The first sign of a problem was a single green pustule on Mindi's belly when Mindi and Molli were just two months old. The vet said they both had pyoderma, due to the puppies having urine on them. On January 20, 2003, both were put on Amoxicillin and their bellies were washed a couple times each day to reduce the amount of bacteria. The inside of Molli's ears were also RED and she was prescribed Tresaderm, a steroid. -- A week later, Molli had a raised red rash all over her belly. The vet said to apply Tresaderm, previously prescribed for the RED ears. - The rash turned to pustules and it wasn't long before both puppies had multiple pustules on their bellies. - There was no improvement, so the vet then prescribed Clavamox (Feb 12, 2003) because the pustules were staph infections. - Despite antibiotics and daily baths in an anti-bacterial shampoo, the infection persisted. Finally, it was microscopically determined that the underlying cause was Generalized Demodectic Mange, also called "Red Mange."

     It was decided that Mindi would be treated with baths, using Oxydex shampoo, which contains Benzyl Peroxide. Molli was going to require Amitraz (Mitaban) dips, the traditional and only approved treatment for this condition.

     From the outset of this ordeal, our veterinarians have been 100% supportive and have done their best to deal with this horrible affliction. At times, they seemed to drop everything for us and they came to the phone and talked to us personally every time we called. We could not have asked for better medical and emotional support. However, our dogs seemed to be a worst case scenario for them - in fact, more than they could deal with - in terms of the dogs' severe reactions to the dips and resistance of the mites to the treatment. And, as the research reports suggest, this disease can be very difficult to treat.

     It should be stated that it is not known if ANY treatment works. In fact, the mange often disappears spontaneously after the puppy's immune system matures, between 8 and 36 months of age. But the ongoing staph infection could be life-threatening and it seems that in cases of generalized mange, the infection and underlying disease must be treated.

     The puppies were both bathed in the Oxydex shampoo and groomed on February 20. The groomer shaved their bellies as closely as they could possibly be shaved - against the direction of the growth of the hair. The next morning, Molli went for her first dip in Mitaban. After she came home, we saw that both puppies were greatly inflamed and very itchy. They were both in distress and on Sunday we took them to the vet on an emergency basis. Their bellies were covered with pustules and they were obviously very miserable. - The vet gave them penicillin and they improved significantly by the next day. - Only later did I realize that a major factor that day was probably that their bellies, which already had numerous pustules, were shaved so closely. Molli was the most miserable because the Mitaban had also been applied to this area.

     But because Mindi was so inflamed that day, which we now believe from the close shave, it was decided that she would also require the dips. So, the next day, February 24, Mindi had her first dip. On average, dogs require 6-8 dips. After the dog tests negative for the mites, two additional dips are done for insurance. - Regardless of the shaving issue, the dips were inevitable for Mindi. She ended up having many more areas of mange than Molli, with most of her head, face and neck affected. Molli's was worse on her belly and legs but she only had a couple small spots on her face.

     All of the literature available fails to describe the suffering of the dogs after these dips! Perhaps some dogs weather the dips without incident but Mindi and Molli suffered each and every time, with different responses to each one. Their skin, in the areas of pustules and mites, became severely inflamed 24-36 hours after the dip. In these areas, there was swelling and the dogs seemed to be in pain. There was generalized, CONSTANT itching of the rest of the body. The Mitaban seemed almost to burn the areas of the pustules or any other break in the skin, regardless of how small. - This said, I think Mindi and Molli were only getting a "single strength" Mitaban dip every other week, as opposed to a double strength dip every week or every other week.

     While penicillin is not the drug of choice for staph infections, for some unknown reason it seemed to help with the inflammation that followed the dips. (Cortisone should not be used because it suppresses the immune system.) Typically, Mindi & Molli got an injection of penicillin a couple days before the dip, then one on the day of the dip, and then one two days later. The last one seemed to be the most necessary and Mindi required it after every dip. Molli did better after her last couple of dips, and, while she had the intense itching, she wasn't so inflamed and didn't need the penicillin.

