Ivermectin and mange
by Sue
ORIGINAL MESSAGE:
I'd appreciate any input from anyone who's gone through treating for sarcoptic mange. We have 2 maltese. Lily is one year and Tuggy is 6 months old. They both came in contact with mange when our rescue cocker came to us this summer .....with sarcoptic mange. The cocker was tested for several months for various skin conditions....seborrhea, food allergies, inhalant allergies, hypothyroidism...the works..even had skin scrapings for mange mites which were negative. Eventually I started noticing itchy bites on my body...went to the dermatoligist and found out that I had sarcoptic scabies!! Or dog mange! By this time our cocker had been in our home for 4 months and by now Lily was scratching as well as our new puppy, Tug. Our cocker has been treated with Ivermectin on a weekly basis. We opted to dip the maltese, using Paramite Dip instead of using Ivermectin.
They were dipped weekly. My concern has been that the dip is too toxic to continue it's use on a regular basis. I am still noticing bites every now and then so we have to continue to treat the dogs. I'm a compulsive housekeeper and keep our dogs in top condition and groom them daily. Has anyone here gone through a situation like this?? AND....has anyone used oral Ivermectin on their maltese? My vet assures me that it will be safe to use but I'm concerned about any reactions that might me specific to this breed. I'd appreciate any information...and support....we've been treating consistantly for almost 4 months now! HELP!
DISCUSSION:
I definitely know what you're going through. I previously had three Cockers, and when my oldest came to me from my mom's ranch (at age 10) he had tons of health problems one of which was scarcoptic mange. My female has also had demdodectic mange (which is non-contagious). Anyway, Frosty (with Scarcoptic) was easy to diagnose in my case since he had almost no hair and looked really bad (not just sore spots). I remember my vet telling me that one of the types was harder to diagnose. Anyway, We went to the vet for weekly dippings for 2.5 months before he was cleared. Luckily it wasn't summer (I'm in Texas) so he stayed in the garage during treatment. And everytime I went to play with him I had to come in and wash up so as not to spread it. They weren't even sure if his coat would come back in like normal but he's a trooper and it did. He died at 16.5 by falling asleep in the back yard with all of his cocker fluffy feathers. My vet used a dip called Mitaban which is administered by the vet only. At that time (1992) it was like $25 a shot but it worked. I'd be nervous about using this on a small maltese though. It didn't bother my cockers but I've heard that it can cause reactions in some dogs. Anyway good luck.
Mary
Regarding the use of IVERMECTIN for treating sarcoptic mange on Maltese. I have used it on my 4 lb Maltese, and also just used it on a 6 1/2 lb rescue Maltese. The dip was NOT working on the 4 b one, and another vet suggested Ivermectin. I used VERY LITTLE, but treated for three times, 2 weeks apart. I used only 3 or 4 drops. I now work for a vet and I believe the dosage I used is 1 tenth of a cc for a ten lb dog, BUT CHECK WITH YOUR VET BEFORE USING THIS......and do AS YOUR VET SUGGESTS. I do feel Ivermectin works much better than the dips, anyway that has been my experiance and the experiance of the vet I used when treating the mange. I just gave the drops on cottage cheese to the first dog, and gave a shot to the last one. I have also used Ivermectin ( for 5 years on Maltese)to prevent heartworm infestation at the advice of two different veterinarians. I put those drops in cottage cheese monthly.
I DO FEEL IT IS SAFER THAN THE DIPS, AND YES, I DO FEEL IT IS SAFE TO USE ON MALTESE.
Kay
Hi Sue: I have heard a lot about mange and Ivermectin recently. I used to give Rastus a heartworm preventative which contained Ivermectin, but the doasge used for mange is, I believe, much higher. It is supposed to be lethal (at mange dosage) for collies but I have not heard that malts are susceptible. There is a natural product called Neem which can be used safely to cure scabies in people and canines (this has been documented in reputable veterinary and scientific journals). I read someone else's account of their experience; she found that the Neem helped a lot but that the Paramite dip was more effective on her sheltie.
Deanna (Moose & Squirrel)
This is exactly what I need to know right now, I'm so grateful for this topic of discussion. Please see my posting under:Breeders please help---KathyD
KathyD
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