westiemum

Hi Everyone, Well a quick update - so far so good. We are on a four-week course of zeniquin tabs which had to be flown in from Sydney - none could be found in Adelaide and it was apparently the only oral medication that the bug seemed to be sensitive to in the laboratory - we are on a course of these tabs and timentim drops and scaling down the steriods - have another week of half a tab every two days for the next week and then we are done with them. So will continue the antibiotics and drops until the end of the month and then culture again and review. Clinically he is certainly doing much better - the ear is a much better colour and doesn't smell as putrid as it did - and he's certainly a much happier boy... so fingers crossed this works again... Will let you know how we get on.... still very much hoping to avoid surgery. Thanks again for all your kind wishes, suggestions and support - much appreciated. Cheers, Westiemum and Mac

Gee thanks tons Melissa. Thats really helpful. Will let the vet know. Thanks for posting - very kind of you. Cheers, Westiemum

Yep I have chosen to disregard this type of comment too Yellowgirl - I don't fuss tooo much about what type of veggies - tends to be whats in season and reasonably good and cheap - and the last pre-GA blood tests they all had in January all came back as very normal. So I feed what I think is a good barf/prey/veg mixture... and don't think I've gone far wrong... I think we can all get tooo hung up on the last gram or veggie type in our dogs diet when if we did this to our diets others would think we were insane! Cheers, Westiemum

Well said corvus - me too - I mix and match and my guys are all doing extraordinarily well - well satiated and very healthy! Cheers, Westiemum

Thanks Rappie - your support is really appreciated and I'll certainly pm you if I need to. Yes after apparently doing so well its been a real disappointment to see him in such pain.... but hopefully the worst of that is over. We ahve 4 weeks of treatment ahead of us and then we'll see where we have got to... and yes a total ear ablation is a serious step - which is why we are trying every last possible avenue firs - however I'm becoming imcreasingly suspicious that nothing is going to get around this highly stenotic canal which doesn't seem to aerate well, the diseased middle ear cavity and a very resistant bug... it seems to be a very very problematic trio. Anyway one step at a time... we'll see how we are going after the next course of treatment... Yes I'm very lucky with my vet - she appeared out of nowhere as a locum - and appears to be staying!! . She's a true clinician and highly skilled diagnostician - and I'm very grateful for her knowledge, extra research and persistence and that she hasn't given up on him - and so is Mac! Thanks again and Cheers, Westiemum

Well done Yellowgirl - I think you've waded through the vast information and various sides of the debate very well. I came to the same conclusion as you - but for the additional reason of controlling weight - my 10 year old westie boy is a food machine and I find adding veggies helps satiate them, adds bulk and nutrients to their diet while helping them lose weight... important in this household. Yet I like giving them the whole food of the prey diet - its wonderful to see them eating chicken frames and whole fish - so I feed what I consider the best features of both the prey and barf diets with some veggies - and my guys are thriving. Thanks for your recipe. I think it looks very good and will try it with my guys - like you though, minus the oats. Thanks and Cheers, Westiemum

Thanks very much for the info Cityslicker - much appreciated. Will discuss with the vet on Monday - I'm sure she'll be very interested. And I've just had a look at your website - and your dogs are absolutely beautiful!! Congratulations on such a lovely brood... And thanks for the support rommimum - the ear is nowhere near as smelly as it was and he's happy although dozes a lot after being given his pain relief. He's currenty asleep with his head on my foot! I really love this boy... as a dog farm survivor he's really special and ahs such a lovely nature despite his history... so would be great to be able to cure this last hangover from his 'previous life'... Thanks again and will let you know how we get on... Cheers, Westiemum ETA Cityslicker I haven't seen any of my westies licking the ears of the others - but will certainly keep it in mind... I think the moisture problem is due to stenotic canals from chronic untreated infections over many years before I got him... and the vet thinks its highly likely too - this canal is very narrow so I uspect it never aearates well... anyway lets see how this next lot of ttreatment goes... Thansk again... Wm/. Hi Westiemum I feel for you and your little man. Quite drastic measures in removing ear drum. Get your Vet to prescribe these oral medications. Laboratory Culture and Sensitivity : Pseudomonus. Treatment - Topigen Ear Drops 20ml (2-5 drops 3 times daily for 7 days) and 45 mins later apply Chloromycetin Ear Drops .5% 5ml (4 drops 3 times for 7 days) Betadine liquid clears up Pseudomonus, but I wouldn't advise pouring into the ear. Do any of your dogs lick inside the other dogs ears, causing moisture to build in the canal. This is a favourite past time of many Westies. I have served my apprenticeship with Westies since 1971 in all disciplines. Best wishes Cityslicker www.talkingwesties.com

Hi again, Well some good news - a anti-biotic which is related to Baytril but isn't baytril is senstive but has to be ordered in especially - so will start him on that on Monday. Also back on timentin drops - boy am I becoming an old hand at this! And his pain is under good control and he's much happier... so we have deferred the surgery decsion for the moment So here's hoping this works.... and thank dog for wonderful vets who stick with you and don't give up (and thank dog for the cutest westie on the face of the planet who they all go gooey over!) Cheers, Westiemum

