Icky gross ear infection

by **mnp13** » June 22nd, 2009, 1:51 pm

Riggs' ear was all sloppy and gushy this weekend, which would have been normal up at camp if he had been swimming... but he hadn't.

It was bugging him a lot, but he wanted me to rub it and he let me clean it out a bit with a piece of cloth. It was all clear fluid with some blood.

Yesterday, we did a couple of saline rinses and it brought up some more nastyness. This morning we rinsed it out again, and got some yellowish globs with a little blood. His ear is red, but not swollen, and it's Riggs, so I can't really tell if it hurts or is just uncomfortable.

I'd like to just get it dried out in there, but I obviously can't use anything that will sting (though any of you are welcome to come over and try. :wink:

) Any suggestions? He's quite tolerant of the saline, I think it feels good to get things moving. He fusses a little but it's more for show than actually trying to get away from me while we put it in.

thoughts?

by **katiek0417** » June 22nd, 2009, 1:56 pm

Honestly, it might warrant a vet visit...I know times are tough for everyone...but I'm not stranger to ear infections (Sacha is a lab), but she's NEVER had anything like you're describing...and the blood is definitely making me a bit concerned...

by **Marinepits** » June 22nd, 2009, 2:25 pm

Vet visit time, dude.

by **maberi** » June 22nd, 2009, 2:38 pm

Earl gets these all the time (minus the blood). I have some stuff sitting on my dresser that I used for him that worked well.

I'll let you know what it is when I get home

by **mnp13** » June 22nd, 2009, 4:00 pm

I think the blood is from him digging at it with his hind foot, he really digs in. it's fresh blood, not clotted stuff like it's been sitting around in there.

katiek0417 wrote:I know times are tough for everyone

I know you don't mean it like this, but I just want to clarify it to anyone reading - I am not avoiding the vet for a money reason. However, I am also not opposed to treating problems at home if possible.

by **katiek0417** » June 22nd, 2009, 4:15 pm

mnp13 wrote:I think the blood is from him digging at it with his hind foot, he really digs in. it's fresh blood, not clotted stuff like it's been sitting around in there.

katiek0417 wrote:I know times are tough for everyone

I know you don't mean it like this, but I just want to clarify it to anyone reading - I am not avoiding the vet for a money reason. However, I am also not opposed to treating problems at home if possible.

Yep, sorry...I should've clarified...I didn't mean it like a money thing...I meant it more like we're all so busy right now, and it's so much easier to try to treat the issue at home prior to going to vet (merely to find out it's something stupid that could've been treated at home)...

by **call2arms** » June 22nd, 2009, 4:52 pm

Well, whether you go to the vet or not, make sure you dry it up - if he's "digging" in there and causing some bleeding, he might be stratching enough to cause a aural hematoma, and these are painful BITCHES to deal with...

Saline absolutely can't hurt, in the meantime, but if it's bacterial/yeast then it's not likely to cure it.

by **ArtGypsy** » June 22nd, 2009, 5:05 pm

Macy's ears get a black and goopy from allergies------------then turns into a yeast infection.
or so the vet describes it to me.

Her's are yucky too...plenty of scratching.

by **Patch O' Pits** » June 22nd, 2009, 9:00 pm

Sorry I don't have any advice; just sending some well wishes for that sweet boy!

by **Malli** » June 23rd, 2009, 3:33 am

lots of earwax is one thing, but puss is a bit of another(I actually rarely see ear infections with puss and the only ones I see are what people consider an emergency). I know you think that the blood is from scratching, but there is a possibility it could be from a perforated ear drum or some other trauma and any ear cleaner (home-made or otherwise) that will dry them out would be REALLY bad to get in a hole in a perf'ed eardrum and really irritating to a raw or open piece of tissue.

I think this warrants a trip to the vet (you never know, it IS Speargrass season so it could even be from a foreign object...), they'll want to look in his ear like a human doctor would if you had the same thing, possibly clean it out more, possibly take a smear or run a culture, and send you home with some meds for the ear...

by **ArtGypsy** » June 23rd, 2009, 9:32 am

Please Update us on his poor-little-ear.............

Jody, who has a scratching/itching puppy............WTF???

by **mnp13** » June 23rd, 2009, 10:04 am

He has stopped digging at it, and I'm still getting some yellowish globs, but not fluid or much blood. There are a lot of scabs on his ear flap from him scratching it, and when I clean it they open a little so I think that's where the blood is coming from.

He's not doing that "please stick your finger in my ear until it hits my brain" thing, so something is clearing up, and he's only shaking his head after we dump the saline in it.

I'll keep you updated...

by **katiek0417** » June 23rd, 2009, 10:08 am

mnp13 wrote:He has stopped digging at it, and I'm still getting some yellowish globs, but not fluid or much blood. There are a lot of scabs on his ear flap from him scratching it, and when I clean it they open a little so I think that's where the blood is coming from.

He's not doing that "please stick your finger in my ear until it hits my brain" thing, so something is clearing up, and he's only shaking his head after we dump the saline in it.

I'll keep you updated...

I also thought somewhere someone suggested apple cider vinegar for ears...

by **mnp13** » June 23rd, 2009, 11:25 am

I'm not getting within 10 feet of him with anything that might sting. lol

once it's healed up and normal I'll try some preventative care, but for now, I'm going to stick with this or if we go to the vet, whatever they give me.

by **TinaMartin** » June 23rd, 2009, 1:08 pm

Witch hazel doesnt sting

by **blabsforbullies** » June 23rd, 2009, 8:09 pm

I would suggest a vet visit as well. :wink:

by **a-bull** » June 23rd, 2009, 9:15 pm

Of course a vet visit is always a good idea, but . . .

My female has terrible allergies and often develops ear infections. Once upon a time a vet gave us "Zymox Otic", used 1x day for 7 days or 1x day for 14 days for chronic ear infections. I now buy it on line for around 10 bucks or so and it works GREAT. It is good for bacterial and/or yeast infections, doesn't sting and stops itching and digging almost immediately upon using it. I've never had any issues thus far with any side effects either.

(I use the one with 1.0% Hydrocortisone--great stuff).

by **Malli** » June 24th, 2009, 4:05 am

so, how does the ear look?

by **mnp13** » June 24th, 2009, 10:21 am

It's looking good! Very pale, no new scabs. Some yellow gunk is still coming out, but not much. It still sounds gushy, but no more gushy than the other ear and they always sound like that.

He holds still for us to flush it out, so it must feel good, but he does give token dirty looks.

by **maberi** » June 24th, 2009, 12:26 pm

mnp13 wrote:He holds still for us to flush it out, so it must feel good, but he does give token dirty looks.

For us? Don't tell me Demo is actually helping clean Riggs' ear...

Icky gross ear infection

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