ADOPTED PITBULL itching problem
 

Hi, In January I adopted a pitbull mix from the local animal shelter. At that time he was basically hairless with a diagnosis of dermotopic mange being treated with ivermectin orally and oral antibiotics. Two skin scrapings have been negative but we are still scratching to bleeding. We recently started oral benadryl 25mg daily with no relief, oatmeal baths with no relief, sunflower oil 2 tbsps daily with no relief. I beginning to look internally. could this be related to his kidneys. He is only 7 months old and has begun to grow hair again a shiny black coat. no excessive drinking or urinating a good appetite, just the itching till he bleeds in some cases. The baths help initially then right back to itching in 24 hours or less. Please help. He is going back to the vet this Friday to be neutered. He is thinking a food allergy, I don't know. any suggestions? Thanks so much. Colby

What food are you feeding the pup? A cheaper brand of food may be aggrevating the problem. Is the dog stressed?

Demodectic mange does seem to be quite pervasive among badly bred pit bulls, if you're sure this is what he has. The mange mite lives deep in the skin of animals and doesn't usually cause a problem unless the animal is in poor heath from malnourishment etc or the animal is very young.

This is basically a disease of puppyhood, and the problem usually resolves itself as the dog gets older and it's immune system becomes mature - this happens between 12 and 18 months normally.

A raw diet with added yogurt can be helpful.

When you take him to be neutered, ask the vet if the anesthetic will further supress his immune system, worsening the problem. It might be better to wait til he is over this. Many drugs and chemicals used also exacerbate the problem.

Go to Google and type in "Demodectic Mange natural remedies" without the quotation marks and you'll find lots of good info.

Just so you don't give up hope, here is Buddy, a dog who was dumped with severe demodectic mange. These are his "Before" and "after" pics.
[IMG]http://pic10.picturetrail.com/VOL320/1047157/2137064/85702843.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://pic10.picturetrail.com/VOL320/1047157/2137064/85702955.jpg[/IMG]

I am at a loss for words...that picture is so incredibly terrible...what a strong little fellow. :)

Yogurt is great for infections but make sure it asidopholus (sp) it is the active ingredient in it. It is actually something Buddy gets everyday you should use plain or I use vanilla my vet said that it is okay because he is not eating a lot of it he loves it.

Our dog also had mange when we adopted her...bald spots didn't start to develop until after we had her for about a week. She also itched, but not as bad as what you are saying. Our vet told us to give her one fish oil pill per day...it really seemed to help with the itching...if you poke a hole in it they eat them easier. Large bottles of the pills are fairly cheap. She was also on Ivarmectin. She also gets Nutro Ultra dry food, which seems to be very good.

Good luck...it may take a while, but he should get over it and have a great coat. I look at pictures of Gabby when she looked her worse from the mange and can't believe it is the same dog now!

Wow...that Buddy picture is amazing...and really sad! Poor guy.

I wonder if Luba's Oregano oil would help this little guy??

Colby itchy dog
 

Thank you so much for your responses! Buddy is one lucky dog and looks great today! Colby was depressed and under a lot of stress in the kennel. Withing one week he started growing hair again. Right now he has a shinny black coat. I canceled his neuter today I believe you are right to wait. We are going back to the vet for a check and probably anitibiotics. He was on Clavamox tabs at 30.00 dollars for 14 enough for 1 week. Can these be ordered cheaper somewhere if he is going to need them everytime he breaks the skin. We will see what the vet says, but I am going to start the yogurt (Stonyfield) and go to the natural remedies site. Thanks again. This is my first time on and you are all wonderful to take the time to answer! Colby's Mom

[QUOTE=LuckyRescue]Just so you don't give up hope, here is Buddy, a dog who was dumped with severe demodectic mange. These are his "Before" and "after" pics.[/QUOTE]

OMG Lucky...that's terrible! That poor little pooch :sad:
I'm glad he's all better now, but that looks awfully painfull, I sometimes get a little patch of psoriasis on my elbows and I complain about it...If these dogs could talk...

