Persistant Ear Infection That Spread From Dog To Dog

[Christina77]

Friend has dogs that have had an ear infection that won't clear , vet can't work it out and dermatologist hasn't any ideas either , seeing it's spreading to the other dogs it must be some form of germ but what ?

Any ideas ? Would cleaning the ears with Apple cider vinegar on cotton pads help ?

Doesn't seem to be a diet related problem either , they are in country Vic , fairly dry hot area .

[Ari]

Has the vet checked for mites?

[arby]

I use methylated spirits for the ears...the ACV is apparently good too. I like the methylated spirits better because they help dry the ears out

[Cavandra]

I have only heard of contagious ear problems being ear mites, which can come from cats also.

Usually I see multi dog house holds with the same ear problem it is diet (cereal, grains, rice, pasta in 95% of all dog foods)

Or they get water in the ears when bathing/swimming.

Humidity breeds Yeast too, but usually starts from grain diets IMO

[Poodle wrangler]

Has the vet taken swabs of the ears and found what's growing there?

Malaseb, diluted 1:30 or 1:50 (1:50 just as effective, with less irritation) is a good basic/ maintenance ear cleaner. It's an antibacterial-antifungal shampoo.

http://www.balgownievet.com.au/1_gen_derm_ear_clean.htm

This is more than basic, though and if you're not sure what's going on DON'T put anything in there unless vet suggests it.

For something like this, prescription ear drops are probably required, depending on what bacteria/ yeasts etc the vet find are growing there.

[Jibba]

try revolution, my dally alwasy had yeast infections and mites i have used revolution once and he is better. Oh im in country vic too.

[saintlysusan]

Ive just been dealing with a ear infection that has taken a good month and a sh*t load of medications etc to get under control, I suggest you get your vet to find out exactly what the bugs in his ear is for the best chance of stopping it.

If let go, it could get very bad, at least you are aware of the problem and can now act.

[Christina77]

There not my dogs and I believe the vet has all but given up to try and find out whats causing it , I've passed the info on to my friend , she's trying the metho and is double checking the cats but they seem ok ,

one dog is fine now , so maybe it is working , I told her to double check the dogs food including use by date and or if she made any changes etc

[Clyde]

If she's got an infection one would assume she scratches at it. The metho would sting like the blazes.

[busterboy]

Our staffy has a recurrent ear infection seems like ear mites again we have swabbed it with water and administered Dermotic ear and skin infection 5mls as per vet advice ) any other ideas as we are quite low and won't have enough to last for the next 10 days to treat thanks

Seems like staffy's tend to get infections quite a bit in summer up here in QLD which recently has been damp and hot.