Mange is a skin disease that is caused by parasitic mites. Mange typically affects animals such as birds, dogs, and reptiles. In fact, mange can even affect plants as well, since mites are commonly known to infect plants. Mange can severely affect the condition of an animal’s hair coat; it often causes very serious health concerns that have to be treated right away. If you have noticed that a skin condition is developing on one of your animals, you may want to get it checked out right away. Mites are something that are incredibly aggressive, they can take over an entire animal’s hair coat very fast. Mange is common in wild animals, such as cougars, bears, and coyotes. This is because they are constantly exposed to harsh conditions where mites are common. The mites take over the animal’s hairy coat and within a short amount of time, they start to cause hair to shed from the animal and it is very uncomfortable for them. Mites typically infect under the skin or in the hair follicles themselves. They have an ability to burrow themselves into the skin, living in the hair follicles on the animal. Humans can get mite infections that will lead to mange as well.
Mange is something that needs to be treated by a veterinarian or someone who has experience with mange and the problems that it presents. This is a very complex skin disease and often times, treating it involves getting rid of the mites and their presence within the animal. Getting rid of mites is not easy to do, you have to wash the animal extensively and ensure that they have not burrowed under the skin. If they have, then they have to be removed through some type of medicine that can cause them to un-burrow, so that they can then be removed effectively.
If you suspect that your animal has mange, you should go to the veterinarian right away. They can tell you what the problem is and they will take a look at it and try to find a solution. Getting treatment is very important, as mange can be very uncomfortable for an animal.
At Perfect Pet Skin we have many solutions to common cat, dog and equine skin conditions, including irritation as a result of mange, mites, dog ticks and cat fleas. Visit www.perfectpetskin.co.uk for more.