Treating Sarcoptic Mange in Red foxes
I often get calls and e-mails from people who have a Red fox around that is acting lethargic or unfearful of humans. They will stay close to houses and will eat under the bird feeders, seek refuge under decks and often lay in the hay in barns. A scruffy appearance usually indicates that the fox has Sarcoptic mange.
Sarcoptic mange is the name for the skin disease caused by infection with the Sarcoptes scabei mite. The mites are microscopic and can't be seen by the naked eye. Female Sarcoptes mites burrow under the skin and leave a trail of eggs behind. This burrowing creates an inflammatory response in the skin similar to an allergic reaction. The motion of the mite in and on the skin is extremely itchy, as is the hatching of the eggs. This creates further allergic reaction and more itching, loss of sleep and reduced immune response. Loss of fur, scaly skin and a general unthrify appearance is characteristic of a Sarcoptic mange infestation. The condition worsens as a skin infection sets in. The Foxes immune system is even more compromised and internal parasites (tape, hook and round worms) begin to take over and absorb any nutrients that fox may find. Mangy foxes are usually starving in the late stages.
These foxes are not a threat to people, dogs, cats, etc. They are close to people and buildings because there may be easy food such as cat or dog food left out in dishes, bird seed, garbage, insects, worms, roadkill and a mouse or two. They are also losing their ability to thermoregulate and need protection from wind, shade, sun, whatever the present need of the body is. Mangy foxes (and coyotes) often seek out a pile of hay to lay in. Hay seems to relieve the itchiness and provide a source of comfort.
Sarcoptic mange is treatable if the animal is treated in time before the process of organ failure begins. The drug of choice is inexpensive and easy to obtain. Although it is an "off-label use" according to the FDA, Ivermectin injection for cattle and pigs is a very effective cure for Sarcoptic mange in foxes. This injectable solution works orally and can easily be slipped into food. The ivermectin also treats a lot of the intestinal worms and any ear mites. The catch is this: it kills the mites living on the skin but doesn't kill the eggs . These eggs will hatch and reinfect the fox, so it has to be administered many times to kill the mange mites that hatch after treatment. I strongly recommend treating Red foxes very aggressively, giving them the Ivermectin every three days for the first two weeks. A daily feeding station using cat or dog food can be set up to facilitate the administration of tasty treats laced with ivermectin. A spoonful of canned cat food, a chunk of cooked chicken or venison can easily be injected with the solution. Weeks four and five give the ivermectin every five days. Weeks six through nine put the ivermectin every ten days.
Ivermectin comes in two strengths- the 200 mL tall blue bottle is a dilute 0.27% solution for Grower and Feeder Pigs. 0.5 ml (or cc) will treat a 10 lb fox. if your fox is an adult or young adult, it is a 10 lb fox. A lot of people think they weigh more than that , but trust me, a mangy fox does not tip the scales past 10 lbs. Fox pups may weigh less, and you can cut the dose in half. You will need a large needle to draw the solution out of the bottle because the solution is rather thick. A very fine needle and small syringe will make it difficult to draw.
The second strength of Ivermectin is in a much smaller bottle (50 mL) and is a concentrated 1% solution. This injection solution is for cattle and large swine. It costs around $45 at most farm stores- but it will last forever! 1 mL will treat a 110 lb cow. 0.5 cc will treat a 55 lb fox - of course we know that there are no 55lb foxes... so, you will need to really give a small amount! I use 0.2 mL (or 0.2 cc) . Giving the solution orally is much safer and has a larger margin for error than injecting it in foxes.
Of course other wildlife might get to the food before the fox does, so try to use your judgment and administer it the best way that will target only the fox. Ivermectin is a pretty safe drug and won't harm most wildlife. Some breeds of dogs can be very sensitive to it, particularly the collie family and Australian shepherds . Use extra caution around domestic animals. They use Ivermectin in third world countries to treat different things, such as scabies in humans. Ivermectin is also used to treat dogs and cats for mange, though it is an off label use according to the FDA .
A topical product called Revolution can be obtained through your veterinarian and used to help prevent your domestic dogs from picking up mange in the grass surrounding your property. I have found Revolution to be a very effective preventative for mange, but a very ineffective cure for mange. I apply Revolution to all my foxes just before they are released back to the wild as a preventative measure for them. I have tried Revolution as a treatment on several foxes and a dog that had mange, and it simply did not treat the mange infestation at all.
Can people get mange? You bet, but it won't live and reproduce on your skin. It will give you one heck of an itchy red allergic reaction if you are sensitive to mange mites though. I have had it more than a few times. it won't bother some people, and others it will. I happen to be one of those sensitive to it. In fact, I have used my own skin reaction as an indicator of if an animal's skin condition is actually mange or not. Often a veterinarians skin scrape can miss the mites, but, my skin doesn't. I have diagnosed mange in fawns, coyotes, dogs, very young fox pups and other tricky things that a skin scraping had missed. I will share my personal mange experience in a future blog :0)
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