Expert: Jana Connell RVT, CVT - 5/18/2011

Question
QUESTION: I have a boxer of good quality and very healthy female. I have read you explaining about Mother passing mange to puppies.I bred mine to an equal male of good breeding background twice. When my puppies reach the age of 4months, mange appears on all of them. I stopped breeding my bitch to avoid complains from my buyers.
What I need to know is, My dog does not show any signs at all.Her coat is full and shiny in fact.Is it possible she could be immune to the mites and pass it on?.. What if I use mange shampoo on her could it be treated?. And then check if shes clear? Before breeding her again? Will it show under the microscope even if she does not show even the slightest bit of a sign?. Or should I just not use her at all.

Thank you for your time

Tony

ANSWER: This is a tough one Tony because the thing with mange is a lot of it no one has been able to figure out. Like why your dog, which shows no signs of it, is passing it along. Now there are a few views on this- one is that since many puppies do get this because their own immune system is not mature.But if it stays localized (small patches here and there) and then resolves on its own, the puppy could possibly be a breeder. However, if the puppy is treated and then it is not know whether or not it would have resolved on its own, or it was more generalized, then the dog should not be bred. There is a hereditary component to this disease that is not quite understood yet.

This page can give you some general information about it.
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_demodectic_mange.html

Now if your dog is having litters that are developing this and even being bred to a stud that appears to not have it, that usually means that they are passing it on in that line of heredity I was just talking about. No one know for sure why some dogs pass it on and others do not, but Boxers are one of the top breeds known to have and pass this on by breeding. Treating her will do no good as she has no active infections. We all have the same mite, even humans have them. But they do nothing and don't spread unless there is an immune system problem.

I have included an excerpt from the Merck Veterinary Manual below that discusses mange and it's implications with breeding.

The bottom line is this; if after having two litters with demodex from the same bitch, she should probably not be used for breeding anymore. Nor should the stud that she was bred to, as he could also be passing it along. If he has other litters that are mange free, then it came from your bitch only.

Sorry to break that to you, but she will be better off spayed and enjoyed as a pet then you having to deal with angry buyers.

Here is the Merck page:

Canine Demodicosis:
This skin disease of dogs occurs when large numbers of Demodex canis mites inhabit hair follicles and sebaceous glands. In small numbers, these mites are part of the normal flora of the skin of dogs and cause no clinical disease. The mites are transmitted from dam to puppies during nursing within the first 72 hr after birth. The mites spend their entire life cycle on the host, and the disease is not considered to be contagious. The pathogenesis of demodicosis is complex and not completely understood; evidence of hereditary predisposition for generalized disease is strong. Immunosuppression, natural or iatrogenic, can precipitate the disease in some cases. Secondary bacterial furunculosis or cellulitis may occur, leading to a guarded prognosis.
  
Two clinical forms (localized and generalized) of the disease exist. Localized demodicosis occurs in dogs <2 yr old, and most of these cases, especially the nummular forms, are thought to resolve spontaneously. Lesions consist of areas of focal alopecia, erythema and/or hyperpigmentation, and comedones. Pruritus is usually absent or weak. A percentage of these cases, especially the diffuse localized forms, progress to the generalized form. Generalized demodicosis is a severe disease with generalized lesions that are usually aggravated by secondary bacterial infections (pyodemodicosis). Accompanying pododermatitis is common. Dogs can have systemic illness with generalized lymphadenopathy, lethargy, and fever when deep pyoderma, furunculosis, or cellulitis is seen. Deep skin scrapings reveal mites, eggs, and larval forms in high numbers. Whenever generalized demodicosis is diagnosed in an adult dog, medical evaluation to identify an underlying systemic disease should be pursued.
Nummular localized demodicosis can be left untreated. The prognosis for this form is usually good, and spontaneous recovery is frequent. In contrast, treatment is required in cases of diffuse localized demodicosis (which can generalize), generalized demodicosis, pyodemodicosis, and pododemodicosis, for which prognosis is always guarded. Hair clipping and body cleansing, especially with benzoyl peroxide shampoo used for its follicular flushing activity, may be required. Whole-body amitraz dips (0.025%) applied every 2 wk is an approved treatment for generalized demodicosis in the USA. Higher concentrations (0.1%) and shorter treatment intervals (1 wk) may be more efficient. Other experimental protocols using daily half-body amitraz dips have been proposed for refractory generalized demodicosis. Among macrocyclic lactones, only milbemycin oxime (0.5-1 mg/kg, PO, sid) is approved for generalized demodicosis in some countries. Other reportedly successful nonlicensed systemic treatments include moxidectin (400 µg/kg, PO, sid) and ivermectin (300-600 µg/kg, PO, sid). For the latter, different therapeutic protocols have been proposed with a gradually increased dosage and thorough monitoring of patients to detect any potentially toxic effect. Ivermectin is contraindicated in Collies and Collie crosses. Local and systemic corticosteroids are contraindicated in any animal diagnosed with demodicosis. Secondary bacterial infections are treated with an appropriate antibiotic. Antiparasitic therapy must be continued not only until clinical signs abate but also until at least 2 consecutive negative skin scrapings are obtained at 1-mo intervals.

As the sole prophylactic measure, demodectic dogs should not be used for breeding.(this came from that page, not me)
Here is the link to that page:

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/72005.htm&word=demodect

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Jana

Greetings!!

It was only now that I was able to see your profile. Sorry for my mistake. Let me thank you once more for the thorough explanation you have given me regarding mange.
I'm taking your advice not to breed my dog for that matter.Have I mentioned to you, that, you have helped someone all the way from the Philippines?.. Where I hail from.
More power to you and what you stand for. Helping dog lovers around the world.

God Bless you always....

Regards,
Tony

Answer
You are more than welcome Tony. The world is a much smaller place now isn't it, thanks to the internet.
I am sorry about the state of your beautiful girl. I can imagine she is a gorgeous dog. I love boxers too. They are one of the sweetest breeds.

Good luck to you!
Jana