I have a black standerd poodle. who has a VERY bad ear problem

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I have a black standerd poodle. who has a VERY bad ear problem constantly shaking her head. I feed her Wellness 3/4 can one fist dried with one tablespoon Dinovite an enzyme for animals with alergies. For I do believe she has an alergy to food. I took her to the vet . He tells me she needs an operation in order to let the ears drain and stay dry or she will go deaf. I am very apprehensive to this operation. Not that I do not believe him I just want to cross all bridges befor I expose her to that. I know for me if I eat too much cheese my ears run. should I change her food first , I want to give her the most natural food as possible I do not want her to have fillers additives , preservatives or BY products. I do not want her to get cancer or go deaf. I have tried many foods. I stops for a while then it is back what is it? you say. She has brown wet ears. of which I am told it is an infestion. The vet put a qtip in there and she screamed...

Optional Information:
Age: 5; Female; Breed: Poodle

Already Tried:
dried and wet Wellness do not remember the others/p>

Customer (name blocked for privacy)

Status: Closed Value: $15

Hi there,

I'm sorry to hear that your poodle is having this problem. Poor girl! I would like to try to help you with this frustrating problem, but need a bit more information, please.

For how long has she had this current ear infection?

What medications have been used to treat it? Is she on anything now?

What is the protein source in her food (eg chicken, beef, turkey, pork, etc)?

Fiona

I am a licenced veterinarian practicing in Ontario, and will always do my best to answer your questions. My on-line help, however, cannot take the place of a hands-on examination by a veterinarian.

Hi again,

I was hoping to get a bir more information in order to give you advice specific to your dog. Unfortunately, I have to go out for a few hours now.

I'm sorry that your dog has such a bad ear infection and would like to try to help.

Ear infections (otitis externa) are quite common, and Poodles are one of the breeds most often affected. There may be an underlying allergy that is making your girl prone to these. Obviously you have wondered the same thing since you mention trying different foods.

Otitis externa is commonly caused by yeast, bacteria or a combination of both. Quite often, the ear medications that I prescribe have a combination of anti-fungals to treat the yeast, anti-biotics to treat the bacteria and anti-inflammatories to decrease the pain and inflammation. The names of a couple of ear medications I commonly prescribe are Surolan and Otomax.

If your dog has been on ear drops (usually they would be given twice daily for 7-14 days) and there was NO improvement, then it suggests that whatever is growing in there is resistant to those drugs and a different drop should be tried.

If the ear drops did improve the ears, but they promptly became infected again, it suggests an underlying problem such as allergies. These can be to something inhaled (then we call the allergy "atopy") or to something eaten (usually a protein - it could be anything from chicken to beef to lamb or ANY other protein that the dog has ever eaten).

In the case of food allergy, we usually recommend a food with a NOVEL protein that the dog has never had before (venison, fish, duck, rabbit are all options) and NO other sources of protein. That means NO treats, NO rawhides, NO table scraps.

In the case of atopy, we often have to manage the condition with antihistamines, omega 3/6 essential fatty acids and sometimes corticosteroids.

In terms of what you can do at home without seeing a vet, I could make a few suggestions:

1. Burrow's Solution (Buro-sol, http://www.feelbest.com/Pages/ItemDetails.aspx?GroupID=EADRO&TYPE=FINE&LINKPAGE=ItemDetails.aspx&ID=05546000017 ). In Canada, you can get Burrow's Solution over the counter at a pharmacy. I believe it is widely available in the USA as well. It is a gentle astringent that is very useful in treating ear infections. Many veterinarians carry it, compounded with 2% hydrocortisone (for that you would need a prescription). But you could certainly try it twice daily for 7 days in your dog. Instill 3-5 drops into both ears twice daily for a week.

2. You could start your dog on Essential Fatty Acids, orally. These decrease inflammation in the body and are very helpful with skin, hair and ear issues. EFA-Z and DermCaps are a couple of brands. It takes 8 weeks to see improvement.

http://www.vetamerica.com/index.asp?PageAction=PRODSEARCH&txtSearch=Efa+Z+Plus+Liquid

http://www.petplace.com/drug-library/derm-caps/page1.aspx

3. Vaginal yeast cream may kill yeast in your dog's ears. If, however, the problem is also due to bacteria, it will not help with this.

4. Antihistamines - you could try hydroxyzine or chlorpheniramine since atopy may well be part of the problem with your dog.

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&C=31&A=557&S=0

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=529

http://www.balgownievet.com.au/1_gen_derm_drugs.htm (dose)

Oral antibiotics are rarely needed to treat ear infections, as the drug doesn't get to the site of the infection effectively. When you give an oral antibiotic, it ends up in the blood stream, and this is not helpful for treating ear infections which are on the skin surface within the ear. Occasionally I use oral antibiotics if there are signs of an INNER ear infection. This is rare.