Thanks rommimum - really appreciated - and your comments make me feel better. I was so hoping someone would say something like that - I'd love my boy to be pain and earache free. He's much better today - adn not responding so badly to the Dermotic. Off to the vets to pick up some short-term steriods - will let you know how I get on. Cheers Westiemum :D

Hi Everyone, Well sadly for my stoic boy the pseudomonas is back - and with a vengeance. So he had a huge flush out under GA on Monday afternoon - and although it went well apparently the putrid rubbish that came out was incredible... the tympanic membrane is ruptured (and not in good shape anyway) and apparently there's evidence that the infection has been behind the ear drum all the time which explains why the wretched thing keeps coming back. In other words this is not just chronic ear infection but serious chronic middle ear disease. We have done a culture again, results in today and it seems we are going to have trouble finding an oral medication this time which he isn't resistant to... but the vet is doing some research tonight and we'll talk tomorrow. In the meantime his pain is well controlled except when the dermotic drops are inserted in the ear (the pain behaviours all escalate and he's miserable...) It looks like we are heading for major surgery - removal of the ear canal, drum and the middle ear cavity. If it means that my boy will be pain free and off this constant parade of medication then I think we have got to the stage where we need to go ahead... So... does anyone have any experience with this type of surgery? How successful was it? (I'm not worried about how I'm going to pay for it - that's what equity in the mortgage is for). Any help or advice would be really appreciated... as he's not the only one feeling very 'flat' about the prospect of surgery... :D Thanks everyone, Cheers, Westiemum

Hi Daxilly, Yes resistance is a worry. The vet and I talked extensively about it because with Pseudomonas (sp?) there are very few options if the bug becomes resistant, particularly your particular nasty!!. We had already had a run with Otomax which is apparently top of the pile with this nasty bug which is already apparently resistant to most antibiotics, and the Otomax worked. So we are back with Dermotic to give us Otomax to go back to if we need it. So I'm not sure there is a good answer to this one - resistance is a risk but I'm not sure what else to try as the chronic infection is risky to my precious boys ear health as well. Its a bit of a balancing act and I think we have it right at the moment - so we'll just have to see long term. Not much of an answer I know but I hope that helps. I think the best answer is to find a good vet you can work with and have confidence in, diagnose the bug early, work very closely with them, keep swabbing regularly, take their advice and follow it carefully. Cheers, Westiemum ETA I'm not sure if you need a script for the TrizEDTA or not - I usually pick it up from my vet and they have to mix it up - so I doubt it would be a good thing to buy online. To be honest, I'm very very wary about putting anything down my boys ear without vet examination and supervision - in chronic infection if the ear drum is ruptured and can't be seen because of chronic infection/inflammation and you inadvertently pour the wrong stuff down there you can do a lot of damage. So although the experience of DOLers and other remedies can be invaluable, make sure the ear drum is intact first and be very very careful.

I have a rescue westie with a chronically infected left ear - I've worked really hard with a very good vet to get it all under control (Pseudomonus though, not yeast, although sometimes I think it smelt a bit yeasty). After getting rid of the infection I'm using TrizEDTA solution and dermotic every couple of days to make sure it stays at bay. The TrizEDTA works well - on the bottle it says its a cleaning and/or alkalinizing or pre-treatment solution - and the vet told me its good as it works on the outer shell of the nasty bugs, helping break them down so the dermotic (or whatever) works more effectively than just the dermotic on its own. And my experience is thats right. Haven't had any success with any other ear cleaning solutions. Hope that helps. Cheers, Westiemum PS Oh and a swab to dertermine the exact tyope of bug is really useful - and can save an enomous amount of 'hit and miss' even though the pathology + consult can be $80.00+. I'm absolutley sure its worth it - I spent more than that on 'hit and miss' treatments before we finally did the swab and got on the right track. So make sure you are certain you know what you are dealing with first - worth the effort and money IMHO.

Hi Jules, Sarah has recently had a little cysty thing removed from her bottom eye-lid - very straight forward short op - 'wedge excision'. I went ahead and had the op as it was big enough to be irritating the inner eye-lid (it was very red) and apparently they can scratch the cornea. Sarah healed really quickly and well - and with disposable stiches she didn't even have to go back to the vet. So my guess is that keep an eye on the inside of the eyelid and if it becomes red and iratated then take Joey back to the vet for review. Cheers, Westiemum

Hi Kia, I started a thread on this thing some time ago and everyone told me not to waste my money and to get a dremel instead! Its really a bit of toy and doesn't do the job well apparently. And I doubt those opinions have changed - must admit compared to a dremel it looks pretty expensive... Hope that helps Cheers, Westiemum

Yes thanks Silverblue and Quickasyoucan, Persistence and the right diagnosis are absolutely the keys... Cheers, Westiemum

