Seagazer Posted May 11, 2012 Author Share Posted May 11, 2012 Thanks DM - will try all if this doesn't work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cathybc Posted May 11, 2012 Share Posted May 11, 2012 I don't know how similiar dog and cat ears are, but 'me Spooky' had a really bad ear all the time, which the vet thought was caused by a polyp. He had his ear cleaned lots of times and it lasted about a month before back to square one. The last time he had it cleaned, the vet did both ears, even though his right ear appeared fine. Anyway, don't know if it was coincidence, but the left ear was never nasty again Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 14, 2012 Author Share Posted May 14, 2012 Cookie's ear is already oozing black gunk again. We take her back on Wednesday - taking OH with me to try and get some answers or ideas. Cookie has been looking really down since her ear was done. Poor thing, its obviously getting her down as well as us. Obviously we've still been giving her the ear drops. Will look at getting some of the Thornit Ear powder and perhaps talk to the vet about possible allergy problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 14, 2012 Share Posted May 14, 2012 I wouldn't put any powder down her ear until you have spoken to the vet. I am not a fan of powder down dog's ears, particularly if they are like you describe I have seen some pretty horribly clogged up infected ear full of sticky powder. If the gunk is coming up then just keep it all as clean as you can bathing away any discharge. It sounds like you need a good chat with your vet to see how best to deal with this in the long term. I assume that she is on antibiotic drops, if these are not seeming to work particularly well perhaps she needs to switch to a different type. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 15, 2012 Author Share Posted May 15, 2012 Thanks CM - I wouldn't put anything down there at the moment. I will wait to check. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickencam Posted May 15, 2012 Share Posted May 15, 2012 Poor Cookie, I hope that you get some answers tomorrow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 15, 2012 Author Share Posted May 15, 2012 Thanks Liz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 16, 2012 Author Share Posted May 16, 2012 Well we're back from the vets. She couldn't believe that Cookie's ear became clogged and inflamed so quickly after the flushing. She's put Cookie on different ear drops and is asking the manager to order in some tablets that hopefully will work as they're quite strong apparently (can't remember for the life of me what they are). She said occasionally they do find dogs that just keep on having recurrent ear problems either due to allergy, ear anatomy, hair in canal etc. Poor old Cookie's ear is so hot again. I just tried tying it up but she shook her head almost immediately and it fell down. I was considering seeing if DD has any hair clips but I don't want to make her ear sore by clipping it up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 My grandfather had working spaniels, he used to strip out the hair inside their ears and would sometimes peg them, back with a clothes peg to let the air get in Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 Ventilation is definitely the key to keeping her ears healthy. Did they pluck and trim them when she was under GA? The change in drops should help. They can get drug resistant infections and a change in drug should help if the new antibiotic is one that the bacteria is non resistant to. I would be really proactive about getting this under control as repeated infections will lead to thickening of the ear canal which in turn will make the ventilation worse. Surgery is sometimes a long term solution but of course you want to avoid this. Once this is under control, work at keeping around the opening to her ears completely hair free. Plucking the small hairs and trimming the longer ones. A pair of surgical 'artery forceps' is the way to go in terms of plucking as they grip the hairs securely for plucking. Good luck, I hope things start to improve quickly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 16, 2012 Author Share Posted May 16, 2012 I don't think they plucked or cut any hair from what the vet was saying. Cookie was at the groomers only a week or so ago and the groomer plucked her ears (she does this every time apart if Cookie is there whilst she's got an infected ear). I'm not sure I could pluck the hair, my groomer did show me how to do it the last time but it makes me feel sick I just feel mean attempting to clip her ear back as its so hot and sore looking but I suppose it will probably help. I'm really keeping my fingers crossed that the new drops and/or tablets will do the trick. Anyway thanks for all the help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 16, 2012 Author Share Posted May 16, 2012 Ear is now clipped back with a clothes peg - a very odd look but hopefully will do some good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 I don't think they plucked or cut any hair from what the vet was saying. Well I hope that that was because she didn't have any that needed plucking or cutting away, if not this is as important as the flushing etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hens@HalfMoonLane Posted May 16, 2012 Share Posted May 16, 2012 My last dog was a GSX she had pricked up ears but very itchy and inflammed until I changed her to a gluten free diet because she had a sensitive stomach. The ears improved also. However years ago (like 30 when I was a kid) we had a bearded collie x lab with droopy ears who really suffered terribly with her ears. The vet eventually suggested surgery. She had one ear at a time done, Although she was quite sore post surgery for about a week it was the best thing that happened to her, much happier and she didn't suffer any longer. I suppose it depends what is causing it but if it is ventilation I would highly recommend considering the surgery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 17, 2012 Author Share Posted May 17, 2012 I hope we don't have to resort to surgery! Cookie is looking a bit brighter in herself this morning, will be interesting to see if the different drops make a difference. Now where's the clothes peg..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jess1merlin Posted May 19, 2012 Share Posted May 19, 2012 My flat coat retriever had problems with his ears and none of the drops from the vets seemed to work, I was told by a breeder who has had them for many years to try Thornit powder and have found it to be really good. As soon as I notice his ears are irritating him (thankfully it doesn't happen very often now) I just use that and it clears up straight away. The vet was not very keen on me using it, however the dog is much better and it saves a fortune on vets bills. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 19, 2012 Author Share Posted May 19, 2012 I have got some of the powder now but I'm going to give the new drops a chance first (although it's not looking good so far)! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dogmother Posted May 19, 2012 Share Posted May 19, 2012 I've never used Thornit but I have to say that loads of 'dog people' seem to swear by it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 21, 2012 Author Share Posted May 21, 2012 Quick update - the new drops have not worked completely. The vet phoned me today and asked whether they had, her ear (after a completely thorough clean out last night) is still oozing black stuff and red hot. We had two options: 1) Get the oral tablets - £45 for 2 weeks worth which still might not work, with the possibility that she would need 4 weeks. 2) Have the ear swabbed so they can see what it is and if its antibiotic resistant. We've gone for the second option as there's no point in trying something new if it may or may not work. We have to stop the drops and cleaning them until Friday when we take her to get the ear swabbed. Should be lovely and smelly by then! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Space Chick Posted May 21, 2012 Share Posted May 21, 2012 Hopefully they can get to the bottom of it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 2) Have the ear swabbed so they can see what it is and if its antibiotic resistant. We've gone for the second option as there's no point in trying something new if it may or may not work. Good plan As mentioned before you can often get drug resistant infections in ears and as soon as the swab results show which anti biotic works things should improve quickly. You should be able to bathe away any discharge with saline in the meantime to keep the ear clean. It is only drugs that will interfere with things. I don't really see why you have to wait until Friday to have it swabbed though (unless you can't get there until then) It will mean that you wont get the results back until the beginning of next week or later if they don't have an inhouse lab because of the post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 22, 2012 Author Share Posted May 22, 2012 Thanks about the saline washing CM - I don't like the idea of her ear being filthy. Friday was the vet's suggestion, no idea why. Fingers crossed that it all works out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 Just keep it a dry as you can after bathing away any discharge A teaspoon of salt to a pint of water is plenty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lillybettybabs Posted May 22, 2012 Share Posted May 22, 2012 Has the vet done a blood test to rule out systemic diseases which may contribute to a ear disease/condition? I still think that this sound like a secondary condition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seagazer Posted May 23, 2012 Author Share Posted May 23, 2012 No, no blood tests. I hope it isn't anything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
