# Doggy ear problem



## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

Last weekend we noticed our 9 yo terrier/spaniel mix, Amy, was holding her ear out a bit funny and shaking her head. I figured right away "ear problem". It's not hurting her, in fact it must be itching since she wants us to rub it.

Tuesday afternoon I brought her to the vet. He said there's no infection, no ear mites, and her ears are clean. He said that her lymph nodes are a bit enlarged but since she is so healthy otherwise it could just be natural for her, or a touch of allergy. He gave us some drops, antibiotic pills and steroid pills. 

Today she still seems no better. She's still shaking her ear, but I guess it might be from the drops themselves, they leave her ear a bit wet all the time.
Still I worry about what it might be. Any thoughts? In every other way, she is the picture of health, loads of energy, shiny coat, etc, etc. The vet wants to see her again in two weeks, so maybe it will just take time, but I don't know what to think...

We've had her for 8 1/2 years and she's never been ill before. She's our baby!


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## atb224155 (Mar 10, 2014)

I would take her to another vet for a second opinion. I have a rat terrier who scratches her ears all the time, and it's only when she has an itch. Something could be going on with the lymph notes that is causing your mix to scratch.


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## fishtankwatcher (Feb 5, 2015)

I agree on getting a 2nd opinion,

and just asking for clarification :grin:

..) Why did he prescribe antibiotic pills with no sign of infection?
..) What drops did he give you?


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

Thanks for your help guys.

I believe that he felt antibiotics might be indicated in case she has some kind of systemic infection causing the slight swelling in her lymph nodes. Or an infection not readily seen? I'm not really sure.

The drops are called otibiotic ointment. 

I am also thinking we need a second opinion, but my husband thinks we need to give the medication a few more days. He (vet) did mention that is she wasn't back to normal in 2 weeks then we should consider some bloodwork and/or xrays...

She does seem less bothered this afternoon than she was earlier.....


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## fishtankwatcher (Feb 5, 2015)

2muttz said:


> Thanks for your help guys.
> 
> I believe that he felt antibiotics might be indicated in case she has some kind of systemic infection causing the slight swelling in her lymph nodes. Or an infection not readily seen? I'm not really sure.
> 
> ...


The drops & steroids should be giving her at least some temporary relief for sure! and they are what I would expect 

The drops treat yeast infections & also a gram-negative antibiotic for the the ear, spaniels (& mixes) with heavy ears don't get to air out like most other breeds do 

Does she have hair inside her ears? (see attached pic) The pic is not mine & of a schnauzer


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

Oh that's good to hear.

She is actually a short -haired dog and does not have hairy or floppy ears. Rather more like border collie ears - where just a tip flops over.... Here's a picture ~ she has her ears back and down because she hates having her picture taken....

Oh and the vet said that there were some small, tiny hairs inside her ear. He tried to show me using his scope but it was all over my head.


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## fishtankwatcher (Feb 5, 2015)

She's a beauty! 

Is her lineage known for sure? :grin: I'm curious what spaniel/terrier is assumed (or known) She is not what I had pictured, lol :wink:

ETA: this more the body-type I had pictured (I realize there are TONS of spaniel types)


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

fishtankwatcher said:


> She's a beauty!
> 
> Is her lineage known for sure? :grin: I'm curious what spaniel/terrier is assumed (or known) She is not what I had pictured, lol :wink:
> 
> ETA: this more the body-type I had pictured (I realize there are TONS of spaniel types)



Lol, no terrier / spaniel is just what I say. She could really be anything. Years ago we even did that Doggy DNA test on her and they could not isolate anything, that's how mixed up she is! I think she might have some pittie in her, and maybe some pointer or spaniel that has spots..... well it's all just guesses.....


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## fishtankwatcher (Feb 5, 2015)

Ok, can I make a guess? (okay I will) :blueyay: I would say Border Collie/Heeler/Lab mix

like this one (and one of my favorite common mix breeds fyi) :lol:


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

Oh, that looks so much like her ( those are her ears!!!). I love Border Collies, I used to have them. But when I lost my last BC (RIP, Elle :-() I decided we were getting to old to keep up with a Border Collie, and that's when we adopted Amy!

{{ Although I must say, BC's , heelers, Labs - all very _SMART_ dogs... and Amy, well, of course we love her,.... but..... not the sharpest Crayon in the box, kwim???}}


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## fishtankwatcher (Feb 5, 2015)

2muttz said:


> Oh, that looks so much like her ( those are her ears!!!). I love Border Collies, I used to have them. But when I lost my last BC (RIP, Elle :-() I decided we were getting to old to keep up with a Border Collie, and that's when we adopted Amy!
> 
> {{ Although I must say, BC's , heelers, Labs - all very _SMART_ dogs... and Amy, well, of course we love her,.... but..... not the sharpest Crayon in the box, kwim???}}


LOL, lab would definitely mellow out the other 2 breeds (yes they like to play but not the insanity of the other two)
Some labs are smart, not all and heelers are definitely more brawn vs brain (the ones I've known)

The dullest crayon is the one most , no? ;-)


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

fishtankwatcher said:


> The dullest crayon is the one most , no? ;-)


Aww, I never thought of it that way before, but, yes, so very true! Love is what actually makes it dull!