Hi Everyone, Quick update - we've had a couple of check-ups since mid May and my last post - and we're still bug clear!!! Yay!!! We have a bit of imflammation again but no nasties as checked under the microscope tonight!! And the pinna (or whatever its called in dogs) and ear canal are no where near as angry and red. So we are keeping up the TrizEDTA a couple of times a week with some Dermotic drops this time (worried about over-reliance on Otomax/gentamicin and then the buggies developing resistance and not having any back-ups to treat any flare-ups so have switched to Dermotic). Rappie you were so right - thanks very much - the trick to this going to be keeping up the treatment for long enough and beig really vigilent... Cheers everyone, Westiemum

Hi Guys - thanks - appreciated. And KL - yep I found that one out last night!! It was almost as if 'I suffer, you suffer!!' Cheers, Westiemum

The voice of common sense! Thanks Erny - really appreciated - as I said the brain's gone to mush! Of course I can leave her outside during the day with a bed, undercover on the back verandah and she'll be fine. Then she can come inside when I get home... Duh!! Thanks again, Cheers, Westiemum

Hi Guys, I know this will seem like a dumb question but I'm not well either and my brain has gone to mush... My gorgeous westie girl had a small cyst removed from her eye today and has been sent home with an Elizabethan Collar. Had to go out for an hour or two late this afternoon, did as I was told and left her with the collar on... got home to an undone collar, trailing underneath her and a very unhappy girl. So took the collar off to fix it up and she raced for the doggie door and shot out for a rather big wee. The look on her face was priceless! She was obviously busting... She's not rubbed the eye since I got home and it doesn't appear to be bothering her, and the stiches appear to be intact. So what to do? Leave it off, do something else so she can get through the doggie door (she gets very distressed if she can't, as she never wees inside), or put it on only when I'm home and put up with her pained expression? Hmn... I'm not well enough to make a decision so please can I have some advice? Thanks for your help. Cheers Westiemum

Oh yeah Ravyk - I forgot about them - I've heard they are very good too. Cheers Westiemum

Took my cat (long story) to the Animal Hospital on Main South Road last year and I think they were fine but boy did they charge like wounded bulls - got him out of there very quickly beofre they ran even more 'tests' and sent me into bankruptcy! As everyone knows I use Derek McNair at the The Parade Vet Clinic and couldn't be happier - always try and see Derek and he's terrific and I think his prices are reasonable. He also has a fantastic locum there at the moment - Christine - as she's as good as he is. I also hear there is a very good vet at Little Hampton named Catherine in the Adelaide Hills - friends of mine are very happy with her too. Hope that helps, Westiemum

Hi Quickasyoucan, Last Thursday morining we got the all clear from the vet - no bacteria and some residual inflammation only. So fingers crossed its gone. Good luck with your Dad's dog. Cheers Westiemum

Thanks very much Rappie - that all makes sense. My regular vet is away on leave (good for him poor man - he's so good he never gets a moments peace from all us demanding clients!) and the locum I'm seeing is an older woman who is thorough, handles him beautifully, knows her stuff and seems to go the extra mile - and yes she swabs the ear every time we see her and looks at it under the microscope - so I have a lot of confidence in her too - and seeing her consistently for this, rather than a series of locums seems to have helped enormously. (And I'm getting better at managing who I see on these vet visits too!) Some time ago my regular vet said the ear canal is also slightly stenotic (ex dog farm dog who had terrible ears when he came out so I'm sure this is a very long term problem in various guises) - and the stenosis isn't helping with ear aeration either. But last time I saw the locum she said the inflammation had cleared and the rods while still there had reduced. So I think as you say, we slog on diligently with the treatment in the longer term to make sure we get on top of it. And I hope she decides to stay with the practice - she's been very good. So I think you're right - I've not persisted long enough in the past and this may well have been the problem. It can be the same with kids ears - a bit of persistence sometimes works wonders - here's hoping. Thanks again for your help. Cheers, Westiemum

Hi Everyone Thanks for the replies - appreciated. Althugh its ahrd to think he might always have at least a low level infection. Yes he has had it cultured - came back as gentamicin as the preferred antibiotic, hence the Otomax. Thansk again Westiemum

Hi Everyone, Just want to check you think I'm on the right track... My 9.5 year old westie boy has a moderate but chronic ear infection in one ear. After trying every dog ear drops known to man, we finally did a swab and it came back as moderate pseudomonas. For the last 9 days we have been on a routine of Triz EDTA cleaner liberally twice a day then half an hour later follow with 4 drops of Otomax. We have also had a short course of anti-inflammatories, Rimadyl (which he has finished). Tonight the vet swabbed the ear and looked at it under the microscope and found that it is better but the nasties are still there. It seems to be getting better - he seems better in himself and happier, and I may just be jumping the gun, but how long can these damn infections take to clear completely? We seem to have been trying things for months - since late January at least. I hear this bug can be very antibiotic resistant and am a bit frightened about the long term health of his ear canal and tympanic membrane. BTW he gets a chicken neck and a fish oil capsule for breakfast (arthritis and ACL repair) and half a barf pattie and Joint Guard and a few veggies for dinner (for weight loss) - and he's snacking on the low hanging persimmons during the day! Apart from this ear infection he is a very healthy boy - pre-anaesthetic blood test prior to dental work in late January came back as normal/very good. I'm happy to persevere with our current regime but if anyone has any other comments or advice I'd be very grateful. Thanks Westiemum