Prevention and Treatment Methods for Itchy Skin, Broken Fur, and Hair Loss in Foxes
In various fur farms, it is common to find fur-bearing animals scratching with their claws, biting with their mouths, or rubbing their coats and skin against cage wire, walls, and corners, resulting in localized broken fur, hair loss, skin inflammation, and even ulcers, with occasional deaths. Most of these sick animals suffer stunted growth and development, severely affecting fur quality and causing significant economic losses to production.
1 Analysis of Causes
According to investigation and analysis, there are roughly the following 4 causes. ① Infestation by external parasites such as scabies mites, Demodex mites, or fur lice; ② ringworm, i.e. dermatophytosis, caused by fungal infection with dermatophyte fungi; ③ acute moist dermatitis caused by stimulation from wind-cold and damp environments; ④ nutritional deficiency disease caused by deficiency or imbalance of certain vitamins or trace elements among the nutrients utilized by the animal.
2 Clinical Symptoms and Prevention and Treatment
Because the causes of disease differ, the clinical symptoms and prevention and treatment measures also vary; see the table below for details.
1. Cause: Sarcoptes scabiei mite. Clinical symptoms: skin redness and swelling, intense itching, skin ulcers, formation of yellow-white scabs resembling rice bran. Sites of infestation: dermis (with burrowed holes and shallow tracts). Prevention and treatment measures: apply 2% trichlorfon or sulfur ointment to the affected area, or intramuscular injection of avermectin or Tongmie.
2. Cause: Demodex mite. Clinical symptoms: small red bumps around hair follicles, skin ulcers, abscesses, silvery-white scales. Sites of infestation: hair follicles. Prevention and treatment measures: apply 2% trichlorfon or sulfur ointment to the affected area, or intramuscular injection of avermectin or Tongmie.
3. Cause: Fur lice. Clinical symptoms: unbearable itching, biting of skin and fur, scaliness. Sites of infestation: skin and fur. Prevention and treatment measures: apply 0.5% coumaphos or 25% deltamethrin to the affected area.
4. Cause: Blood-sucking lice. Clinical symptoms: extreme itching, restlessness and agitation in the animal. Sites of infestation: subcutaneous capillaries. Prevention and treatment measures: apply 2% trichlorfon or sulfur ointment to the affected area, or intramuscular injection of avermectin or Tongmie.
5. Cause: Fungal infection. Clinical symptoms: gray circular bald patches on the coat, fragile fur that breaks easily, scabs on the skin. Sites of infestation: skin around the lips, nose mirror, and anus. Prevention and treatment measures: apply 2% iodine tincture or iodine glycerin to the affected area.
6. Eczematous dermatitis. Clinical symptoms: rapid progression, localized itching, hair loss. Sites of infestation: skin of the lips, nose, ears, anus, armpits, and groin. Prevention and treatment measures: eliminate the causative factors, apply anti-inflammatory ointment or Pi Kang Shuang to the affected area, intramuscular injection of dexamethasone 2-6 ml, once a day for 3 consecutive days.
The comprehensive preventive measures for the above conditions are to strengthen sanitation and epidemic prevention, improve environmental hygiene, and properly disinfect cages, housing, and feeding and drinking utensils.
The causes and clinical symptoms of nutritional deficiency disease are diverse. For example, when VB is deficient, the main manifestations are rough, disordered, and erect coat over the whole body; when VB2, VB12, and pantothenic acid are deficient, the main manifestations are patchy shedding of the coat over the whole body, pale and faded hair color, and symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis; when biotin and trace elements such as copper, cobalt, sulfur, zinc, iron, and manganese, or sulfur-containing amino acids are insufficient, they can all cause baldness or fur-eating. The overall manifestations are: epidermal keratinization, curled and faded coat, biting and eating the hair tips, bald tips of guard hairs, shortened downy fur, hairless tail tip, and a coat that looks as if it has been clipped. The sites of infestation in nutritional deficiency disease are the coat and skin over the whole body, generally following the hair-loss progression from ears → neck → forelimbs → body sides → tail. The prevention and treatment measures are to eliminate the causative factors based on analysis of the causes and to supplement whatever nutrient is deficient as treatment. Following the principle of scientific feeding and providing sufficient amounts of various nutrients in reasonable proportions, this disease can be prevented.