# Ear infections



## bellapuppy (Dec 1, 2008)

Maggie Bella went to the vet today for a sore ear. Ends up she has a yeast infection in one of her ears. They cleaned it and gave her ointment to apply twice a day for two weeks.
Any one have experience with ear infections and prevention? I did have the hair in her ears plucked while she was under having her spay operation. I just don't want to have to repeat this again if I can help it.


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Clean the ears after every bath and if the dog has profuse ear hair, just pluck a little with your fingers once every week or so. It does not need to be plucked clean, just enough to allow good air flow.


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## oiseaux (Feb 16, 2008)

Our Uno had an ear infection in both ears (one side was especially bad) when we picked him up from our breeder. He was on Otomax for 2 weeks. I removed all the extra grease that spread to this ears by applying baby powder/cornstarch and combing it through and then giving him a bath. As far as prevention, I regularly clean his ears with a tiny bit of a gentle ear wash after each bath and then add a little bit of ear powder. If I need to pluck hairs (happens rarely) I do it with a pair of hemostats or a dry q-tip I twirl just in the outer part of the inner opening to gather some hairs and gently but quickly pull. He's never had any ear problems since.


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## dwerten (Oct 6, 2007)

Granted every dog is different but did the infection occur after plucking because my dex only had 2 ear infections ever and both were after plucking. It was real obvious as second time as i went to a new groomer and i stand there and wait why she did dex and i forgot to say no plucking and she plucked one ear and he came off the table and i said --- please do not pluck his ears so she did not do the other ear and the ear she plucked he got an ear infection in so i do not pluck any of my 3 and i have never had an ear infection since and it has been almost 4 years. Our vet told me not to pluck the ears as it opens up the pore and allows infection to get in thus causing an ear infection if the groomer does not do correctly so she told me not to have his ears plucked and no infections since. 

If it is a yeast infection then it can be tied to diet 

I am a big believer in raw organic coconut oil as it is a natural antifungal and antibacterial and very safe -- it does wonders on dd hot spots and I am on a group where a lady had a dog that always got ear infections until she started using the coconut oil and what she did was put a little bit on the cotton ball and rubbed the inside of ear - DO NOT POOR IT INTO THE EAR- just rub a tiny bit in ear and since she did this her dog has never had another ear infection. 

I rarely clean my dogs ears either just after baths once in a while 

some dogs do well with plucking like poodles but i found it did not work well with mine so i would say if your dog got the infection right after plucking like mine I would not do it 

If it is yeast infection and over and over i would recommend doing a grain free diet like natural balance fish an sweet potato


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## lindsay (May 18, 2008)

I hate to highjack this thread but how long does it take to get over ear infections? How often do you all put the medication i n their ears and clean them. 
I've been cleaning once a day and 4 to 5 drops morning and night.... is that right??


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## lillykins (Oct 15, 2007)

QUOTE (dwerten @ Dec 8 2008, 10:06 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=685929


> did the infection occur after plucking because my dex only had 2 ear infections ever and both were after plucking.
> If it is a yeast infection then it can be tied to diet
> I am a big believer in raw organic coconut oil as it is a natural antifungal and antibacterial and very safe[/B]


my vet has said that she has clients who, the minute the ear hairs get plucked, the animal gets an infection. on the other hand, she said that she also has clients that if the ears aren't plucked, the animal gets an ear infection. 

I also like the above reply because I, too, like the natural approach when it works. I have heard good things about the coconut oil. Another option that I have personal experience with is to feed your dog non-fat plain yogurt. For our 9-lb Lilly, we feed one ping-pong-ball-sized blob twice a day.

Also, as pointed out above, persistent ear infections can signal a food allergy. Here is one article on yeast: http://www.purelypets.com/articles/yseabinfections.htm

Good luck with your baby!


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## dwerten (Oct 6, 2007)

yes this is correct as the yogurt is a probiotic -- goat yogurt is best as it is closest to their mothers milk and i believe does not have estrogen in it. Many use the stoneyfield plain non-fat or low fat yogurt - do not ever use sugar free of flavored as it can include sugar sweeteners and those are not good. 



QUOTE (Lillykins @ Dec 10 2008, 03:00 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=686805


> QUOTE (dwerten @ Dec 8 2008, 10:06 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=685929





> did the infection occur after plucking because my dex only had 2 ear infections ever and both were after plucking.
> If it is a yeast infection then it can be tied to diet
> I am a big believer in raw organic coconut oil as it is a natural antifungal and antibacterial and very safe[/B]


my vet has said that she has clients who, the minute the ear hairs get plucked, the animal gets an infection. on the other hand, she said that she also has clients that if the ears aren't plucked, the animal gets an ear infection. 

I also like the above reply because I, too, like the natural approach when it works. I have heard good things about the coconut oil. Another option that I have personal experience with is to feed your dog non-fat plain yogurt. For our 9-lb Lilly, we feed one ping-pong-ball-sized blob twice a day.

