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Please identify these parasitic mites.

Published on: December 27, 2022 • By: darineugenius · In Forum: Dogs
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darineugenius
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December 27, 2022 at 12:44pm
Mocha is an 8 year old, german Shepard/boxer mix that looks like neither breed. For the last couple of months she has just looked Sad and haggard, and has scratched furiously, mostly at her front "shoulders" and head. Upon examining the shoulders, the fur looks very thin and there are black dots evident on her skin there. After touching the black dots, they disappear back down into the skin, only to reappear a few seconds later in the same. Or another spot nearby, leading me to the supposition that the dots are breathing apparati/proboscis for a parasite(s). Just below mocha's tear ducts there has been wet patches for as long as I can recall--possibly 1 year. I decided to investigate these wet areas and discovered that many of the hairs nearest the follicle were matted together in clumps of 12 or so hairs with what looked initially like a brown blob of possibly dead skin. These blobs are approximately 1 cm in length. As a Mycologist. I scope at least 3 fungi per day, so I took samples of the blobs and scoped them at 400X first in Hydrochloric acid, then added Potassium Hydroxide (KOH) and Methylene Blue to the sides of the cover slip and sealed it with Hoyers mounting medium.  Apparently,  the hysterosoma (the shell) is transparent, as all i see are limbs, actually, I don't know what I'm seeing.  But they obviously possess a transparent integuement, or whatever it is termed for these Acari. I am sure the integuement is transparent because after almost 48 hours of being sealed on a slide with caustic chemicals they are still moving up and down hair shafts, which, to me is mind blowing. I pretty much can only make out the 2 front head claws/palyps of "possibly" Cheyletiella yasguri, and other unusual shapes that obviously belong to the same individuals.  I cannot decipher much morphology here. Can you help identify these please? I very much apologize for the terrible microscopy. We have 3 other German Shepards, 2 of which are Mochas pups (both are 2 years old) and then there's the Dad, Bear. All of the dogs have been treated for fleas, ticks, and heartworms recently, but still itch furiously 2 weeks after the medicine. Last image appears to be an egg strand. Also, at some point in their development,  they seemingly cover themselves in a piece of mocha's skin and walk around with it on... like walking dandruff.  Here's the better of the images:  20221226_15254220221226_15365720221226_152217
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darineugenius
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December 27, 2022 at 12:47pm
And, these are not demodex for sure. I wanted you to see 3 more pics:  (last pic is at approx. 200X)20221226_15150220221225_17210420221226_160359
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darineugenius
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December 27, 2022 at 12:48pm
I meant the middle pic is not at 400X, but closer to 200X.
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Liz Buchanan BVSc MRCVS
Keymaster
December 27, 2022 at 05:41pm
Hello!  This animal is not my patient and so - as ever - I will refrain from making veterinary judgements on the samples.  However, I am impressed by your attempts to identify this for yourself.  Usually vets take a bit of practise before they can reliably do this;  one doesnt expect to make accurate diagnoses on day one.   You tell me that these are not demodex; I would be surprised if they were, firstly because demodex are usually observed on deep skin scrapes (deep enough to bleed gently afterwards) and secondly, demodex don't usually itch or scurf; they tend to present as patches of baldness, usually with a history of immune stress although this can sometimes be difficult to identify.
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Liz Buchanan BVSc MRCVS
Keymaster
December 27, 2022 at 05:44pm
That is not to guarentee no demodex on the samples because I have not read them; that is just to say, that I'd be surprised if demodex were to be the main cause of the problem that you have described.
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Liz Buchanan BVSc MRCVS
Keymaster
December 27, 2022 at 06:01pm
Interestingly, there is a mite nicknamed 'walking dandruff,' known as cheyletiella, and other common dog mites include ear-mites (which can leave the ears), psoroptes and further, sarcoptes scabiei.
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Liz Buchanan BVSc MRCVS
Keymaster
December 27, 2022 at 06:18pm
Where mites manage to take hold on well-looked after adult dogs in particular, frequently they manage it because there is some underlying issue, from pancreatitis to diabetes to cancer, so if you find or suspect mites then a veterinary examination will always be a good idea, regardless of your ability to perform microscopy yourself.  A vet can perform a scrape such as will identify common species of parasite but may also be happy to evaluate your own. For these reasons we always reccommend that you involve your vet in proceedings.  I hope that something there has been useful;  please do let us know how you get on with this interesting case.
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darineugenius
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December 28, 2022 at 02:09am
I sure will let you know! And thank you for your time!
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