Fungal Ear Infection And Dermotic

[jamesanddean]

My 6 yo Golden Retriever was shaking his head and scratching one of his ears more than usual, and as we are about to go away for a month and have a friend move in to mind him I wanted to get it checked out and fixed before we left.

The vet checked him over and then checked the ears and tested some off the gunk under the microscope and gave him Dermotic to use for the next 3 weeks. It has been 3 days now and he is not scratching his ear anywhere near as much but he is still shaking his head more than usual. It could be that he just doesn't like it in there but he now has a constant wet ear, and the Dermotic is quite oily.

Has anyone else used this product and found the same reaction? The vet said try it for a week and bring him back if no improvement and then after 2 weeks (which inconveniently is while we are away!), but I am not sure if it is performing as expected. Maybe I am not getting it in deep enough? I would have thought his ear would need to dry out to clear up fungal infection but it seems to be constantly wet.

Advice from others who have experience with this product would be appreciated.

Thanks

[kelpiecuddles]

Has he got fur inside his ears? If he does it might be worth plucking his ears to let them dry out a bit better

[Guest Ams]

If he is still shaking his head you may need to massage around his ears to get the ointment to travel down and float the muck back out. I find sometimes I need to go back and give another ear massage 5 - 10 mins after putting the drops in as the detritus can tickle as it floats out (kinda like when you get a tricky bit of wax stuck in your own ear and you can't quite get it out). The extra massage will help break up larger bits and also can milk the detritus back up the ear canal. If you are worried the Dermotic is not going in far enough then talk to your vet about showing you how to apply it again or ask for a canula to use to feed the drops further down the canal.

I agree with KC re plucking the ears as well.

Yes the ear may be constantly wet but it is so with medication that is actively working to kill off the fungal growth. If the two week recheck is inconvenient then get whomever is looking after you dog to just keep using the drops until you can get the dog back to the vet. It is better to keep treating with Dermotic until you can get the next swab done to make sure the fungus is all gone, rather than stop and give it a chance to start thriving again which may mean a longer course of treatment later down the track.

[Poodle wrangler]

I've had a couple of vets advise me NOT to pluck ears.

Theory was irritation and inflammation from plucking makes matters worse.

I don't know.

I pluck my poodles ear hair as his ears tend to get gunky and the hair retains the gunk.

You can get ear powder to make plucking 100% easier.

Removing hair won't cure an infection, so perhaps consider it after you've finished the Dermotic treatment?

[kelpiecuddles]

I feel the same way about excessively plucking ears it's the same thinking behind not sticking cotton buds, etc in your own ears, although I do think plucking as part of once off/occasional treatment for a damp fungal issue is still worth doing.

[the cat lady]

Our little dog has had much trouble with fungal infections in his ears related to his allergies over the past 18 months. A one stage it felt like we would use the dermotic ear drops for 2 weeks only to have the infection back a few weeks later. WE visited the specialist centre in Sydney where the vet advised we use the drops for about 4 weeks. She said we did not have to aim it right down into the ear, as it was quite oily and to give the ear a massage and the drops would work their way down. His ears are quite hairy, and they always looked oily while we were doing it. The ears did clear after 4 weeks. In conjection with diet for his allergies which are under control we have not had much trouble with his ears since then.

[Wundahoo]

If the problem is fungal then some Apple Cider Vinegar in his food will help with long term prevention.

Continue to use the drops that the vet has given but also add a few ml of the ACV to his food each day. It will take a few weeks to begin to work but if done continuously it helps to keep the bugs away.

Apparently it works by changing the pH of the skin to a level that the fungus doesnt like.

Because it works internally it doesnt happen fast but it is a good and cheap way of keeping the problem at bay.

The ACV that I use is Braggs and it should have "with the mother" on the label. Always shake the bottle before use.

[karly101]

Ask your vet for some 1ml syringes and you can use one of them to get right into the ear and also allows you to accurately dose the product. There is possibility of truama around the ear canal so be gentle with application as that could also cause the shaking. The oilyness is just part of the product and doesn't affect its effectiveness.

[Staranais]

Dermotic is a good product for yeast infections, and tends to clear them up nicely, so long as there's nothing else going on down there. It will take a while to work, and the ears will be moist until you stop using it.

However if the infections persist or keep reoccuring, it's worthwhile doing a bit of investigating as to why this is happening. Dogs naturally have a certain amount of yeast growing in their skin and on their ears - it only grows out of control and causes problems if there is something harming the dog's natural skin defenses.

Things that can predispose dogs to reoccuring ear infections include skin allergies, foreign bodies down the ear (some dogs need sedation to look right down to the canal and rule this out), getting water in the ears from frequent bathing or swimming or messy drinking, ear mites, or just having really dirty ears and needing the wax cleaned out (again, sometimes this needs to be done thoroughly under sedation), and having a middle ear infection (topical drugs like Dermotic can't reach the middle ear).

As for plucking, I've seen plucking help with some dog ears, and make others worse. It really seems to depend on the dog. As a general rule I tell people, if your dog doesn't have ear problems, then keep doing what you are doing! If the dog gets re-occuring ear infections and has a lot of hair in his canals, then giving plucking a go is worthwhile (monitor the results, and stop doing it if it's not helping). If you are plucking and he is getting re-occuring ear infections - try stopping the plucking and monitor results, in case you're making matters worse by irritating the canal.

[kamuzz]

When my dogs have ear infections, the regime has been:

- clean the ears once daily with EpiOtic

- apply 1m per ear of Dermotic twice daily

Carry this out for 14 days and then recheck with the vet

If they are clear at the recheck then

- keep going with the Dermotic for another 7 days

If the ears are not clear at the recheck but have shown improvement

- clean the ears three times per week with EpiOtic for another 7 days

- keep going with the Dermotic for another 14 days

Recheck with the vet.

Repeat this last block until the ears are free of infection then

- clean once a week with EpiOtic as a preventative

(we've never had a dog that hasn't shown improvement, but I believe they change the Dermotic for another drug if that is the case.)