Our boy cat, Theo, is a long haired cat. We also have a girl cat, Madison, with short hair, but her ears don't smell. Sometimes when I'm holding Theo I notice it smells weird near his ears(inside his ears, I would guess, but I am not putting my nose inside to find out).
Would ear mites cause the ears to smell? He does scratch up near his ears a lot, but we've never noticed fleas. Also, Madison doesn't seem to scratch her ears.
Any ideas?
2006-11-09 08:37:08 · 24 answers · asked by Moxie1313 5 in Pets ➔ Cats
Try cleaning his ears with warm water and a wash cloth. soak the cloth and wring it out, wrap an index finger in the damp cloth and clean the cats ears with it. If the cat has an ear infection it will be sore so make sure you're gentle. Also, you can loosen the debris in the ear by putting a couple drops directly n the ear and massaging it from the outside. Then, let your kitty shake it's head to get the solution out.
DO NOT use Q-tips. You can hurt your kitty if you insert the Q-tip too far. Besides, if your cat's ears smell that bad then there's probably quite a bit of build up in it's ears so a Q-tip would be like using a toothbrush to clean your kitchen...it'll work but it'll take forever.
Remember that very few cats will sit back and ALLOW you to do this so you can protect yourself and your cat by wrapping them in a towel or blanket.
2006-11-09 09:38:14 · answer #1 · answered by quest4lucidity 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ear mites or yeast will cause the smell. You need to get an ear cleaning fluid that will contain a certain amount of alcohol in it. This will cause any remaining fluid to evaporate and not cause any other ear issues with your pet. Once you moisten the ear with the fluid, you will use a tissue to rub the ear and pick up the "dirt". Follow instructions.
If you aren't comfortable doing this, call PetsMart to see if they do that sort of work or ask your vet to clean out the ears at the next visit.
2006-11-09 08:41:52 · answer #2 · answered by deerslyr_71 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Ear mites or an infection. Gently clean out the outer part of his ears with a q-tip. IF it comes out more tannish brown or greenish it's probably an infection. More black, mites. You can get drops for ear mites from your vet, a pet supply store, or even Wal-mart. An infection the vet would have to look at.
Good luck!
2006-11-09 08:50:21 · answer #3 · answered by Amber M 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
This Site Might Help You.
RE:
Why do my cats ears smell?
Our boy cat, Theo, is a long haired cat. We also have a girl cat, Madison, with short hair, but her ears don't smell. Sometimes when I'm holding Theo I notice it smells weird near his ears(inside his ears, I would guess, but I am not putting my nose inside to find out).
Would ear mites...
2015-08-13 12:55:55 · answer #4 · answered by Clementina 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, ear mites do cause a "not so nice" smell. My cat had ear mites once, and that happened. Do Theo's ears have brown "coffee grind" looking particles in her ear? If so, more than likely it's mites. Your other cat may eventually get them too if that is what it is. Have you noticed a change in Theo's behavior? I would take him to a vet if it continues. Ear mites untreated can lead to more serious problems. Hope this helps.
2006-11-09 09:10:58 · answer #5 · answered by Jen 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your cat probably has an ear mite infestation that has progressed to the point of infection, which is causing the funky smell. Look inside his ears; you will see tiny, grainy reddish-black debris if there are mites present. The mites are too tiny to see; the reddish-black debris is what they leave behind as they munch out all over the inside of the cat's ears. That's why they scratch. If so, get him to a vet ASAP!!! Do not wait!!! Can you imagine how creepy crawly your cat must feel having those critters crawling all over inside and biting, biting, biting!!! Hundreds, maybe thousands of them!! And your other cat will get them, too, eventually. I know a lady who let her cat's ear mite infestation get so bad that his poor little ear blew up to the size of a golf ball and it was more expensive to treat, not to mention painful for the cat. An untreated infestation can cause a cat to become permanently deaf. If cash flow is a problem, check to see if there is a Humane Society veterinary clinic in your city, their clinics are very accessible and very inexpensive. The Humane Society clinic in my city charges $15.00 for an office visit and they charged me $15.00 to clean mites out of my cat's ears.
Hope this helps!
2006-11-09 09:13:30 · answer #6 · answered by Smiling Cougar 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I would take your cat to the vet. Cats usually don't scratch at their ears unless they have ear mites. By the way - ear mites are far too small to see with the naked eye - they require a microscope to view. Also - any cats that have had contact with the cat with ear mites probably have ear mites as well. The vet will give you ear drops for your cats (they don't like them very much!).
2006-11-09 08:41:12 · answer #7 · answered by Mike 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It sounds like ear mites or an infection. Both of my kitties had ear mites. I don't remember if they smelled, but there was red spots inside their ears and they scratched them a lot. Take him to the vet.
2006-11-09 08:45:33 · answer #8 · answered by two_kee_kees 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Usually a ear infection. Smelly ears are not normal see a vet
2006-11-09 09:41:47 · answer #9 · answered by cin_ann_43 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your cats ears should not have an odor. I would take Theo to the vet and have his ears looked at. Good Luck.
2006-11-09 11:59:19 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