subject: Information On Treating Cat Mange [print this page] Are you having trouble treating cat mange? Dont worry, youre not alone on that one. Millions of household pets suffer from mites every year, its just one of those irritating little setbacks that never seems to be curable like the common cold!
You may be asking yourself, what is mange and what can I do to rid my pet of it? This article will help you understand what mange is and hopefully it will give you some tips on how you can start treating it.
So what is mange you ask? Mange is basically a skin infliction that is caused by a parasitic mite. This mite feeds off the skin of your pet. These mites cannot be seen by the naked eye because the mites themselves are very tiny. You might be wondering how something so small can cause such irritating itching since there must be millions of microscopic creepy crawlies all over the place that never bother us? Well in a nut shell, these mites are parasitic which means they are feeding off of their host's skin. Their numbers can be in the thousands or even millions! They reproduce at alarming rates and have a life expectency of up to 22 days.
So how do you prevent this nightmare from spiraling out of control? If you begin treating cat mange in the early stages, then the disease can be very controllable. You need to begin treatment by giving your pet regular baths in a anti-parasitic shampoo to eradicate the mites. This is an ideal solution for cats that are only in the earlier stages of developing mange. However, mange can spread into much more delicate regions such as the ear canal which can lead to much more serious problems down the line.
The easiest way of telling whether your cat is suffering from mange within the ear is by checking for any signs of bleeding or redness this is a telltale sign that the mites have descended. Unfortunately, this problem could have dire circumstances in a way that your cat could lose it's hearing permanently if not treated promptly. If you do discover extreme redness and bleeding you should call your vet to have them look at your pet to be on the safe side.
Most vets will begin treating cat mange within the ear with ear wax removal drops. The drops that the vet uses work in the same way that they do on humans. By removing the wax from the ear your basically taking away the main source of food for the mites because it is this wax that the mites feed off of. By the time that all the wax is flushed out, a majority of the mites will be eradicated also. It is always wise to check with your vet to be thoroughly sure of the symptoms that your cat has and the right diagnosis has been made. The benefit of this is you'll have a better understanding of what your pet suffers from and to be sure the right treatment has been applied. When treating cat mange, your vet is just a phone call away. It's better to be safe than sorry.
