Dane puppy with demodectic mange

Question
I read through your response to another person dealing with demodectic
mange and am currently dealing with a similar situation.  I hope you can offer
some advice.  So far, our nine-month-old blue Dane (around 100 pounds
now) is resistant to traditional treatment.  She has been on paracide for a few
weeks.  She has had two round of antibiotics and has improved dramatically
each time.  However, every time she finishes a round, she gets worse again.  
She has been for her first dip and will go back in another week.  (When I was
small, my family had a Chow that had generalized demodectic mange and
had to be put to sleep.  I'm so afraid that the same thing will happen to our
baby).  I purchased an immune system booster from Pet Naturals called
Antiox-100.  She has been on this for approximately ten days.  I can't tell if it
is helping or not.  

You recommended several supplements from K-Mart/Wal-Mart in a previous
question including: Ester-C, B-complex, Zinc, Vitamin E, Fish oil, and
Probiotics.  Do you think this is a route that I should pursue as well?  I am
interested in trying anything to get our baby better.

I also noticed that the other user was changing dog foods.  Our puppy is
currently on Purina One Large Breed.  Is there a particular brand that you
would recommend?

Thank you so much for your time.

Sincerely,
Sascha

Answer
Sascha, giving the immune boosting vitamins I recommended to another user certainly won't hurt your dog. With the zinc, though, I recommend giving just one pill every other day or every 3 days, because it is so potent. You don't want to give too much because it can become toxic. The dog's body doesn't absorb it like our body does. I looked up Antiox-100, and, oh my goodness I hope you didn't pay the prices I found it for online! All it is is grape seed extract and rice powder!

A website I'd like to share with you is http://www.b-naturals.com Their products are top notch, and if you have any questions at all, you can e-mail Lew and she will get back to you right away. I've never been disappointed with any of their products.

From what you've said, you've only been treating the dog topically. Paracide is a shampoo, right?

Antibiotics do not treat demodectic mange; antibiotics help treat secondary skin infections that often occur along with the mange. Amitraz dips are very harsh, and many vets will not do them because they are so hard on the dog's system. Another type of treatment is the use of 1% ivermectin, given orally each day for a set period of time (how long depends on the dog and the severity of the condition). I believe I mentioned this in my answer to the other person. If not, let me know and I'll tell you more about it.


As far as diet is concerned, I do not consider Purina ONE an appropriate food. In fact, >>any<< food you can get at Wal-Mart or the grocery store is to be avoided, because they are made with cheap ingredients, many of which are known allergens and causes of diseases such as cancer. I would encourage you to take a look at the following pages about dog foods, and please feel free to e-mail me if you should have any questions:

http://dogfoods.angelfire.com
http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com
http://www.dogfoodproject.com
http://www.api4animals.org/facts.php?p=359&more=1


It's rare for dogs to have to be euthanized for demodex nowadays, Sascha. You are doing all you can, and I am confident your dog will pull out of this in time. With some dogs, it can take as long as a year or more to completely recover.

Oh, I also want to emphasize that you should NOT vaccinate your dog until she is completely over the mange and all her fur has been grown back for at least 3 months. Vaccinating suppresses the immune system, which can trigger another 'outbreak' of mange if the dog is not completely recovered.

If she isn't spayed, that should be on the agenda as well, once she's recovered, or the mange may recur every time she goes into heat.

Personally, I do not recommend doing any vaccines at all (except for rabies, which is required by law) after the dog is a year old. I give the puppy vaccines and the 'booster' at a year of age, but after that, the only thing I keep 'up to date' is the rabies shot. There simply is no need to keep giving vaccinations. Even if a puppy received no vaccinations at all, if it were given the vaccinations at a year of age, it would be protected for life. Once the body reacts to a vaccination (or exposure to a virus) by producing antibodies, you cannot make him MORE immune by continuing to give more vaccines.

I have two 5-year old dogs at the moment, and a 2-year old dog. After the 5-year olds received their 'booster' at a year of age, I waited 3 years and did a blood titer test on them. They both produced more than enough antibodies to be able to fight off the diseases that they were vaccinated against 3 years earlier.

Recently, the manufacturers of the so-called 'booster shots' did a 3-year study that proved that their vaccinations, which used to be given annually, are actually good for at least 3 years (that's how long the test was for - if they had lengthened that amount of time, I'm sure they would have learned that the vaccines were 'good' for much longer). They are now approved to be given every 3 years, instead of every year. Many vets across the country are now doing that, but some are still doing them yearly. I believe it is because of the amount of revenue they get off of administering vaccinations. It costs them less than a dollar for many of the vaccines they give; yet they charge us how much to give the shot? Vets make a lot of profit off of vaccines, and many don't want to lose that revenue, so they are still recommending yearly vaccinations, even though the manufacturer has approved the vaccine for 3 years.

If you still want to give your dog vaccinations, wait until she is well before you give her any more, and then follow the 3-year protocol, rather than the annual one. I'd prefer if she didn't receive any, after she receives her 'one-year booster' once she's kicked the mange, but that decision is up to you.