Going on 3rd month with Dog ear infecton and numerous vets?

Question

We have been to numerous vets...All have their own brand of how to cure our dogs ear infection..NONE have worked...any suggestions out there would be appreciated.....

Answer 1

It might be that the vets are treating the symptom (ear infection), instead of the problem...allergies. Chronic ear infections are often due to allergies. We went through the same thing with one of our dogs. The vets finally brought up allergy testing. It was the *best* $250 we've ever spent...now we can work on the problem (nearly 30 allergies). It would have spared him misery, lots of medication & two surgeries (hematomas) and us time, effort & money had they mentioned it a few years earlier.

Here are a few links:
http://www.allergicpet.com/articles/dog_ear_infections.html
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_ear_infections.html
http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1591&articleid=273
http://animalpetdoctor.homestead.com/Ears.html

Answer 2

Has either vet actually tested the ear discharge? Ear infections can be fungal or bacterial, or both, and should be treated accordingly. Find a new vet, and demand the discharge be tested. Treat the infection that's present. Ask for oral medications if possible, explain that it's been a persistent condition.

Also, you need to do your part. Daily flushing of the ear with large amounts of dog ear cleaner, wipe out any visible discharge, dry the ear, and then apply the medication. Twice per day, every day, for at least 2-3 weeks straight. After that, continue washing the ears daily for several more weeks. After that, at least 2-3 times per week. No dog should have it's ears cleaned less than once per week.

Finally, does the dog have long hair? If so, have the hair inside the ear pulled and shaved out at least once per month by a groomer. Hair = moisture + bacteria/yeast = more infection. Also, NEVER allow water in the dog's ears- no swimming, bathe VERY carefully (put cottonballs in the ears if you must) and after any exposure to water, flush the ears with cleaner and apply a dog ear powder to dry them out and keep them that way.

Good luck!

Answer 3

I have one that was having cronic ear infections.
She started at the age of one with one ear infection a yr. By the time she was five, she was having 4-6 a yr. Some vets that I went to said yeast, some said infections. One of the last vets that I went to said that we needed to keep her on weekly drops in the ear for the rest of her life. When she was 5, I stopped ALL vaccinations for this dog. She had one more ear infection and then did not have another for 3 yrs.
Read up on vaccinations.
http://svmweb.vetmed.wisc.edu/articles/68/5/39
http://www.critteradvocacy.org
They can and do cause some dogs to have cronic ear infections and a lot of other problems. Check the net, it's all out there for the reading. Vaccinations should not be given annually or even tri-annually.

Answer 4

bbgmom95 is right- sometimes ear drops aren't enough! My bulldog had a whopping ear infection that two vets didn't catch before the third finally diagnosed him properly. By then, of course, it had been about 4 months, and poor Manny had such a bad infection that he had to get ear drops for 3 weeks, day and night. The doc ended up prescribing the drops as well as an antibiotic, to treat the yeast portion of the infection, as well as to clear up any bacterial infection that may also be present. The awful funk that was coming off of him cleared up within a day, and before that I had always just assumed that's how bulldogs are supposed to smell. In fact, one vet I asked actually said that he smelled that way because of how much he drools. It sounded plausible, but in the end it turned out that it was the yeast infection in his ear that I was smelling. Good luck with your dog!

Answer 5

Might just be chronic and the dog will have it on and off forever, at this point that means the best thing to do is keep your pups ears clean using baby wipes (non alcoholic) once a day, and a cleaning solution twice a week, that what I do for my pup and she seems to be doing alto better, if it seems to be getting worse and worse the dog will need antibiotics.

Answer 6

Our dog tends to get ear infections, but they are YEAST infections, not a regular ear infection. Our vet gave us ear drops and anti-fungal pills. It cleared it up pretty quickly. One way to tell if it's a yeast infection is that it will smell bad. I kept giving him baths, trying to get rid of the "stink", before I found out it was the yeast infection, not the dog!

Answer 7

try peroxide on q-tips also there is an ear cleaning solution you can get at the vets office that works on my dog. best luck :)