Also, as pointed out above, persistent ear infections can signal a food allergy. Here is one article on yeast: http://www.purelypets.com/articles/yseabinfections.htm

Good luck with your baby!
[/B][/QUOTE]


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## dwerten (Oct 6, 2007)

If infection already i would do what vet is telling you for now but if it is re-occuring then i would start looking at diet and allergies and use probiotics for sure if you are on antibiotics then i would do the probiotics 2 hrs after the antibiotic was given. Use a cotton makeup pads to clean the ear out after putting the solution in ear rub ear and then take pad at wipe out and continue to do until ear is clean and no dirt. I have 3 dogs and no ear infections and one has horrible allergies so the only time my dex had one was when his ears were plucked so no more plucking and no more probs and i put cleaner in sometimes when bathing but not alot. Each dog is so different with this but when it is recurring definitely is an allergy issue and yeast and bacteria are building up in body and coming out detoxing through skin -- there is alot of discrepancy about grains in diet leading to yeast infection in ears so i would go grain free if mine had recurring ear infections - as it is not good to get them over and over as it can lead to hearing probs same as in humans 

QUOTE (lindsay @ Dec 10 2008, 10:50 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=686731


> I hate to highjack this thread but how long does it take to get over ear infections? How often do you all put the medication i n their ears and clean them.
> I've been cleaning once a day and 4 to 5 drops morning and night.... is that right??[/B]


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## xo daisy baby ox (Nov 9, 2008)

When we had our pug he had a very severe yeast infection in both of his ears, we fed him organic yogurt and my bf's brother (who is a vet) suggested doing an ear wash with a combo of apple cider vinegar and alcohol. I would lightly soak cotton balls with the mixture and set them on top of the ear canal, fold his ears over them and massage lightly so that it would seep into his ears, within a few days the infection was gone! I had never heard of this, but was willing to give it a try. It worked miracles! Daisy has never had an ear infection, but did have ear mites really bad when we got her (bad "breeder") We had to give her medicated ear drops twice a day....boy was that fun! :smilie_tischkante: She hated it!


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## bellapuppy (Dec 1, 2008)

The ointment the vet prescribed seems to be clearing it up nicely. Just hate the greasy ear and face that follows. I will try the coconut oil if there is a problem in the future. The vinegar/alcohol cleaner sounds promising as well. As for diet, my baby was started on and continues to eat "Halo puppy food" Any other suggestions? I do welcome them.


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## dwerten (Oct 6, 2007)

are there grains in it or potato? I am not real familiar with ingredients but have heard halo is a good food. 

The alcohol has a drying affect is why many use it and the acv is sugary as it comes from apples and yeast grows in sugar so it really depends on if ear infection is yeast or bacteria as to what you want to do with that but it may be a case of trial and error and sticking with what works and finding what works is most important so take some notes and definitely join the allergy group as there are alot of dogs that have had ear infections on that group ---- allerdog yahoogroups.com



QUOTE (Bellapuppy @ Dec 13 2008, 08:07 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=688830


> The ointment the vet prescribed seems to be clearing it up nicely. Just hate the greasy ear and face that follows. I will try the coconut oil if there is a problem in the future. The vinegar/alcohol cleaner sounds promising as well. As for diet, my baby was started on and continues to eat "Halo puppy food" Any other suggestions? I do welcome them.[/B]


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## Hunter's Mom (Dec 8, 2008)

I give Hunter a little yogurt each week to keep the ear infections away. We use plain but he also like peach!


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## bellapuppy (Dec 1, 2008)

QUOTE (dwerten @ Dec 14 2008, 12:16 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=688932


> are there grains in it or potato? I am not real familiar with ingredients but have heard halo is a good food.
> 
> The alcohol has a drying affect is why many use it and the acv is sugary as it comes from apples and yeast grows in sugar so it really depends on if ear infection is yeast or bacteria as to what you want to do with that but it may be a case of trial and error and sticking with what works and finding what works is most important so take some notes and definitely join the allergy group as there are alot of dogs that have had ear infections on that group ---- allerdog yahoogroups.com
> 
> ...





> The ointment the vet prescribed seems to be clearing it up nicely. Just hate the greasy ear and face that follows. I will try the coconut oil if there is a problem in the future. The vinegar/alcohol cleaner sounds promising as well. As for diet, my baby was started on and continues to eat "Halo puppy food" Any other suggestions? I do welcome them.[/B]


[/B][/QUOTE]

No gluten, wheat or corn, the package says, but the puppy food does have barley in it.


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## bellapuppy (Dec 1, 2008)

QUOTE (Bellapuppy @ Dec 24 2008, 06:38 PM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=692846


> QUOTE (dwerten @ Dec 14 2008, 12:16 AM) index.php?act=findpost&pid=688932





> are there grains in it or potato? I am not real familiar with ingredients but have heard halo is a good food.
> 
> The alcohol has a drying affect is why many use it and the acv is sugary as it comes from apples and yeast grows in sugar so it really depends on if ear infection is yeast or bacteria as to what you want to do with that but it may be a case of trial and error and sticking with what works and finding what works is most important so take some notes and definitely join the allergy group as there are alot of dogs that have had ear infections on that group ---- allerdog yahoogroups.com
> 
> ...





> The ointment the vet prescribed seems to be clearing it up nicely. Just hate the greasy ear and face that follows. I will try the coconut oil if there is a problem in the future. The vinegar/alcohol cleaner sounds promising as well. As for diet, my baby was started on and continues to eat "Halo puppy food" Any other suggestions? I do welcome them.[/B]


[/B][/QUOTE]

No gluten, wheat or corn, the package says, but the puppy food does have barley in it.
[/B][/QUOTE]

Oh, and it has sweet potato in it.


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