Could the food my dog eats cause ear infections?

Question

I've posted a question before about my dogs ear infections and I've tried so much to help them heal. They just continue to become infected. Does anyone know if the food he eats cause this type of allergy? He is on large breed adult formula ProPlan.

He's been on at least 5 different meds and has been to the vet continually.

Answer 1

I believe it can contribute to it. Excess sugar can cause excess yeast and bacteria to form in the body. Corn has sugar and ProPlan has corn... you can only benefit from trying a hypoallergenic food with a protien source your dog has never had, and no corn or sugar products. I like Wellness brand Fish and Potato, or Natures Variety Venison & Rice. A less expensive food would be Sensible Choice Lamb and Rice. My dog eats that as her normal food, but it's not hypoallergenic. You can't give her treats with suger either, so check all your labels. It will take 2 months to know if it is helping for sure. Until then, use the drying/acidifying ear wash from the vet every day and use the medicated cream for 2 weeks at least to make sure you don't stop the med to soon. Continue cleaning the ears every day, or at least a couple times weekly. Also clean when they get wet or if it's humid. If she has other skin problems, like itchy feet and hot spots, it may be seasonal allergies and she may need benedryl-that'll help ears, too. Ask your vet. You can try putting a dribble of apple cider vinegar in his water dish. Also try acidophilis tablets in his food. That can help good bacteria fight the bad bacteria in his body. I do the same thing for myself...when I can afford it... spend to much on my pets...

Answer 2

It's highly doubtful that the dog food has anything to do with ear infections. If your dog is a breed whose ears hang down over the opening, ear infections, or irritation, just go with the territory. Their ear stay moist down inside and it breeds the little critters that cause the problems. I have a Cocker Spaniel, and her ears give her fits on a regular basis. I keep a tube of Otamax (I probably misspelled that) on hand, and every time she begins to have problems I squirt a little in each ear for a couple of days. It always clears up the problem in short order. Otamax is something you'll have get from your vet. It's prescription stuff, and there's now a generic that's cheaper and does the same thing.

Answer 3

Yes, food is a possibilty. Does he have other skin problems? If you have never tried him on a different food, it is worth a try. The main thing is to make sure you change the protein source- the Purina large breed is chicken based (I think), so you would have to switch to lamb or beef. You don't have to switch brands though. When you do a food trial, you have to remember- the dog can get nothing else- no treats, no human food, nothing other than his own food. Even a little bit of something else can throw off the food trial. If he has no other symptoms other than ear infections a food trial will probably not help. Does he swim? If he does, clean his ears after swimming with something that is drying- we use Gent-l-clens on ours. The floppy eared dogs like labs don't don't get enough air circulating in the ears and down into the canals in order to dry them out. So they stay moist and dark- great for yeast and bacteria to grow. Sometimes you just have to deal with it though...

Answer 4

Absolutely food allergies can cause ear infections. This happened to my dog. You first need to have him checked out by a vet and get his ears cleaned. If you are going to try a new food you need to choose one that has a single protein source that your dog hasn't had before. We chose Dick Van Patten's Duck and Potato. Whenever you change your dog's diet you need to do it slowly. You will need to mix both foods together for a period of time and slowly wean him off of his old stuff. Your vet can give additional information.

Also, environmental allergies can also cause ear infections. Ask your vet to check him for other allergies too.

Answer 5

Never heard of ANY corelation between ear infections and diet. Some breeds are very prone to chronic, lifelong ear problems - Cockers, Labs, Westies, Bloodhounds, and many others. Mites can also cause this.

Keep his ears clean and dry and try another vet - preferably from a recommendation from someone in your area who has had their dog successfully treated for ear infections.

Answer 6

Bacteria and yeast are the most common type of ear infections, some dogs are just prone to them

You'd need to see you vet so they can do the proper testing and give you the right medication

edit: What is the vet telling you?

Answer 7

I've never known the dog's diet to cause "ear infections." It's most likely ear mites. Many dogs get them and most that do, do so fairly regularly. You have to get the ear mite medicine and hold them down and put it in their ears like every few days. AND, you have to keep them from scratching them. Use one of those funnels if you have to. I had a Great dane and she always got ear mites. We'd keep her clean and she stayed inside and for whatever reaon they always came back. She would scratch her ears and make them bloody. These days, the vet may have something that will "cure" the mites.
The yeast idea never occurred to me. That's definitely a theory worth exploring....

Answer 8

If you suspect that his infections are due to a food allergy, switch to a different food for a couple of months and see if they clear out. Food allergies can cause a lot of different kinds of symptoms.

Answer 9

brewers yeast causes ear in fections i feed my frommand he still get ear infections potato causes ear infections dick van pattion has potato it made my dog sick natural blance was bought out buy another place in china it cost me four hundren dollars to get him well

Answer 10

my dog has ear infection's also took him to vet they asked if we gave him people food we give him some scraps along with his dog food vet told us to stop giving people food that could be the problem and change his dog food also