Basset ear infection

[FruitsAlive]

I'm sure the dog lovers read my thread about Mable. She has a vet appointment in the morning, but she seems absolutely miserable with her ears right now and they seem to be getting worse. She is pawing at them, rolling on her back and crying as she rubs them on the carpet. Both ears are very hot and malodorous. Is there anything I can do for her to make her comfortable in the meantime? DP and I cleaned all of the superficial waxiness yesterday, but there is some deeper that I would be afraid to get. She is so sensitive to the touch that I don't want to make it worse. Any ideas?
Thanks for your help.

[luv2cook]

I called my neighbor who has a lot of experience with dogs. Her dog is prone to ear infections and her vet told her to get a sqeeze bottle and fill it w/ 1/2 white vinegar and 1/2 water (4oz) and squeeze in there. She said they don't like it, but it does help...maybe that will tide you over until tomorrow...

[avariell]

this stuff works wonders ... use it regularly on mastiffs, which are very prone to ear infection

http://images.1800petmeds.com/images/products/420/10516_420.jpg

[FruitsAlive]

Thanks luv2cook. That was so sweet of you to call your neighbor for me. :D
One more plus for white vinegar. Is there anything it can't do?

[luv2cook]

One more plus for white vinegar. Is there anything it can't do?
well, it can't cure my poor split fingers that I still have! i posted on this NAGGING, painful problem and i still have it!

[FruitsAlive]

I got some glycerin for cracked pads/paws...maybe it would work on fingers? :) Thanks for the suggestion, Josie. I'll have to pick up some of that, too.

[SueK]

We have a basset (and had 2 other bassets that passed away 2 years ago) so we're very familiar with ear infections. I can't give you any tips for tonight, but we clean our Baxter's ears at least twice a week. We use OtiMax and also use a powder that dries and helps absorb moisture in the ear.

I'm sure once the vet sees her and prescribes some meds she'll start to feel better. By the way, Mable is a great Basset name! Baxter sends out good wishes to her....

[mcgeiger]

DON'T PUT ANYTHING IN THE EARS!!! Not until the vet has looked at them! If they are hurting that badly the ear drum could be punctured, and some things can cause permanent damage to the internal ear. Clean what you can see with warm washrag or tissue. I know it hurts to watch them be miserable, but it is only until tomorrow morning...good luck and let us know how she fares!

[luv2cook]

so what did/do the wild dogs do w/floppy ears and they get an infection???? No human around to rescue them!

[leightx]

Well...since wolves don't have floppy ears, I'm guessing that they aren't selected for in nature. Humans on the other hand, have artificially selected for many traits in dogs that wouldn't have occurred in nature. Since humans are the ones breeding the floppy eared dogs, I presume they've been around to clean them. Now what how they cleaned ears out before the advent of tissues - that's a real mystery! ;)

[ErinM]

Can anyone tell me how to use this ear stuff without having my dog smell like cr*p? The solution I have smells very strongly of acetic acid, and it's just horrible. I'd like to use it regularly, but am not sure how to use it to avoid the stench.

[mcgeiger]

None of the ear cleaners smell great because they have cleaners and ususally drying agents in them...Even if you use the homemade vinegar and water it still stinks...:o

[ChristyMarie]

Once he gets over his infection I'll tell you what worked for us for maintenance - we would clean out his ears with a warm washcloth wrapped around my finger a few times a week and put the powder stuff in there. Also, anytime he would get wet I was really good about filling his ear with cotton balls.

Hope the little guy feels better!

[avariell]

Well...since wolves don't have floppy ears, I'm guessing that they aren't selected for in nature. Humans on the other hand, have artificially selected for many traits in dogs that wouldn't have occurred in nature. Since humans are the ones breeding the floppy eared dogs, I presume they've been around to clean them. Now what how they cleaned ears out before the advent of tissues - that's a real mystery! ;)

my dog has "pointy" ears and his ears are incredibly sensitive... if it is raining out he freaks out because of the water getting in his ears. maybe wolves are just smarter about seeking shelter :)

[blazedog]

Sorry about your dog -- Our family pet which was a poodle had problems with his ears as well -- all floppy eared dogs tend to have these problems because of the construction of the ear canal. Our dog's problem was also exacerbated because he had hair growing in his ears.

As I recall the vet also recommended a form of ear drops which were both antiseptic and soothing. My mother would warm them like one would for a human ear drop and then we would "pet/massage" the ear so that it would be absorbed and not run out. Our dog got used to this and didn't seem to mind it -- the plucking never.:eek:

No one in the family had the heart to pluck his ears -- he soon ran as soon as anyone went near the drawer which held (among other things) the ear plucking tool. We did manage to control infections by using some kind of powder which kept the canal dry and therefore created a less hospitable environment.

