Ear cleaning??

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by LDandPasquale

The reason i asked this question in the first place was cause Pasquale seems to be itching. He doesnt itch anything but his ears. At first i thought it was his food...so i switched him to Natural Balance Venison and sweet potato. He's still itching.(just his ears) Anyways he's been to the vets a few times for checkups and he always checks his ears...never mentioned anything unusual. At first i thought it was normal itching......but its just so strange its just his ears?

If it is more than once or twice a day, it probably isn't normal.
How low ago was the food switch? It could take over 60 days to see results.

Have they been swabbed so the vet could look at any discharge under the microscope?

[LDandPasquale]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

If it is more than once or twice a day, it probably isn't normal.
How low ago was the food switch? It could take over 60 days to see results.

Have they been swabbed so the vet could look at any discharge under the microscope?

It definitely more than twice a day...usually its in the morning when he first gets up. He's only been on the venison id say about 30 days...i was giving him natural balance with chicken in it and then realize that could make him itch, so i switched to venison.

The vet hasnt swabbed his ears..but he's due back there soon for a checkup(i always take him for a checkup before we travel) and i may have him swab his ears .

[Dara311]

Originally Posted by Nancy1999

I've never cleaned Joey's ears; I pull the hair out of the canal, but have never really cleaned the ears. They smell good, and look good, should I be doing something more?

no no no! Fionas ears are the same, and im not touching them!
like they say " if it aint broke, dont fix it"

[minnies mom]

My vet used a cleaner on a cotton ball and put it in minnies ears. I now think her ears are smelling. Does anyone else put a cotton ball in their dogs ears. I can't remember how they showed me to pick the hairs out of the ears. Anyone do this?

[emilyann]

Ugh, this bothers me. I'm having these problems too.

Lilly always shakes her head... like a dog would if their ear is the wrong way then they shake to fix it. BUT, her ear isn't messed up, it's fine. She does this a few times throughout the day. She also rubs her head on the carpet quite a bit and she was scratching at the sides of her face/ears.

I told our vet this and he looked in her ears and said that they looked fine. I can't remember though because the day before that I think I had bathed her and cleaned her ears. If she continues, should I take her back and have him swab her ears? I just hate to keep complaining and asking about it but it bothers me. I'm such a worry wart.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by emilyann

Ugh, this bothers me. I'm having these problems too.

Lilly always shakes her head... like a dog would if their ear is the wrong way then they shake to fix it. BUT, her ear isn't messed up, it's fine. She does this a few times throughout the day. She also rubs her head on the carpet quite a bit and she was scratching at the sides of her face/ears.

I told our vet this and he looked in her ears and said that they looked fine. I can't remember though because the day before that I think I had bathed her and cleaned her ears. If she continues, should I take her back and have him swab her ears? I just hate to keep complaining and asking about it but it bothers me. I'm such a worry wart.

Are you sure it isn't allergies?
Your vet wouldn't see anything in that case...
Lol, I hate when that happens too.
You go to the vet and insist that something is wrong but Ellie looks perfectly healthy to her.

[emilyann]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Are you sure it isn't allergies?
Your vet wouldn't see anything in that case...
Lol, I hate when that happens too.
You go to the vet and insist that something is wrong but Ellie looks perfectly healthy to her.

Who knows. I know her "allergies" are insane. It annoys me so bad. For some reason she doesn't itch as much during the day, then as soon as the sun goes down, it's bite bite bite on her legs & itching on her face. I've changed foods so many times I lost count, shampoo, everything. I'm beginning to wonder if it's just in her head.

I just thought it was her ears because her "wax?" is like a brown color. Her ears don't really smell though, I don't know. AHH

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by emilyann

Who knows. I know her "allergies" are insane. It annoys me so bad. For some reason she doesn't itch as much during the day, then as soon as the sun goes down, it's bite bite bite on her legs & itching on her face. I've changed foods so many times I lost count, shampoo, everything. I'm beginning to wonder if it's just in her head.

I just thought it was her ears because her "wax?" is like a brown color. Her ears don't really smell though, I don't know. AHH

How much wax are you pulling out?
It could be yeast.