A big THANKS to Boxer Rescue Ontario for giving Buddy the happy ending he so deserved.

Colby's mom - just be careful with the Clavamox. It's not usual, but it CAN cause nausea which won't help your dog's condition. It's often suggested that chemicals, drugs, dips etc NOT be used to treat demodectic mange, as the side effects may affect the immune system.

And thank YOU so much for adopting a dog who is less than perfect and giving him such a loving home that he has probably never known. He will pay you back many times over. :thumbs up

Itchy dog
 

My pit bull (mix) is also suffering from severe itching. He was always somewhat itchy but it has gotten out of hand. I have given up on the vet and am hoping you have found the answer. I would appreciate any help. Thanks

Just wanted to say, try switching to a food with alternative ingredients and see if the itching stops. This needs to be done for at least a month or more, after slowly switching. The most common allergies for dogs are beef and dairy followed by chicken and corn. Those ingredients are in most dog foods. My dog was switched to Eagle Pack fish and oatmeal based kibble, and he is much better now, barely scratches and his coat is soft and shiny.

I agree with the switching food for itchiness but it has to be a food with ingredients the dog has never had before (no wheat, no corn, etc). If you have money to burn, there are doggy allergy blood tests you can ask for.

For the first poster, joker's comet, since the doggy came from a shelter, I would give him the meds the vet prescribed and a good dog food and wait and see. My Boo was abused before we got him- he didn't have any parasites but he had bites and cigarette burns and the first two months we had him he lost ALL his fur, and he had no allergies at the time. I think he just wanted to get rid of all the residue of the bad previous owners.. (my unscientific interpretation) Now he has the shiniest, softest black fur. People at our park call him the "Lapin" (rabbit) because he's so soft. It'll be ok see? :thumbs up

Hi, my younger cat, Sabrina, had the exact same problem. At first I suspected Mange but then the vet did a skin scrapping and said otherwise. I took her to three different vets and each time they gave her antibiotics. Unfortunately, none of those work. Until the last vet I took her to gave her some steriod pills. At first I was worried about side effects, but she assured me that steriods do not hurt if taken in short period of time. After only 1 course, she's no longer itchy anymore. :queen:

[QUOTE=sammiec]I wonder if Luba's Oregano oil would help this little guy??[/QUOTE]


As most know Blaze came with demodex too as a puppy.
It's the hardest thing to watch your dog suffer while going through this. Luba told me about oregano oil, I bought it and gave it daily for mths. This can take mths to rid but remember as the mites die they are still making the dog itchy. Build the immune system all you can, I gave fish oil to help with red burning skin it works. Blaze is now one yr and I still watch and check his skin, it can come back. It took him 6 mths to stop chewing and for the skin to start to return to normal. Our Vet said benadryl 25mg 3 times daily
it helped Blaze no steriods for a puppy not good. Good luck. there is a light at the end of the tunnel.. :)

itching
 

thanks, I have tried several types of food including special order $$$. The vet began each trial period with a shot of cortizone. This treament was followed with an oral dose of cortizone for ten days. Each time it looked like we had found the answer to the itching problem. Eventually I learned that it was the cortizone that provided the relief. I have been cautioned about the health risks of to much cortizone. I will not go to another vet for this problem nor will I look at how much this has cost me.

I do believe this to be food related and have since found recommendations on the internet to prepare the food myself. I now need to find a recipe.

Try this then, if you want to prepare food yourself:

[url]www.urbanwolf.ca[/url]

It's a raw diet base. This might be the only option for your doggy.

Also, look up info on BARF diets (B.A.R.F. Biologically Appropriate Real Food)

We had a problem with itching too when we got our pitbull. It was so bad she would chew the bottom of her feet off and was developing bald spots. It turned out that it was food related, we have her on Wellness Lamb and Rice and she's great now. If she gets just about any other dog food or some people food (ham, for instance) she will start itching and chewing her paws. It takes a few days to set in after eating it and takes about a week to go away after she stops getting whatever is causing the problem.