     In addition to the dips and the penicillin, the pups were on Cefa Tabs (antibiotics) for most of the duration of the dips, which was 4 months. It upset their stomachs and it was a daunting task to get them to eat. This resulted in them eating "people food" more often than not (which is still the case). - And they ingested an abundance of antihistamines for days after each dip, in hopes of alleviating the itching. Most dogs don't respond to these products and they didn't seem to do much for Mindi & Molli, except for making them lethargic and impairing their appetites.

     At the time of each dip, the dogs were given an antidote, YOHIMBINE, to counteract the side effects of the Mitaban, which can be quite severe. However, they still had effects, some very strange. After the second dip, the puppies stopped responding to their names... Upon her return from the third dip, Mindi stopped doing her business outside and, with few exceptions, would only go on a wee pad. And sometimes they came home from a dip and ate non-stop (polyphagia). While we were happy to see them eat voluntarily for this short period of time, the food often had to be removed because they were unable to stop eating.

     But all of the dips were a nightmare for the puppies and for us. None was easy; at best, they itched for at least 3 days. They didn't sleep, nor did I/we. The dips were administered every two weeks and it took at least 5 days for them to recover. They continued to develop pustules throughout the course of the dips, despite being on Cefa Tabs. Toward the end, the dosage was increased from 50 mg to 100 mg twice a day, which helped to some degree. But there seemed to be a crisis after each dip, with at least one of the pups. For example, after Dip 5, Molli developed a pustule on her vulva and she yelped in pain and would not urinate. Finally, when the urine would drip out, she cried and was obviously in great pain. I applied warm compresses and put some antibiotic ointment on it. After another sleepless night, she was a bit better the next day.

     Finally, after 8 dips, Molli was declared "negative" and was spayed on May 27. Mindi had a spot of mange between her eyes and in the folds beside her nose so she received a 9th dip. I was given Mitaban in Mineral Oil to put on her face in the affected areas. The mites were supposedly dead and I guess this oil mixture was to insure that they were gone. She was spayed on June 11 and her stitches came out June 18. The areas on her face appeared to be healed.

     Then, on June 21, a tiny bump was felt on the right side of Molli's nose. It had the telltale redness around it and I knew what it meant. - Another scab was found by Mindi's nose and another on her hind leg. On June 25 they saw the vet and both tested positive for the mites.

     THE TOXIC MITABAN DIPS HAD NOT KILLED ALL OF THE MITES. This, after incredible suffering, probable future health issues from the chemicals and thousands of $$.

     While the Mitaban dips are the traditional treatment for demodectic mange, the condition is also widely treated with INTERCEPTOR, the medication used to prevent heartworms, as well as IVERMECTIN, a broad spectrum anti-parasite medication, generally used for food animals and horses. The two drugs are almost equally effective but, while cheaper, the Ivermectin has more side effects.

     We chose the Interceptor and they will have to take it every day, for up to 90 days. Their first dose was on June 25, 2003.

     A week later, on July 2, Mindi & Molli went to be groomed. Molli didn't have anything but the tiny scabs around her nose. - After a week on the Interceptor, Mindi's legs were purple and she had numerous pustules on her legs and vulva. They looked pretty nasty but on this day they actually looked better than they had the previous few days. I was thinking that the Interceptor might be working. This, after I had been worried that many more pustules had appeared after she started on the Interceptor... - The vet checked them while they were there for grooming and she was very concerned about the skin. She prescribed Antirobe (Clindamycin) for the staph infections. (Did she think the red/purple color was cellulitis?) We couldn't see any infection on Molli but Mindi did have a dozen or so pustules on her legs and vulva. - The dogs did not have any noticeable side effects from the Interceptor.

     At this point, I was thinking that had I known at the outset what I know now, I would have opted to try INTERCEPTOR first, rather than the dips. - Truly, the dips were like torture. But we did the traditional method of treatment, which is to try the dip first. I don't think most dogs have the complications ours did. - I have also read that Ivermectin injections are often given in conjunction with the Mitaban dips. - This might have helped Mindi and Molli a bit more but it is very hard on the liver and they were such tiny puppies. All along, the vets were trying to treat them conservatively to minimize long-term damage and to avoid killing them.

