the counter flea, or tick products, just vet prescribed heart worm and flea control monthly.

Any idea of insight would be appreciated!

Dr. Lori writes -

I would definitely have him re-scraped. Often times the scrapes come up negative even when mites are present. Usually you need to scrape several places and have all be negative on a few different occasions to rule out mites.

Most often demodex mites will clear on their own, but if he is getting more spots, he may need a little help. If necessary, treatment can be ivermectin orally and/or special follicular flushing shampoos or wipes can help as well.

I have had good luck using Revolution (a topical flea and heartworm treatment) in cases where I either have suspected or confirmed demodex, you may want to discuss this with your vet as well.

Lori Hunt, DVM
French Bulldogs d’Assisi

Tags: demodectic mange, demodex, French Bulldog, French Bulldog Veterinary, Frenchie, heartworm, Revolution, skin, veterinarian

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lorihuntdvm March 23rd, 2008

Mange and Immune Systems

I am considering adopting a French Bulldog from a rescue situation. He was dumped off by a breeder who didn’t know how to or didn’t want to treat him. He is a 1 ½ year old and neutered. His foster mom told me that when he came into rescue he was cover in demodectic mange.

Since then he has been treated and doing very well. It basically all gone, hair has grown back, except she said he has to continue to getting scraped to make sure all the mites are dead.

Sound right to you?

I have researched a bit and learned that in puppies its unusually nothing to worry about but in adults it can be a red flag that there is an underlying health issue.

If it’s a weak immune system can that be treated? Is this something that could be big problems down the road?

Dr. Lori Writes -

Demodectic mange is not unusual in young puppies, and is usually just localized (less than 3 spots) and clears up on it’s own. However, when it becomes generalized, in several spots and requires a course of treatment to clear it up, it can signify a less than ideal immune system or an inherited predisposition to demodex.

The fact that he has recovered from it, shows that his system is not totally defunct. You may want to consider a reduced vaccination protocol or even titers until you are sure he is totally recovered. On occasion, during times of stress or illness they can experience a flare up. It will be something you may need to watch, but generally speaking, when I see dogs who have recovered from generalized demodex they lead quiet normal lives.

Lori Hunt, DVM

Tags: demodectic mange, demodex, French Bull Dog, French Bulldog, immune system, mange

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