hi.
hope some of you can help...
  my 6 month old staffie puppy has lost some of her hair around her eyes,not a great deal but enough for me to wonder what causes it,also i noticed a tiny patch of hair loss on her back leg.
i hope someone can help me with this and put my mind at rest.

     thanks

is she itching at all or is the skin red/inflammed looking? i would pop her along to your vets, staffies are quite prone to demodex infestations, and these most commonly occur along eyes and face.

no shes not itching the areas concerned nor do they look inflamed,what causes demodex infestation?(no sure i like the word infestation)how serious could it get?

Demodectic mange is sometimes just called Demodex. It is caused by the Demodex mange mite, a parasite which lives in the hair follicles of affected dogs. Under the microscope, this mite appears shaped like an alligator with eight legs. All dogs (& many humans) have a few of these mites on their skin. As long as the body's immune system is functioning, these mites cause no harm.
Demodectic mange most often occurs when the dog has an immature immune system, allowing the mites to grow rapidly. Therefore, this disease occurs primarily in dogs aged less than 18 mths. In most cases as the dog matures, the immune system also matures. Adult dogs that have the disease usually have defective immune systems.

Since the mite is found on virtually all dogs, exposure of a normal healthy dog to one with demodectic mange isnt dangerous.

Development of the immune system is under genetic control. Thus, an affected dog usually comes from a litter containing other affected puppies. Owners of littermates should be put on alert to watch for it. If the disease is widespread over the body it may be due to a genetic defect and affected dogs should not be used for breeding. Also, parents of the affected dogs should not be bred from again.
Although any breed can be affected the Bull Terrier breeds seem to make up a large proportion of the dogs which are seen with clinical Demodex. Sometimes the disease can occur as a result of treatment of the dog with immunosuppressant drugs including corticosteroids.

Signs of the disease

Surprisingly, a dog with demodectic mange does not itch severely, even though it looses hair in patches. Areas of bare skin will be seen. The hair loss usually begins on the face, especially around the eyes. When there are only a few patches of hair loss, it is termed localised demodectic mange. If the disease spreads to many areas of the skin, it becomes generalised demodectic mange. It may become itchy if the skin becomes infected with bacteria or yeasts. We can check for these if necessary.

The above is taken from www.staffies.co.uk   a SBT forum

thanks for that,would you know if the hair grows back after treatment?

it can do, depending on severity of conditionand treatment. you really need to take her to vets for a skin scrape, and if it is demodex let her breeder know, and she shouldnt ever be bred from. good luck at vets!

thanks suzi,shall get her to the vets tommorrow

ive had this problem with my staffi, we took her to the vets and they done a skin scrape then demodex was diagnosed, we treat it with advocate drops every month, the fur grew back and have never had any more problems, but you must use it every month without fail,, and yes never breed from her and it would be wise to tell the person you got your dog from that they should not breed from her/or use the male as it could be either, good luck keep us informed.

Sounds like Demodectic mange and seems to be quite common with young staffords judging by posts here and the ones I have met at my friends training classes.

Most dogs have the Demodex mite that lives under the skin.  It is only when the dogs immune system is faulty or particularly stressed (change of home, first season etc) that the numbers reach high enough numbers to cause symptoms, usually hair loss around the eyes and the odd spot on body, which self resolves if the stress to the immune system is minor, but can become generalised and serious if the immune system is permanently faulty.

For this reason animals showing demodectic mange symptoms should not be bred from, as they may pass on the tendency for the poor immune system. http://www.barkbytes.com/medical/med0019.htm

I know some people get brilliant results treating this with Neem shampoo, have a look here:  www.neemgenie.co.uk

> ive had this problem with my staffi, we took her to the vets and they done a skin scrape then demodex was diagnosed, we treat it with advocate drops every month, the fur grew back and have never had any more problems, but you must use it every month without fail,

Regular treatment is only required in the more serious generalised form.

hi all.
took our pup to the vets today and he said it isnt demodex but just mange,unfortunatly hes not the most chatty of vets(in fact hes a right miserable so and so,but his fee's are reasonable)so the wife didnt get much information out of him only that he pup had some type of liquid on her back and that was that.
can anybody tell me the difference from demodex and 'just' mange(if that makes any sense) and and other information that will be usefull to know.
  thanks again

The two most common forms of 'mange' are demodectic or sarcoptic - which need different treatments.

the vet did say it wasnt demodex,could he tell that by just looking at her?(or do i need a second opinion)not that i dont trust our vet but i thought he would of took a scrape or something like that,if it is sarcoptic mange will her hair grow back? also is there anything i could of done for her not to have got it? feel like im to blame

Joe, providing things like mange, etc have been ruled out, it could be a food intolerance or other factors.  It does seem quite a common Stafford problem.  My girl was like it for many years and still has her moments of hair loss now, but this seems to be governed by the seasons and the weather.
Hope you find a solution.

this really needs a skin scrape to diagnose for definete. i would either go back to your vets for a chat, or perhaps find a new vet. fees are a big part of choosing a vet, but you should also trust and like your vet as well, they can end up being a big part of your life.

>could he tell that by just looking at her?(

If he thinks it's 'mange' then he needs to do a skin scrape and identify the mites under a microscope. You need to be aware that sarcoptic mange (aka 'fox mange') is known as scabies in humans, so needs to be treated properly.

I have heard some staffy owners say that their pups lose hair around the head, mainly at the temples and eyes when the dogs are teething.  If this is the case with your dog I believe it grows back in once the teeth are settled.

He wouldn't be able to tell which it was without taking skin scrapes.

taking our pup to a different vet tonight so will keep you all posted