# Ulcerative Dermatitis (how to administer the medication?)



## aline (Nov 17, 2013)

Hello,

I have a couple of mice that live separated from the rest, they are called Joana Dark and Alexander the Great (he is neutered). Joana can't breed, because she has Ulcerative Dermatitis (picture), which is a genetic condition. To make it simple, she scratches a lot and injures herself, sometimes biting.

Joana is a C57BL/6J, and Alexander a DBA/1J.

We are experiencing a heat wave (temperatures always above 30°C/86°F) here in south america, and it promotes the growth of bacteria. A few days ago Alexander started to scratch too, and he made some wounds in the head and ears.

*My question is: How do I make them take the antibiotics they need? Joana also needs vitamin E, but she hates the taste.
*

In the past I forced medication by restraining her and putting the drops in her mouth, but it causes a lot of stress. I also tried mixing in the water, but apparently they prefer to die of dehydration than to drink it. She also rejects pasta (she loves pasta) when I add the medicine. I heard that malt paste might work, but here I have only the cat version available, is it ok?

I appreciate any insight you can give about the medication or about how to make the life of a sick mouse better.

Thanks from Brazil.

Aline


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## Serena (Dec 29, 2011)

hi

malt paste usually is fine. I administer medication mostly via this route.
Have you treated them already against external parasites? Ulcerative dermatitis usually is a product of some sort of infestation and possibly a hypersensitivity to products of the parasites and scratching which then leads to a bacterial secondary infection. it's a vicious circle
Or do you have mice with a C57BL/6Crl-Background? Then it could be the kind described in the article you linked.

Treatment for ulcerative dermatitis is to treat them agains mites (Ivermectin once every 7-10 days for 3-4 times) and use an antibiotic for a few weeks (at lest 14 days). Vitamin e is said to help, but I haven't reviewed the evidence for that yet. Just give them some, it's rather hard to overdose . sometimes short acting steroids against the itch can be helpful, but you have to talk to your vet for that.


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## Laigaie (Mar 7, 2011)

Steroids aren't recommended when the animal has wounds, so I'd skip it.

As for delivering antibiotics, you can administer them in the water with a sweetener like Tang (or juice), though it depends on the antibiotic you've been given, and what form it's in, and you'd have to change the bottle daily.


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## Serena (Dec 29, 2011)

I know steroids are a controversy. 
You have to weigh the riskts against the benefits. there are cases in which very itchy animaly profit greatly from steroids. It slows down the healing, that's the downside. You always have to talk about it with your vet. He/she is the one administering the stuff in the end. 
Please never use over the counter treatments on your own. they are the wrong dosage and the wrong kinds most of the time.


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## aline (Nov 17, 2013)

Serena said:


> hi
> 
> malt paste usually is fine. I administer medication mostly via this route.
> Have you treated them already against external parasites? Ulcerative dermatitis usually is a product of some sort of infestation and possibly a hypersensitivity to products of the parasites and scratching which then leads to a bacterial secondary infection. it's a vicious circle
> ...


Hi Serena,

I already treated Joana with ivermectin, the first time I took her to the vet we thought she had mites, but it was not the case. She is in fact a C57BL descendent. I will try the malt paste.

Thanks!


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## aline (Nov 17, 2013)

Thanks for your help, guys!

Yesterday I started treating Alexander with a spray that contains Gentamicin (antibiotic), Miconazole (anti-fungal) and Betamethasone (glucocorticoid steroid with anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive properties). He looks better already. As for Joana, I will try the malt paste.

Aline

Edit: I have the approval of the vet.


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## Serena (Dec 29, 2011)

I wish you the best of luck! Hopefully the treatment makes them better.


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## bonsai (Oct 14, 2012)

Hello
I always treated mice with those scratching symptoms with antibiotics and cortisone.
The process slows down but sadly there was never a complete healing.
A further alternative to give the medcine is offering it with a drop of coconut milk.Most mice like it.
I'm interested in the name of the spray if it works good.So next time I could ask my vet for it.

Best wishes for you and your mice.


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## Laigaie (Mar 7, 2011)

Serena: I understand and appreciate your respect for veterinarians, but your advice to please not use anything over the counter yourself is not always applicable, though it is often the advice given to pet owners. For breeders, many times we know more about how to medicate our stock than the veterinarians do, and in other countries we often have access to most medications without veterinary degrees.

aline: How'd you end up with a Black-6?


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## Serena (Dec 29, 2011)

@Lagaie:
You're right. I should have phrased it differently.
If you know what you're doing everything is fine. 
People just should be careful if they don't have sufficient information on meds considering the specific substance and the dosage. In the worst case you can kill your pets with the wrong medication.


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