     On July 8th, after a week on the Antirobe, I called the vet to report that Mindi's pustules were gone. But after nearly two weeks on the Interceptor, her legs had become very swollen and dark purple, as they had been when she was being dipped. Besides her legs, she had red places on her head, neck, chest and around her mouth. - At times, I thought Molli's legs were looking pink, but not swollen. However, Molli still had crusts on her nose and the area around the bottom of her mouth was red. - Both dogs were itchy, especially on their legs and vulva. - I described all of this to the vet and she told me I could put the Mitaban oil (the low dose in mineral oil) on all of the affected areas. This had been used on resistant patches on Mindi's face and her face is clear now.

     I wanted to know if the itching might be due to the mites dying as a result of the Interceptor. The answer was YES, that could be the case.

     I wanted to know what signs I would SEE that would indicate the Interceptor is working but I didn't get around to asking that. - I was thinking that the red/purple areas on Mindi might be the areas of the mites and the Interceptor is killing them... thus the itching and the immune system inflammatory response. When she was dipped, although her whole body was treated, it was ONLY the areas infested with mites that became swollen & red/purple.

     After the conversation with the vet, I proceeded to apply antibiotic eye ointment to Molli's eyes, necessary when putting the Mitaban/mineral oil on the crusty areas around her nose, close to her eyes. I also put some on the red area around her mouth. - I applied the Mitaban/mineral oil to all the red areas on Mindi's body, which was quite a vast area. She soon became sluggish and I knew the Mitaban had caused sedation. She also exhibited the hyper-eating, another side-effect of Mitaban. I didn't think she was bad enough to need the Yohimbine.

     Two days later, Mindi was finally feeling better. For two days she would eat everything in site, including Molli's food, so she had to be restricted. Her front legs were still swollen and purple but the back legs and vulva look better. - The areas around Molli's nose looked better, too, after only two applications of the oil. I wonder if the Mitaban, although a low dose in the oil, is actually more stable and longer lasting due to being suspended in oil.

     On July 11, Molli was still a bit red under her mouth and she had one tiny scab by her nose. Mindi was no longer purple anywhere! Her front legs were still red and swollen but not to the degree they were for the past week, even before the application of the oil. - - Again, I was focused on the fact that the only places she ever turned purple were the areas of the mites... I wondered if the Interceptor was killing the mites and that is what makes the skin turn from red to purple. - Or did this Mitaban oil suddenly kill the mites? Or was it both Mitaban and Interceptor, as well as her maturing immune system? - - Neither dog seemed itchy.

     Putting the Mitaban oil on all of Mindi's red areas was too much for her, as she became sedated and had the hyper-eating. - I decided to put the Mitaban oil on one leg each day... and applied it to her left front leg. She started the hyper-eating soon after and she lost her energy.

     On Saturday, July 12, ALL four legs and the areas that were previously purple and then red, were now PINK. The hind legs had no swelling at all and the leg I put the Mitaban oil on was indistinguishable from the other three. In other words, not purple. - So it isn't sensitivity to Mitaban that causes the purple and the inflammation....!

     Suddenly, I felt like the Interceptor was working! I think the purple WAS the mites being killed and now that is all healing. It was not the staph infection or cellulitis - - she got much more purple after the Clindamycin was long gone.

     It was stunning on July 13 to see how how terrific Mindi looked. The skin on her front legs still had thick ridges, pink in color - but improving daily. - For the first time in 6 months, it seemed possible that they were finally getting over this disease! The Mitaban oil was not used, other than as described.

July 23, 2003

     Mindi & Molli are back from being groomed and the report is mixed. Molli is apparently OK - no mites found. - Mindi has them on her legs and neck and God knows where else. So I have to put the Mitaban oil on - but I am only doing it one leg at a time. The vet said Molli only needs to have the Interceptor for another week. She said Mindi will be OK "in the long run." She said she will have to take the Interceptor for a long time after she is finally negative.

