Test results show 5 wolf pups died from skin disease

Test results show that a litter of deceased wolf pups that were found south of Jackson this summer died primarily from a skin disease commonly known as mange.

Wyoming Game and Fish Department wolf biologist Ken Mills says the final diagnosis for the five dead wolf pups was severe scabies, with associated cutaneous yeast infection and severe emaciation.

The Jackson Hole News And Guide reported Tuesday that scabies or mange can be a fatal skin disease because it causes animals to scratch themselves until they lose their fur and become susceptible to infection and hypothermia.

Mills says mange had previously been observed among the members of the Horse Creek wolf pack.

While “mangy-looking” wolves with spotty coats are more common, clinical mange in rare in Wyoming’s wild wolves.