Mange - can it be treated without a trip to the vet?

[WifeofDarth]

We rehomed a tom from a shelter almost a week ago. It has taken him a while to settle in and today was the first time I was able to get close to him.
I noticed that he had mange on the skin/fur in front of his ears. It's not weeping or infected, just thin fur and black scabs.
As he hated going in the cat carrier when we collected him and as it has taken him so long to settle down I am loathe to disrupt him with a trip to the vets now that he is finally starting to relax a bit.
Does anyone know if any of the commercial mange treatments are any good? Does this need to be sorted by the vet?
Thanks!

[Wolfiefan]

How do you know it is mange?

[WifeofDarth]

It looks mangy! There's no inflammation, redness or broken skin, just thinning fur and small dark scabs. Still not pretty though. Do you think it could be something else?

[tigerdriverII]

Could be rabbit fleas? You can get stuff to put on it. One of ours gets these, her ears can almost look mouldy. She's an outdoor cat so we have to keep an eye on it.

[timtam23]

He probably needs to see a vet to be properly diagnosed, it could be any number of things. More likely to be a flea allergy I would think and in that case you should have him treated by a vet. Some of the stuff you can buy over the counter can make animals very unwell ( for example the Bob Martin flea treatment) so I wouldn't risk it