Mange is a common condition that affects many animals, but dogs are the most commonly-affected animals. Seeing and treating dogs for mange is part of a veterinary doctor’s daily responsibilities. If your dog has mange (or you think it has mange), you may be understandably concerned. Mange is a very inconvenient and often painful condition. Here’s what you need to know.

Two Types of Mange
Dogs can experience two major types of mange:

• Sarcoptic mange (or scabies):  This is a serious form of mange infection that is highly contagious, spreads rapidly, and must be treated with strong medication such as ivermectin.
• Demodectic mange:  this type of mange occurs mostly in puppies or very old, weak, or sick dogs. In puppies, the condition passes within a month or two, but it is not treated. With other dogs, it is easily treated and cured.

Is It Mange or Not? How to Spot Mange
In one sense, mange is easy to notice. In quite another way, mange can be hard to notice. The symptoms of mange are pretty straightforward:  itching, scratching, damaged skin, thinning hair, etc. If your dog is scratching (a lot), there is a pretty good chance that he has mange. The tough part is distinguishing between mange and other forms of allergies or skin infections. A qualified veterinarian will usually perform a simple procedure (called a skin scrape) to diagnose the exact type of mange your dog has. Usually, this involves finding and inspecting a mange mite (which is responsible for the spread of mange). The type of mite will indicate the best treatment for eradicating the mange in your dog.

Treating Mange
Though it is something to be concerned about, it’s nothing to lose too much sleep over. Mange is common, but it is also relatively simple to cure it. Your vet will provide a prescription, or you can order mange medications from this site.