August 13, 2003

     This is a happy day! FINALLY, the scrapings of Mindi show only dead mites. So the Interceptor is working! -- Molli is still completely free of the mites and we will be discontinuing her Interceptor. As of today they have had 49 doses.

(Molli stopped taking the Interceptor on Aug 19, after 57 doses. Mindi took it for 5 weeks after she was "negative" for a total of 87 doses - Stopped Sept 18.)

October 20, 2003

     Sadly, Mindi has had a relapse.... Actually, her redness in the affected areas had never disappeared as Molli's had. And after being off the Interceptor for only 4 weeks, the areas became increasingly more red and then the folds near her eyes became swollen. She has lesions between her eyes and around her nose. - A scraping today was positive so she is going to start again on the Interceptor. - As stated on the website, http://www.boston-terriers.com/demodex.htm, the Interceptor is usually given for 13-26 weeks. Mindi was on it for 12 weeks and 3 days but this time we plan to leave her on it until she has three consecutive negative scrapings and is no longer red.

December 4, 2003

     Mindi and Molli went to be groomed yesterday and Mindi was scraped to see if the mites are dead. The vet did not say anything, so we presume she is negative. She will be on the Interceptor for 45 more days, just to be sure the mites are gone forever.

     She had this so badly, way deep in the fold between her little eyes and all over her head, neck and face.. Her ears were about 1/2 inch thick and hard at the edges. Once she got back on the Interceptor, it got very crusty and awful for a couple weeks - and she was put on an antibiotic - but then it all cleared up. She is not the least bit red now and I am optimistic. She is on a higher dose of the Interceptor this time... a dose that is for a dog about twice her size. In other words, if this was for the once a month heart worm prevention it would be for a 26-50 pound dog. She weighs 17 pounds and takes this every day... So if it doesn't kill her then she should be OK soon. - - In terms of their behavior, Mindi and Molli are like normal dogs for the first time. Several weeks ago, when Mindi started to get over this, they started playing and running like they never had before...and they also started eating well for the first time in their lives.

December 29, 2003

     Actually, Mindi was NOT negative on December 3rd. There were mites when she was scraped on Dec 3, albeit dead ones. However, when scraped today, BOTH dogs were declared negative.

     Molli's mouth and vulva have been red and she got a pustule on her belly. The scrapings were said to be negative and she was put on an antibiotic.... There was NO improvement so she was then diagnosed with a YEAST infection and put on another med for that. - No improvement and now her toes were very red... YEAST was the diagnosis, so she was put on the anti-YEAST and also an antibiotic that would be used for a urinary tract infection... OF COURSE, I knew it was MITES!

     FINALLY, today, after the ingestion of all of these antibiotics, a scraping showed the MITES that I KNEW were there. So, Molli is back on the Interceptor.

February 11, 2004

     Mindi and Molli went to be groomed today. They look good and they seem to feel well. The question is, how long should we keep them on the Interceptor this time????? The scrapings have not proved to be reliable at all.

     The Interceptor definitely kills the mites. The question is, did it kill ALL of the mites? I fear that if some remain after all of this medication, the mites will be resistant... We have no way of knowing if this was a strong enough dosage to kill all of the mites.

     After 127 doses of Interceptor, we stopped giving it to Mindi. She was declared negative on Dec 29 - but the scrapings are not reliable - and we just continued giving the Interceptor until now, nearly 2 months longer. We hope the mites are ALL dead. - Mindi is still PINK in all of the areas that were badly affected but I am thinking this is like scar tissue that can stay pink for a very long time.

     Molli was never as badly affected as Mindi and has no red areas after 43 doses of Interceptor. We will continue with the Interceptor to be sure the mites are gone but she looks really good. ALL of the areas that I was sure were red because of mites (but were showing negatives with the scrapings) are now clear of bumps and redness. These areas were her vulva, all around her nose, below her mouth and between her toes.

     MOLLI took Interceptor, 11.5 mg, for 88 days and stopped April 9, 2004.

