Ear Mites And Deafness Question

[Kal]

Heya,

We just recently acquired a Shelty pup and it turns out he has ear mites . We took him to the vet the day after he started shaking his head and scratching his ear (the earliest appointment we could get), thinking maybe it was an ear infection (having had those I know how painful they are!). The vet said it looks like he has had the mites for a while as he had "quite a colony in there".

We were given a course of apex ear drops for his ears and puppy/kitten revolution as a preventative. After the drops were first administered we started notising that he is less responsive to us calling out to him or making noises. We've started wondering if having ear mites at such a young age (8-9 weeks) could cause long term deafness? or just a result of a build up of the brown gunk associated with ear mites?

[Erny]

I would expect it would be a combination of the mites; the gunk; and the drops. Ever had ear drops in your ears? It dulls down the environmental noises.

Infection can result in deafness, but I'm guessing it is the drops, given you noticed the deafness once the drops were instilled.

ETA: Congratulations on getting your Shelty pup. And your user name *Kal*. That was my earlier girl's name (refer avatar) and she was the sweetest and most special dog .

Edited March 23, 2011 by Erny

[Kal]

Thanks Erny, yes he was very niose responsive before the drops. Probably just over concerned, its been ages since I had a puppy and never delt with ear mites before (poor little guy!)

haha true, things sound weird with drops in your ears.

Thanks for the congrats, its exciting having a new pup around the place. Haha I was suprised the name Kal wasn't already taken!