Pet's Mange Was the Result of Neglect

Last weekend, I received a call to go to the Boxcar in Dunedin, because someone found a dog that had some health issues. I went down not knowing what to expect. 

What I found was a sweet boy with such a skin condition so bad that it covered 99.8 percent of his body.  It was also so bad that he had open sores from it, along with a lot of hair loss. 

I took this little guy in to the Dunedin Medical Animal Center to find out what was going on prior to bringing him around any of our dogs. Unfortunately this dog is covered in Demodex Mange.  

From afar, he looks OK, but when looking at the actual skin, what fur he has, just covers the disease. Now, hearing the word mange is scary, but this type is actually a mite that lives in and will feed off of the dogs hair follicale and oil glands. Typically it will not harm a healthy dog. 

So why was was this dog covered? Neglect! We all see the pictures of dogs that are malnurished, beaten, and abused, but no one thinks of a skin condition to be neglect.  

It hurts my heart so bad because this little boy is a sweetheart, and a love bug.  How could someone neglect this little boy so bad?  He has such a good spirit and seems so happy, and just wants attention and love from his human. 

He looks at you with these sweet eyes, and just wants someone to show him what it is like to receive love and care. To have someone care for him as he should be. 

There are many types of neglect and abuse. Mange is a result of neglect. If you see it, please report it so the humans are held accountable for their actions!  As I have said before, we need to speak for those that cannot speak for themselves.

By the way, the little guy's new name is Cadel, meaning little battle or little fighter.  It fits him perfect as he is fighting through this condition to have a normal life.

Hug each one of your animals and let them know you love them.