Treatment of mange in guinea pigs, hamsters and hedgehogs

Authors: Bishop DM, Heath ACG
Publication: New Zealand Veterinary Journal, Volume 32, Issue 7, pp 120, Jul 1984
Publisher: Taylor and Francis

Animal type: Wildlife
Subject Terms: Inflammation, Integument/skin/wool/hair/fur/feather, Disease/defect, Parasites - external, Treatment/therapy
Article class: Correspondence

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Abstract: Twenty-five out of 450 guinea pigs in a breeding colony were seen to suffer hair loss, were scurfy, and had scabies-like lesions on their backs, shoulders and rumps. Scrapings of affected areas revealed the presence of Trixacurus caviae; a species not previously recorded in New Zealand but known in North America and Europe. All animals in the colony were immersed twice in 0.1% gamma benzene hexachloride (BHC; Taslin; ICI Tasman Ltd.) with a one month interval between treatments. More frequent applications have been used. Mange lesions either regressed or resolved after treatment, with regrowth of hair and no mites were found subsequently. The follicular mange mites Demodex uwuti and D. criceti were found in scrapings from hamsters in a laboratory colony showing hair loss, scabs and scurtiness, particularly on the neck and abdomen, as previously described. Demodex aurati was the more abundant species. There are no published reports of these mites in New Zealand, although they were in fact detected in this country in another laboratory colony of hamsters from which those in the present case were derived…

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