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My dog has Demodex. Is his skin getting better or worse with treatment?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | American Pit Bull Terrier | Male | neutered | 4 months and 6 days old | 22 lbs

Hello My dog is diagnosed with canine demodex We are treating him with amitraz and benzoyl peroxide cream The first picture is 2 weeks ago and the 2 other are of today Before he had injury only in his fase and down his throat that it spread in all his body His skin now is geting dry but his hair are falling all Is he getting better or worse i am not understanding What else can i use to help his skin heals faster Please help

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Rebecca, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on May 21st, 2018

HI and thank you for using PetCoach. Poor Tyson. I would recommend taking Tyson back to his veterinarian for a recheck. Often dogs with Demodex may develop secondary skin infections that require antibiotics to treat as well as treating the mites.

There are some oral medications that may be used to treat Demodex mange as well, however I am not sure if they are availabe in your country. I would ask your veterinarian if there are any other options to treat Tyson if he is not improving.

This article may give you a bit more information about Demodectic mange. https://www.vin.com/veterinarypartner/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951505

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Linda G, MS, DVM
Veterinarian
Published on May 9th, 2018
Hello. Poor Tyson. That is a very severe case of Demodex & it looks like there is a significant skin infection ( deep pyoderma ) associated with it. Is he on antibiotics & anti-inflammatories for the infection? If not, please talk to your veterinarian about adding this. Unfortunately, such a severe case is demanding on Tyson's body & it will take some time to get the mange mites under control & then the skin will start to heal. In addition, the miticidal medications may be adding to his malaise. Cool baths in a very mild oatmeal based shampoo might be soothing, but make sure he stays indoors out of the heat, receives antibiotics, and eats every day. This will take time, stay in close contact with your veterinarian, & I wish you & Tyson all the best. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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My dog has demodex. Is he healing? How to treat skin and bad smell?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Judging from the photos, it appears that the demodex is becoming less severe and the head is in the process of healing with all of the scabs present. If the hair does not grow back and it seems like the demodex is still there, I would try other medications such as Fluralaner (Bravecto) or Afoxolaner (Nexgard). If Tyson is not on an antibiotic right now, it might help him as well as washing him in a Benzoyl Peroxide shampoo twice weekly. I hope this helps and that Tyson recovers fully soon! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please take the time to mark this question as helpful or not as it helps us to improve on the quality of our answers to other pet owners. Thank you kindly!

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My dog has demodicosis with pus and blood. Is his skin improving?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Poor Tyson looks like he is quite uncomfortable dealing with this skin infection. He likely needs a course of an antibiotic as well as the Ivermectin to treat this infection and it may take a week or so to see improvement. His right eye is closed and appears that there may be some discharge as well. I would recommend discussing with your vet getting an oral antibiotic and an antibiotic eye drop for him. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please remember to rate this answer as helpful or not. Thank you!

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Dog demodex treatment failing, skin spreading. What else can I do?

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Tyson. Poor guy! He does look uncomfortable. I would continue everything you are doing treatment wise. Is the benzoyl peroxide cream a shampoo? If not, I would a shampoo as bathing can help. This helps to flush the mites out of the hair follicles. He will likely need an antibiotic as I suspect that he has developed a secondary bacterial infection. This is common. This should help the skin heal as the mites are treated. Good luck!

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My dog has demodicosis. Are his treatments right & will it recur?

The skin does look very sore and inflammed and in my opinion Tyson is receiving the right treatment. Amitraz is the medication that kills the parasite (so it is very important to carry on treatment as prescribed). As bacterial skin infection commonly complicates demodicosis your dog is also on antibiotic (Ceporex). Tyson skin will heal eventually but this is going to be a long process (2-3 months). Once fully healed, demodecosis could return but in many caoses it doesn't come back once the dog gets older.

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My dog with demodex has dry skin and won't eat. What should I do?

Hello, sorry to hear about Tyson. It looks like his condition is improving. There are other recent medications that can be used to treat this disease such as heartguard, nexgard, and interceptor have been used. Recently, Nexgard has been used more often due to the ease of use since it is given orally. This will likely improve the demodex, but will likely not treat the decreased appetite. He may need to have bloodwork to make sure that there are no concurrent conditions that affect his appetite such as liver disease, anemia, or kidney disease. If his appetite continues to be poor, contact your veterinarian immediately to have him evaluated and to discuss the use of alternative medications for his demodex. Hope this helps and best of luck.

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Why is my dog's demodex mange worse after treatment? Secondary infection?

They can get a secondary infection from demodex and it usually gets worse before it gets better. The mites live in the hair follicle, so as the treatment works and the mites due, more hair falls out. Around week four after treatment is stated is usually as bad as it gets then things start to improve from there. A good bath in a shampoo with benzoyl peroxide helps flush the mites out but can be drying if done more than once a week. If there are scabs with a discharge it is best to get rechecked

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

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Why does my dog have recurring skin issues after demodex treatment?

Poor thing! It sounds like his immune system is really compromised. I would recommend an antibiotic for the pyoderma as well as a probiotic. Often skin health is linked to gut health and when you use antibiotics for certain infections you kill some good bacteria as well which makes taking a probiotic important. I would also recommend oral Nexguard or Bravecto for the demodex. Although Amitraz has long been used, I think your dogs reaction is secondary to the effects of Amitraz on the natural flora of his skin. It is important with disorders of the immune system to ensure he is on a good, high quality diet, and resides in a low stress environment. I hope this helps!

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

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