We have spayed female yellow lab, between 3 & 4yrs. old, who had problems with her ears, and a "foot fetish".

Question

The vet once said it was an allergy to beef that caused it..then, another time, said it was a yeast infection..we are confused! We try all kinds of ways to help her..she will dig her ears raw if we don't put something in there to help, and her ears have a foul odor. The crud in her ears look a nasty brown color. She also has a "foot fetish"..licks and licks her feet..not a normal grooming lick, but keeps at it for a long time! Will even chew on her toenails! She does it so long that if she is laying on the carpet, she gets it soaked where she is licking! Anyone out there familiar with these problems and have a suggestion or a solution?

Answer 1

I'm not 100% certain , but I think that allergies can cause yeast infections in the ears . I know it will cause problems with ears and skin just not sure about the yeast bit. Have you tried taking away all treats and just feeding her a hypoallergenic diet from the vet? They should also have hypoallergenic treats that you may be able to give depending on what she is allergic to. A good diet to try is the hypoallergenic diet made by Royal Canin if your vet has it. Alot of people have good results with it , but it has to be a strict diet no treats or table food. If she improves then it must be food allergies. And it may be that she has environmental allergies if she seems worse in certain seasons then its probably environmental there are medications that can help. You should discuss this with your vet because you are paying for their services so why leave confused make him/her answer your questions or get a new vet.

Answer 2

The ear problem could be anything including allergy, mites, yeast infection, etc. The foot licking/chewing can also be a sign of an allergy, mostly from food or just boredom. If you are not satisfied with the diagnoses your vet is giving you, you should seek out another vet.

Answer 3

For the licking problem - did your vet check her for canine atopy? That's one of the possible causes and there are treatments available.

As for her ear infection, I'd try another vet until you get a definitive answer - that's got to be awfully painful for your poor dog. If her ears have a foul ordor and brown crud coming out, it sounds like an infection of some sort which a vet needs to diagnose.

Answer 4

You may want to check out:

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&dog=1593&articleid=423

There are a lot of different reasons. Some may be mites - some may be related to diet, as your vet suggested. You could try changing her diet to a more chicken (fowl) diet, which could affect the licking and eventually help her ears.

But I would definitely ask a different vet for their diagnosis and you may be given drops for her ears IF there is a mite problem.

Answer 5

my friend's dog had a yeast infection once and they brought her to the vet and got special ear cleaner for her. it worked very well and hasn't had anyother ear problems. my dog also has to use ear cleaner that u can get from petsmart. i smells put gets the wax out and his ears don't bother him anymore.