First report of an unclassified Demodex mite causing demodicosis in a Venezuelan dog

Abstract

For the first time in Venezuela, a case of canine demodicosis apparently caused by a simultaneous infection with an unclassified Demodex and Demodex canis has been observed. The most severely affected area of the dog involved, a 3-month-old male Doberman Pinscher, was the head, particularly the peri-orbital skin. Skin samples of the affected areas were taken and evaluated by both light and scanning electron microscopy. The mites of the unclassified Demodex were smaller than those of D. canis and appeared relatively stout. In the skin scrapings, D. canis outnumbered the unclassified Demodex by a ratio of 30:1, making it unclear if the unclassified Demodex is pathogenic to dogs. A combination of superficial and deep skin scrapings, from a suspected case of demodicosis, may help to reveal other infestations of the unclassified Demodex that would otherwise be masked by concurrent infections with D. canis.