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  Discussion on Mini Mane Dermatitis
Author Message
New Member:
pazz

Posted on Wednesday, Nov 12, 2008 - 9:15 pm:

Dear Dr. O - My young mini was born in Florida and at that time has shown a bit of occasional itching on his neck next to his mane. No hair loss. He had a beautiful very thick mane. When he turned one year old this past April, I moved him to NY. After he was here a few weeks, I scratched at what felt like a scab on his withers and a patch of skin came away with mane attached, leaving a nickle-sized patch of bare irritated skin exposed. He began to lose hair on his mane and tail only, then it stopped on the tail, but continued on the mane. Over time he developed crusty areas and some tenderness at the hair roots of his mane (he often objected to my brushing what was left of his mane). He has never been particularly itchy. My vet did a biopsy of the tissue and it showed changes consistent with allergic dermatitis. Blood test revealed high CPK (412) and high LDH (585), all other findings normal. The only other pertinent factor is that for a time he was acting a bit depressed - mopey and quiet but with no fever or loss of appetite. I originally attributed this to the HyDrOxyzine, but his depressed mood continued after I stopped the med. He is improving now, acting normally with less mane loss. Do you think this is sweet itch, even though he has very minimal itching? Because he is so young, might he actually develop some immunity or do you think this will likely get worse next year? What other diagnoses might be applicable here? Any suggestions? I am bringing him back down to Florida in December. Hopefully he will continue to improve in another environment. Thanks for your help. Bev
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Thursday, Nov 13, 2008 - 9:47 am:

Welcome back DrG,
Is it possible to have the exact biopsy report and good photos of the horse and effected areas of the horse? Other than the hyDrOxyzine what treatments have you tried and what treatments were the horse on when biopsied? What blood tests were run and yielded normal results? What rule outs has your veterinarian tendered?
DrO
New Member:
pazz

Posted on Friday, Nov 14, 2008 - 8:09 pm:

Hi Dr. O,
Buddy' was on HyDrOxyzine for a few weeks, but at the time of the blood test and biopsy he had been off of it for at least a month. Only other treatments were topicals. I was apprehensive about using steroids because of his age. I tried Dermagel, Silver Sulfadiazine, topical Scalpicin (1% HyDrOcortisone specifically for scalp/hair issues) and Clam Coat. I did use diaper cream on the dock of his tail, then wrapped it with vet wrap, and that actually worked. I'm guessing it coated the skin and the bugs could not get through. I used some in his mane but it was so messy I stopped. My Vet did not rule out anything else. She still thinks it is an allergy to Culicoides.
I tired to upload the blood test (basic screen and CBC) and pathology results for my mini's skin biopsy, but it seemed to exceed maximum allowable size (64Kb), so maybe I am doing something wrong when I am attempting to send it. Also, it might be difficult to visualize the problem in pictures, but I can try to take some if you would like.
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Saturday, Nov 15, 2008 - 8:20 am:

Sorry for the problems DrG. No 64k is a maximum file size but a text document should not exceed that. You might try copying and pasting to Notebook then saving as a ".txt" document. This should create a small enough file to upload. Clear images are always welcome.
DrO
New Member:
pazz

Posted on Sunday, Apr 19, 2009 - 8:07 pm:

Hi Dr.O.
I would like to continue discussion on Buddy, my mini losing mane hair. In Florida for the winter he seemed fine, mane filled out, now losing mane and tail hair again. Updates- had allergy test done, blood not skin, he has slight allergies to many things, borderline Culicoides, which was his likely diagnosis.(I will try to send you the results, had trouble sending last time) The lab told me his allergy test was only positive for inhaled substances, (including Culicoides) except for the few foods they tested. I believe hair loss is allergy related, as it is seasonal. He is not scratching his mane or tail, but hair is coming out at the roots. I do not see crusty stuff (yet) on his skin under the mane. I asked vet about skin allergy testing and he thought it was not indicated now, though I did speak with New Bolton Center and they were supportive of trying that. Is there is a a better way to ascertain the particular allergen, or anything I can try to interfere with it's effects? I have read everything I have found on this subject, and still can't help my little guy. Any suggestions??? One other note. I see tiny black "dots" in his white mane. It might be dirt, or teeny tiny }bugs, or eggs, or something totally unrelated. I am going to try to get an entomologist friend to look at them closely. Maybe he can identify them.
Member:
mrose

Posted on Sunday, Apr 19, 2009 - 8:30 pm:

Is there a chance he could have lice? The dots sound like either excretment or eggs.
New Member:
pazz

Posted on Sunday, Apr 19, 2009 - 10:00 pm:

Thanks for suggestion. I think probably not lice because problem seems seasonal. I have looked into the relationship between horses and lice, mites, and fleas and it doesn't seem to fit, but if I get the entomologist to check these black "dots" in his mane, I will know more, and I will post it here. I think Buddy's problem is more likely a seasonal allergy of some sort, either insect (sweet itch?) or plant related. Very frustrating.
Member:
mrose

Posted on Sunday, Apr 19, 2009 - 10:53 pm:

The "dots" just don't seem to fit with allergies, unless they are flakes of skin he has rubbed off. Good luck. Stuff like this just drives a horse owner mad!
Moderator:
DrO

Posted on Monday, Apr 20, 2009 - 9:51 am:

Hello DrG,
No there is no better way and yes I have seen Universities recommend these tests in spite of the lack of evidence of specificity and sensitivity. Maybe more important I do not know of any allergic condition that cause these symptoms by anything other than itching. And this episodes sounds quite different than last years.

Normally horse mane and tail hairs do not cycle through anagen-catagen-telogen like the rest of the coat, they just continue to grow ... However the Equine Dermatology book I like to reference states that it is normal for some horses to noticeably shed mane hairs in the spring. If there is no pathology or pruritus, you might want to take a wait and see attitude. If you feel there is a disease process, I would think another biopsy of selected areas of the mane most revealing as to possible disease process. Non-parasitic diseases that cause loss of mane and tail hairs without obvious lesions would include:
  • excessive selenium intake
  • chewing on some types of mimosa and jumby trees
  • ergot poisoning
  • mercury poisoning
  • genetic related hair lost
  • unexplained long hair dysplasias
With most of the toxins there should be other symptoms present by mimosine toxicosis has a primary symptom of mane hair loss.
DrO
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