Question: Ear mites in Cats

Dr. Schaeberle,

My cat has just been diagnosed with ear mites. How could that happen?

Justin

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Justin,

Ear mites are very small insects that look like microscopic ticks that live in the ear canal of cats and dogs. The majority of pets that get these are definitely cats and kittens.

Ear mites live in the ear canal of pets and occasionally crawl out onto the face and head of the pet. When your pet rubs faces with another pet that has ear mites, your pet can pick them up. They eventually find their way into your pet’s ear canal and start breeding and living there, too.

As they begin to overpopulate, they can cause an inflammatory process to begin, and sometimes a secondary bacterial or yeast infection. This causes a lot of discomfort to your pet; she will start shaking her head and scratching at her ears, causing even more inflammation and infection.

The typical discharge produced is a dark brown to black, dry crusty material that resembles coffee grounds. But don’t be fooled; other ear canal infections can look like this too, so you want to get it confirmed by your veterinarian to make sure your pet gets the proper treatment.

There are many different treatments available for ear mites. Some products take 2-3 weeks to work, others 1 day, and other topical products prevent them in the first place. Your veterinarian will know which one is the best for your pet. And by the way, only in the most unusual cases will people ever get ear mites, so you can feel safe that you won’t get them. However, people have been known to get rashes from them.

And remember, if one of your pet’s have ear mites, and you have other pets, they may get them and need treated too. You may need to get your whole clan checked out by your veterinarian.

So if your cat, kitten or dog is shaking his head and scratching at his ears, take him to your veterinarian right away to get the proper treatment. Whether it’s ear mites or another type of infection, your pet will thank you for getting rid of this annoying problem.

Thanks,
Thomas Schaeberle, V.M.D.

Question: Dog's ear flap looks like balloon!

Dr. Schaeberle,

I noticed my dog’s ear flap has filled up with fluid like a balloon. Is this a hematoma?

Audrey

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Hi Audrey,

A hematoma of the ear flap is commonly referred to as an aural hematoma. This happens when a blood vessel inside the ear flap is broken, and the ear flap fills with blood. This usually occurs with some form of trauma to the ear, such as excessive head shaking due to an ear canal infection, allergies, or blunt trauma. This condition occurs most commonly in dogs, but can affect cats also.

If this happens to your pet, your veterinarian will want to check for ear canal infections, etc. and correct those first. As for that swollen ear flap, there are multiple options to correct that. One of the most sure ways to correct it is with surgery, which would require anesthesia. The inside of the ear flap is incised, and the blood and clots cleaned out. It is then sutured in a variety of ways to promote both continual drainage and proper healing.

Another option is to lance the hematoma, and place a special drain in it for 2-3 weeks. This procedure does not require anesthesia, but will take longer to drain than in the surgical procedure. This way is generally successful, but I have seen some of these return on occasion.

Some veterinarians will just simply use a syringe to aspirate the blood out, but it usually fills right back up and may need this done several times to get it healed properly. Also, each time a needle is used, infection may be introduced.

But what if you do nothing at all except treat a possible ear canal infection? The body will eventually re-absorb the blood. However, the hematoma may get larger before it gets better, and this may take several months to resolve. This also results in a less cosmetic heal, because the ear flap scars down tight and creates a “cauliflower” ear. Also, this big ear flap can be very uncomfortable to your pet during this long period of treatment.

And last but not least, there is some newer research out there that reports the use of anti-inflammatories such as Prednisone may help too.

So which is best for your pet? That is best determined by your veterinarian. A veterinarian will discuss things with you like severity, age, cosmetics, cost, and risks to come up with the best option for you and your pet.

Thomas Schaeberle, VMD

Question: What can be done about chronic ear infections?

Dear Dr. Schaeberle,

We have a beautiful three-year-old black lab named Jake with chronic ear infections. What can we do for him?

Thanks,
Diane

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Diane,

Ear infections can result from many factors that can predispose the ear to infection, like allergies, breed or even shape of the ear. A good example would be floppy eared dogs like beagles. Just as our toes are more prone to a fungus like “athletes feet”, a floppy ear does not permit the proper ventilation leaving the ear more susceptible to infection. Regardless of the cause, there are three treatment options we will present to you at the Shiloh Veterinary Hospital.

1. Routine - a sample of the debris from the ear is examined to see if we have a yeast or a bacterial infection, to determine the proper antibiotic. The ear is cleaned, the proper medication is determined and the owners instructed on routine home care.

2. An ear flush under anesthesia - I love ear flushes with recurrent or severe ear infections. A flush allows us to better identify whether we have only an outer ear infection or a more serious middle ear infection . Under anesthesia the ear canal is gently flushed of all debris and thoroughly examined. We will then follow up with the proper medication and home instruction.

3. Surgical - I can perform two different surgical interventions, ablation and resection, when we still struggle with chronic ear disease. Both involve reconstructing the ear canal to allow good ventilation and the surgeries have a very good rate of success.

Shiloh Veterinary Hospitals in Dover and Manchester, are proudly certified by the American Animal Hospital Association. Joining the Patton Veterinary Hospital in Red Lion, the only other hospital certified in the York area.

Visit our website at www.myshilohvet.com to learn more about our many services for your dog or cat.

Email your questions to the webmaster@myshilohvet.com

Thanks,
Thomas Schaeberle, V.M.D.