If it happens when it's dark, it could be mites but the ears would probably be crusty.

How long do you keep her on one food before switching?

[Dara311]

Originally Posted by minnies mom

My vet used a cleaner on a cotton ball and put it in minnies ears. I now think her ears are smelling. Does anyone else put a cotton ball in their dogs ears. I can't remember how they showed me to pick the hairs out of the ears. Anyone do this?

If your dog does not like when you pour soultion directly in the ear, they will saturate a cotton ball, insert it in the ear and just sorta squeeze it in,never leave the cotton ball in the ear of course....

when your dog gets groomed, they will usually do "ear plucking" with a hemostat and just pull that extra hair out- i used to love doing it! but you can use your fingers too- we used to put a ear powder in the ear prior to plucking to help make it easier to remove!

[pookiebear]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

That's where we're at too - I don't think I'm going to introduce any chemicals unless I have to - as in, unless their ears start having problems (chronic-ish)...

Ann, do you pluck the hair out of the ear? I'm told that needs to be done to prevent infection. The groomer uses the numbing powder, is that a bad thing? Bernie's ears are getting loaded with hair, I am supposed to get it out, right?

Duh, I didn't see that post above....

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by emilyann

Who knows. I know her "allergies" are insane. It annoys me so bad. For some reason she doesn't itch as much during the day, then as soon as the sun goes down, it's bite bite bite on her legs & itching on her face. I've changed foods so many times I lost count, shampoo, everything. I'm beginning to wonder if it's just in her head.

I just thought it was her ears because her "wax?" is like a brown color. Her ears don't really smell though, I don't know. AHH

Emily - if her ears are bothering her this much and she is shaking her head a lot - I would ask your vet for Entederm (anti-fungal AND anti-bacterial).

My Wylie's ears bothered him terribly for almost 2 years of his life - and vets kept telling me his ears were fine. I finally went to a different vet last year and she thought his brown wax was rather excessive and thick. I asked if we should culture it. She said "Nope, let's just use Entederm - which will treat it no matter if it's bacteria or yeast (fungal) - we'll knock it out!" -- so I treated for 10 days. OMG - WORLD of difference!!! His ears have been different ever since.

Not saying you have the exact same problem - but if you do, it's a very easy solution.

[emilyann]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

How much wax are you pulling out?
It could be yeast.

If it happens when it's dark, it could be mites but the ears would probably be crusty.

How long do you keep her on one food before switching?

It's not gobs. I usually just put 1 or 2 drops in, massage the bottom of the ear then take cotton balls and get the wax out and the excess liquid. It's usually like a few spots. Her ears aren't crusty at all.

Well, I was switching pretty much after she would finish a bag because I thought she was having food allergies. I had her on Natural Balance then Wellness Super 5 Mix and now I have her on Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream. I like the TOW because she has stopped itching as much. It was terrible and she wasn't eating her food. She's been on this food for around I'd say 2 months now?

[emilyann]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

Emily - if her ears are bothering her this much and she is shaking her head a lot - I would ask your vet for Entederm (anti-fungal AND anti-bacterial).

My Wylie's ears bothered him terribly for almost 2 years of his life - and vets kept telling me his ears were fine. I finally went to a different vet last year and she thought his brown wax was rather excessive and thick. I asked if we should culture it. She said "Nope, let's just use Entederm - which will treat it no matter if it's bacteria or yeast (fungal) - we'll knock it out!" -- so I treated for 10 days. OMG - WORLD of difference!!! His ears have been different ever since.

Not saying you have the exact same problem - but if you do, it's a very easy solution.

Sounds great! You & Crystal need to start charging for your knowledge and help. Just sayin'.

[LittleBrownBean]

Have you found any answers to the itching? It sounds just like my Bean always worse in the mornings.

[LDandPasquale]

Originally Posted by LittleBrownBean

Have you found any answers to the itching? It sounds just like my Bean always worse in the mornings.

I took Pasquale to the vet for the ear itching...the vet gave him Tresaderm and within a few days....no more itching!!!