Here are some links about Otitis Externa that you might find useful:

http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=632

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1591&articleid=273

http://www.sniksnak.com/doghealth/earinfections.html

Good luck with your dog. If this has been helpful, please hit the green "Accept" button and leave feedback. I will be back in a few hours to provide more information if you need it!

Fiona

I am a licenced veterinarian practicing in Ontario, and will always do my best to answer your questions. My on-line help, however, cannot take the place of a hands-on examination by a veterinarian.

Reply to Dr.Fiona's Post: Well she had this since I got her. Her ears smelled then , I have her 3 years. I have been washing flushing and had a vet at one time flush . the debris which comes out in the fluid when I drip the fluid in the channel let it sit a few minuets then turn her head to get the liquid out is a dark brown. that is epic-otic a wash given to me by a vet, this has been going on for some time . Howeverf at one time I changed the food and I do not Remember what I changed it to it seemed to improve.at present I am putting in 10 drops of Baytril Otic 2x a day. Due to the vet wanting to operate on her on her ears on Monday his intention is to take out the back u portion of the ear to allow it to dry and drain better. He tells me if this is not taken care of she will become DEAF.. I do not want to do this if I do not have to HOWEVER i do not want her to become deaf...I am a very concencious mom.Is this enough info?

OK! thanks.. I will wait for you to get back. Iwill take action . also if you wish you can contact me or if you are comfortable I can. Better yet let me know your # I will call you.
I need to know what to feed her as well as I am hearing you say to wait for the vet to operate is that so? I will leave my page on.

Hi there,

I'm afraid that the terms of service of my contract with Just Answer specifically prohibit me from contact with customers outside of the site. Sorry!

Well, it doesn't sound to me as though you have really ruled out food allergies yet. So, yes, I would give that a very committed trial before resorting to surgery.

In dogs with food allergies they are allergic to the PROTEIN in the food. So, to treat for this, you have to feed a food that contains a protein that is novel, that they have never had before. That means that she can never have had ANY of this new protein before. That pretty much rules out all the commercial dog foods on the market. If you have switched foods a few times, I am sure she has had lamb, beef, pork, chicken, and turkey. Your vet would have prescription foods that contain novel proteins - duck, and catfish are a couple of examples.

Alternatively, you can make your own food. I will give you a recipe (below). The key feature to food trials (called an elimination trial) is that your dog can have NO other sources of protein. That means no table scraps, no cookies, no milkbones, no rawhides, nothing of any kind other than the novel, unique protein that she has never had before. You have to do this for at LEAST 8 weeks, and preferably 12 weeks to see if there is improvement in her ears. So, it is not a quick fix, but it can be very effective. If her underlying problem is an allergy, you may be able to give her perfect ears just by controlling what goes into her mouth.

Keep in mind that dogs with food allergies can (and probably will eventually) develop allergies to the new, unique protein. Hopefully, that won't happen for many years. If and when it does, you have to move to another novel protein.

If you know someone who hunts, this can make your life much easier as you can get access to novel proteins like venison, moose or rabbit.

Here is the recipe (choose ONE meat source and stick to it and only it during the 12 week elimination period):

Canine Hypoallergenic Diet:
1/4 lb diced venison/rabbit/duck/sole/etc
1/2 cup cooked white rice
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1+1/2 teaspoons (7g) dicalcium phosphate (available at drug and health food stores, substitute bone meal)

Also add a balanced supplement which fulfills the canine minimum daily requirements (MDR) for all vitamins and trace minerals. This would be available from a veterinary clinic.

Trim fat from meat. Cook thoroughly (braise or roast) without seasoning. Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Keep covered in refrigerator. Yield: 2/3lb

Feeding Guide - feed sufficient to maintain normal body weight

Body wt Approx Daily Feeding
5lb 1/3lb
10 lb 1/2lb
20lb 1lb

Here is more on food allergies and elimination diets:

http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2004/404_pets.html

http://www.burns-pet-nutrition.co.uk/elimination_diet.htm

http://www.petshealth.com/dr_library/fooddogs.html

Hope that helps and good luck with your dog! :-) Fiona

I am a licenced veterinarian practicing in Ontario, and will always do my best to answer your questions. My on-line help, however, cannot take the place of a hands-on examination by a veterinarian.

THANK YOU!

You are so very welcome! Good luck with your dog!

I am a licenced veterinarian practicing in Ontario, and will always do my best to answer your questions. My on-line help, however, cannot take the place of a hands-on examination by a veterinarian.

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