MANGE- What exactly is it?

[snowyowlcat]

Hi there:

Can anybody tell me exactly what mange is? If an animal has it, and now his ears and eyes are really puffy and have no hair left on them, will this cure itself or does it need to be treated?

It is on a feral squirrel. I've never seen an animal with it before, and it looks very painful!

But, I know NOTHING :( :( at all about mange.

Any stories, good or bad?

Thanks from everybody,
:D

Sarah, Bonkers, Ears, Sweet-Pea, and The Grays.

[NoahsMommy]

Mange is a form of mites. Mites are parasitic insects....totally gross and totally contageous.

It will NOT go away without medication.

[kittycats_delight]

Originally posted by snowyowlcat
will this cure itself or does it need to be treated?

It will not cure itself. It MUST be treated.

[lv4dogs]

See this thread:
http://petoftheday.com/talk/showthread.php?s=&threadid=84509


edited to add that although it says mange in dogs, it is the same in all animals.

[cocker_luva]

jesse had mange for alittle while on her back. its caused by a mite infestation. i dont know what they do, but she lost fur in an area in clumps. her skin got scaly and came off in flakes (gross). we took her into the vet after it kept getting bigger and bigger, we caught it when it was acute and managable. we got some medicine for her and got it cleared up within a month or two. her fur grew back fine, the same texture, length and fullness; but there is a ring where the mange scarred. also her skin is fine now, but i give her a tri-herbal bath whenever we groom her.

heres a pic of her mange before we took her into the vet
http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid164/p55f9bfcb76586d24d2e3cc66381c7c38/f4898640.jpg