Thank you so much for your input. Tonite when she is snoring in my ear and drooling on my pillow ( she is afraid of the dark, so she insists on sleeping between us) ~ I will remind myself there is a little bit of smart, brave, Border Collie in there ~ somewhere~~~...


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## Tolak (Nov 13, 2012)

Real quick on topic question; what are you feeding?

Back to off topic; I've been around dogs since I was a baby, couldn't imagine life without them. Terriers are the best!


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

Tolak said:


> Real quick on topic question; what are you feeding?


Their food hasn't changed at all. I actually cook for the dogs ~ every week I make up a batch consisting of cooked ground turkey, frozen veggies and several cans of dog food. I'll throw in whatever healthy leftovers we have, like cottage cheese, eggs, brown rice, etc. Amy has eaten like this for all the years we've had her...

And yes, dogs make life worthwhile.... even while they make you more tired and much poorer...!


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## Tolak (Nov 13, 2012)

What's the name of the dog food?


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

One my German Shepherds has issues with yeast infections in her ears and paws. They are often quite sore and itchy, and the only way the vet could diagnose them was by sticking a cotton bud deep into her ear, getting a sample and going to have a look at it under a microscope or whatever they do. 

Are you thinking food allergies as the reason Tolak?


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

LittleBettaFish said:


> One my German Shepherds has issues with yeast infections in her ears and paws. They are often quite sore and itchy, and the only way the vet could diagnose them was by sticking a cotton bud deep into her ear, getting a sample and going to have a look at it under a microscope or whatever they do.
> 
> Are you thinking food allergies as the reason Tolak?


But if she had food allergies wouldn't they show up more generalized than just in one ear? And wouldn't we have seen something previously in all these years?..... Just wondering.....


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## Tolak (Nov 13, 2012)

LittleBettaFish said:


> Are you thinking food allergies as the reason Tolak?


Yup, food allergies are an oddball thing with dogs, and can present as a wide variety of symptoms. Dog food manufacturers, especially those that produce mid grade & lower foods can and do change ingredients, and where they get these ingredients from. The animals in my care (nomnom pizza atm!) eat healthier than I do, and I keep an eye on the various products, most recently in the news is beneful.


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## LittleBettaFish (Oct 2, 2010)

Ah I was wondering if that was your train of thought.

I do believe dogs can suddenly develop allergies to foods that for years they may have eaten without any problems at all. 

Do you ever notice your dog chewing on her feet or do her feet have a distinctively bad odour? This could point to a possible yeast infection/allergies.

Otherwise it may just be some one-off occurrence that will go away with treatment by the vet.


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## plumdogg (Feb 9, 2015)

my wifes cockapoo has lots of ear problems we got some kind of medication from our vet that works really well put it in rub the ear and the dog will shake its head a few times and good to go


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## Nyri (Sep 23, 2014)

My pit bull started out like that... her actual problem caused an infection which we were prescribed antibiotics for. Got rid of the infections (both bacterial and yeast) but she was still having problems... and kept getting the infections again and again. We saw something white in her ear, and even asked about it, but the vet didn't acknowledge it. Finally we took her to another vet who noticed a growth inside of her ear (it was actually blocking the whole ear canal and I have no idea how the other vet missed it). They referred us to some really expensive specialist to have it biopsied and removed. We couldn't afford that, so when the infection came back up, we took her to another, cheaper vet who is known to work with people... told them we didn't have a lot of money (they referred us to a surgical center at first) and they said they'd talk to a few of the other vets in the office about it. One of them said they would be able to do a surgery like she needed, and gave us a quote. It was doable for us, so we went ahead and got it done... it was worse than they thought, but they didn't charge us more than we were quoted. We were extremely short on money at the time, having just moved and gotten in a car accident, so we were really worried we'd have to give her up. 

Sorry, that turned out to be more info than needed, but, basically, second opinions are good.


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## 2muttz (Aug 16, 2013)

Thanks everyone -

She isn't scratching or sore anywhere. Even the affected ear , she doesn't scratch it, just shakes it. We spend a lot of time at the beach with the dogs and I did wonder if maybe she had gotten some sand in her ear. But the weather has been so bad lately that's it been almost 2 months since we've been there.....

She Seems to be shaking it less now.

Nyri ~ Thanks for sharing that story. I'm so glad you found a vet who would work with you. that is something I worry about, could there be some kind of underlying tumor? I'm deciding that I will put that thought out of my head at least for the next two weeks until we go back to the doctor!!!


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## Nyri (Sep 23, 2014)

There could be, or something along those lines... maybe nothing, but if your dog isn't acting normal, it's likely that there's something causing her to act that way... my main, although long winded point was that your vet may have missed something like my original vet did. Jinx did have a bit of soreness in her ear around the tumor, not sure if that's consistent with all ear tumors, but since yours doesn't seem sore, that's probably not it.


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