Floppy eared dogs are also prone to infections and injuries of the ear itself because for obvious reasons.

Floppy ears are NOT a characteristic of dogs found in the wild and are purely a result of human breeding for this characteristic. There have been some interesting studies on feral dogs which tend to share the same characteristics after several generations because of Darwinian selection.

An extreme example of a dog which has been bred to the point of not being able to survive without human care would be the Boston Terrier which generally requires Caesarian section to whelp because of the small size of the birth canal versus the size of the head.

While an individual p*rick eared dog may be sensitive to the elements (i.e. rain), the anatomy enables the ear canal to dry out and thus provides a less hospitable environment for ear problems including ear mites.

[Laurielee]

Fuitsalive, whats the ourcome of Mabels ears?


laurie

[FruitsAlive]

Thank you for the advice, everyone. She was in bad shape, but, luckily her ear drums are intact. Her teeth are actually in worse shape than the rest of her. This little dog has already cost a small fortune...and she needs about $1000 in dental work. :( Poor baby is going to lose about three of her teeth...one tooth for each year away from the vet.

[luv2cook]

Maybe that's where the phrase an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure came from?????????? ;)

[Laurielee]

glad to hear she is on the med! Did the talk about her diet? could be one of the causes of her ear and teeth problems.

[FruitsAlive]

We spoke about her diet from here on. She needs to lose thirteen pounds to be within a healthy range. Given her age, he said that the only way her teeth could have gotten as bad as they are is through neglecting to clean them. Diet could have helped, but not much considering the severity. She is also on a bland diet for the next week or so because her tummy is upset. We aren't sure whether it's the stress of the changes, the diet change or everything. It's probably the latter though. DP is furious with me for spending so much on her today. :( She already seems so much happier, though. She's running, playing and lying in the sun...which is a ginormous improvement from whimpering, fussing with her ears and scooting her butt on the carpet. I guess it's worth whatever flack I get when DP comes home...:o

[armel]

Given her age, he said that the only way her teeth could have gotten as bad as they are is through neglecting to clean them.

I know basset hounds aren't this type of breed. But several months ago I ran into a woman that had owned a shih tzu that died. Either they weren't able to perform surgery or her trachea collapsed under surger (I forget), but her trachea was too fragile. The vet said that having her teeth cleaned every year damaged the dogs trachea. It had something to do with it being a brachcephalic type breed. I guess when they clean the teeth they have to put the dog under and then put a tube down their throat so they can breath?

Anyway, based on that, I am very very skittish about getting my dog's teeth cleaned. She is an affenpinscher which is also a brachcephalic breed. She gets her teeth brushed (not every day) and that is all.

[FruitsAlive]

I haven't had my girls put under for tooth cleaning, either. I brush them weekly, though, and they get dental chews. So far so good. Poor Mable's teeth are completely coated with ickiness, though. :(

[Kevlar]

Just FYI, I have had my dachshunds' teeth cleaned nearly every year for as long as I have had them. They don't seem to suffer any ill effects.

Good luck with Mable. I think she is the lucky one. :)

[mcgeiger]

Most likely it wasn't the anesthesia that caused trachea damage. There is a actually a brachycephalic syndrome, with part of that being a hypoplastic (weak and collapsing) trachea. Anesthesia always has risk, but so does a mouth full of bacteria...And yes we have to put the dogs (and cats, guinea pigs, etc) under anesthesia or there would be no way to actually clean their teeth; think about how hard it is for you at the dentist (and you know what is going on!!!
Keep getting those doxie teeth cleaned:) --they are prone to holes from their mouth into their nose from gingival problems:eek:
I'm glad Mabel is feeling better:)

[CompassRose]

well, it can't cure my poor split fingers that I still have! i posted on this NAGGING, painful problem and i still have it!
Oh, I have that too! It's awful.

However, a few weeks ago, I started using the new Aveeno Intense Relief hand cream, the one that doesn't wash off, and it does help, a little. More than any other cream -- nothing else I've tried does anything. I've still got one bad split on my thumb, but it's closed up some of the smaller ones.

Fruits, I agree about not putting anything in the poor pooch's ears until you see a vet. Mind you, a friend of ours has a bulldog cross who gets ear infections all the time, and he swabs them out with tea tree oil diluted in olive oil -- that seems to help. (It also helps to disguise the stench. Tea tree oil smells nice and fresh.) But Ork hates having his ears touched, too -- and of course, the more ear infections he gets, the worse he is about it.