Black spot on skin/hair loss — mites?

Would this be mites? I’m used to walking dandruff style that I’ve treated in the past. This is different.

Her baby also has it on its back, same thing loss of hair and black skin/fur area.

thinking maybe fur mites? the pics don't pull up the best for me. but location would be fur mites.

do fur mites make the skin loose and it comes off with the fur? Like walking dandruff? Maybe I’m confusing them? Or they are the same thing? @ladysown

FluffleFarm said:

do fur mites make the skin loose and it comes off with the fur? Like walking dandruff? Maybe I’m confusing them? Or they are the same thing? @ladysown

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Walking dandruff is a term used when rabbits have fur mites. The rabbit scratches and the skin flakes, and the mites themselves are whitish so they can look like moving flakes of skin. Eventually the rabbit scratches so much you'll start seeing scabs as well. I agree with @ladysown, it looks like fur mites from the pictures. The black skin/fur area could just be the black tips of the chestnut hair growing back.

I'd take a look inside their ears as well to check for ear mites. I've found that once in a while ear mites and fur mites come along together. Look for ears that are dirty, a little (or a lot) crusty down inside, sensitive (rabbit doesn't want you to touch them), rabbit shaking its head a lot or of course scratching at them.

Alaska Satin said:

Walking dandruff is a term used when rabbits have fur mites. The rabbit scratches and the skin flakes, and the mites themselves are whitish so they can look like moving flakes of skin. Eventually the rabbit scratches so much you'll start seeing scabs as well. I agree with @ladysown, it looks like fur mites from the pictures. The black skin/fur area could just be the black tips of the chestnut hair growing back.

I'd take a look inside their ears as well to check for ear mites. I've found that once in a while ear mites and fur mites come along together. Look for ears that are dirty, a little (or a lot) crusty down inside, sensitive (rabbit doesn't want you to touch them), rabbit shaking its head a lot or of course scratching at them.

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Thanks

I thought the black was just hair but then it wasn’t the same shade as any fur on them.

The baby is an otter but a black one so def could be.

Dealing with the same. A Flemish Giant again. Pregnant. Ugh!

Buknee said:

What is the best way to treat fur mites? I am going through of season of firsts here and it's my first time with mites. I would appreciate your experienced advice on treatment for a pregnant Flemish Giant doe?
I read one article that said horse Ivermectin is not good because it's not mixed well. A pea size amount could have too much medication in it and kill your rabbit. Thoughts? I do have horse Ivermectin paste.
Thank you!

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I consider ivermectin an extremely safe medication and would be willing to use it on a pregnant doe. Dosage can vary quite widely before you see overdose pathology. According to the WHO, in their 1994 report about ivermectin, as reported in INCHEM.org, (WHO’s website for “Internationally Peer Reviewed Chemical Safety Information”) in mammals the margin of error for invermectin overdose is quite large:

Section 7.2.2 Collie dogs have been shown to be more sensitive than other dogs to the toxic effects of ivermectin. Depression, tremors, mydriasis, ataxia, coma and death have been seen in Collie dogs at 100 ðg/kg orally and greater, but not at the recommended dose of the commercial product (6 ðg/kg) (Campbell & Benz, 1984).

Since I will not give my rabbits anything I will not eat myself (they are meat rabbits after all), there is further interesting and reassuring information about human toxicity from the same publication - INCHEM.org Section 7.2.1 Human Data.

Until last year (when we got yaks and thus have pour-on cattle ivermectin on hand), I have always used the horse paste for my rabbits. A pea-sized amount for an adult Satin (8.5 - 11lbs) has always worked and never given them problems. A benefit is that it tastes like apple and they really like it, so getting it in them is no problem. I do think the warning about heterogeneity in the paste is something to think about, but the paste has always worked for me. I suppose if you were really worried you could express all the paste out of the tube and mix it yourself to your own satisfaction, even putting it back into the same tube.

Alaska Satin said:

A pea-sized amount for an adult Satin (8.5 - 11lbs) has always worked and never given them problems. A benefit is that it tastes like apple and they really like it, so getting it in them is no problem.

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Thank you.
So you actually fed it to them? I had read somewhere about applying it to their skin. Ingesting it makes more sense to me. My FG is 14 1/2 pounds. Do you think the pea size amount is sufficient?

Buknee said:

Thank you.
So you actually fed it to them? I had read somewhere about applying it to their skin. Ingesting it makes more sense to me. My FG is 14 1/2 pounds. Do you think the pea size amount is sufficient?

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Yes, I smear it in their mouth, and they usually like it and lick it all up. If they do not, I smear it inside their front legs and they ingest it when they're cleaning themselves.
I would think a larger pea would work for your Flemish. Since overdosing is unlikely, I'd be generous with the bigger rabbit, but wouldn't go so far as to double the amount. If it doesn't clear up the mites, you can always try a little more after a few weeks.
I had an ARBA judge tell me he uses the pour-on, and just walks along his cages and spritzes the rabbits with it as he goes by (which suggests to me, again, that dosage isn't incredibly critical).