Why is my dog's skin red and itchy after demodex mange treatment?

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

The only way to definitively diagnose mange (Demodex) is by skin scrapings which should be repeated every 2-3 weeks during treatment until 2 negative skin scrapings are found. Make sure that the flea and tick medication prescribed will also treat mites (milbemycin or moxidectin) and keep in mind that the dosage frequency is different for mite treatment than it is for flea preventative. Treatment needs to continue for 1-2 months after there is a negative skin scraping. Steroids are usually contraindicated in treatment of Demodex. Demodex mites are not contagious to other animals so your other dogs may not be affected.

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!

You didn't mentioned how long ago you started the treatment and how bad was the infection, Demodex can take between a few weeks to several months to clear up completly, it is important to renew the treatment as long as the skin seems to be affected. eventually the skin will recover but it will take some time, i usually recommend Bravecto for treatment.

It's not recommended to use topical cream as the creams that help with itchiness can make the demodicosis worse (steroids). Once Roxy has started a systemic treatment for Demodex (I recommend Bravecto tablet) the itchiness should get much better within a few days.

This is probably due to an allergy, although it could also be infection or mites. First of all, in order to rule out skin parasites, you will need to treat with a high quality flea treatment, then ask the vet to perform a skin scrape - this might reveal an infection or a mite infestation. If all of those came back negative, the next step is to treat the allergy symptomatically and try to discover the cause of the allergy. Three main type of allergies are usually affecting pets: food allergies, flea and parasite related ones and environmental type (allergens coming from trees, pollens, dust etc etc). Some medications can be given by the vet in order to repair any possible skin lesions (like steroids and antibiotics). Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

At this stage it seems your veterinarian covered and prescribed everything Mazore needs. After treatment is over, a shampoo could be useful to re-established normal skin hydration. That can be discussed on a later stage with your veterinarian, depending on his skin condition. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation (where you can post pictures ) if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.