     On May 1, Mindi had red toes, with the characteristic exudate in the hair and around the nails, as well as a red mouth and VERY swollen folds and crusting in the corners of her eyes. SO, we promptly started her on the 2mg/kg dose of Interceptor, which is an 11.5 mg tablet and a half of another one. In 2 weeks, she was much improved... but who knows what that means? We certainly don't! The Interceptor clearly kills but we need to kill all of the mites, not simply control the population. - At this point we don't know if the mites can become resistant to the Interceptor - and, if not, can they take this every day for the rest of their lives?

     With Mindi's compromised immune system, she probably should not have had the annual vaccines, except for the one required for rabies. On May 29, 2004, a week AFTER the vaccines, she developed huge RED hives and she was essentially red all over. This was in the middle of the night and we gave her Benedryl. The redness and hives went away and we thought she was OK, then we noticed that evening that her body was covered with LUMPS. Not red, just lumpy all over. SO, at the Pet ER on Memorial Day, the vet denied that this was a reaction to the vaccines and stated that ALL reactions to vaccines occur within 24 hours of the vaccine. Never mind that there are an endless number of contradictory statements and stories online. - In fact, this is not so uncommon and a usual culprit is the vaccine for Leptospirosis. - Dogs with impaired immune systems are not good candidates for this vaccine but we did not know that. From now on, we will omit all but the required rabies vaccine because. - At the ER, Mindi was given an antihistamine, Epinepherine and an antibiotic ($132) - the latter because the doc said the lumps on Mindi's skin would cut off the circulation to those areas of the skin, thus causing infection. It sounds like he was describing vasculitis - which she did not have. - Two days later, the lumps disappeared with a high enough dose of Benedryl. But when she went to be groomed, our doctors gave her a steroid injection and she is now back to normal. This steroid should not be harmful at all. - We would not want to go through this again, so no vaccines except for rabies!

     After 137 more doses of Interceptor, Mindi looked healthy for the first time. Both dogs are terrific!

     Molli has been off the Interceptor for a full year so she should be CURED.......

     But Mindi, only off for less than 7 months, had the red and oozing on her hind legs and toes. SO, we put her back on the Interceptor.... Hopefully, her immune system is stronger and will help to deal with this. Toenails seem to be a hard place to treat with the systemic Interceptor and I have been putting the Mitaban suspended in Mineral oil to help expedite matters.

     MINDI & MOLLI are fine and have been for more than a year. We strongly advocate the use of INTERCEPTOR to deal with Demodectic mange. Our dogs seem to be happy and healthy and we are very glad that we took matters into our own hands and treated them aggressively with the Interceptor.

     In case it hasn't been mentioned, we learned about the possible excellent results in a Canadian study that is available online.

     Numerous times Mindi was treated for "yeast infections" around her toenails and in her ears. On those occassions, she was given oral and local antibiotics/antifungals. -- EVENTUALLY, we realized that Mindi has yeast issues that resist treatment. The medications provide only short-term relief. -- The vet never suggested any alternative treatments but we have started giving her ACIDOPHILUS to increase bacterial flora and reduces the overgrowth of yeast. - Garlic is also supposed to help control the growth of yeast. - Additionally, we are putting Malacetic acid drops w/ boric acid and hydrocortisone in her ears. Yeast can't flourish in an acid environment so we hope this will work.

     Over the past year, Mindi did, indeed, still have the mange around her mouth, on her nose and between her toes. WHY we were repeatedly told it was yeast is a mystery. After all of these years of dealing with this disease, we know what we are seeing. - We got Mitaban suspended in mineral oil and put that on her toes - and we gave her Interceptor for 3 more months. - Of course, she has a yeast problem, probably because of the truckload of antibiotics the poor thing has taken over the course of her life. We can deal with that better than we can the mites.

     Molli is completely fine -- and Mindi is, too, for the most part. They are happy and contented and our lives are centered around them. - It has been a difficult 5 years and we hope the worst is over.

     I did not find THIS ARTICLE online until November 2005... I wish I had seen it when we were initially confronted with the demodectic mange.