Ear Infections in Dogs & Cats

One of the most common problems we see here at Creature Comforts is the dreaded ear infection. Dogs and cats coming in for shaking their heads, scratching their ears, or just smelling kind of weird can all have ear infections. 

But what causes ear infections? After all, most dogs and cats aren't going swimming on a routine basis. So how did they get it?

As it turns out, ear infections are caused by inflammation of the ear canal. This inflammation is usually due to some kind of allergy, usually to something in their environment. Once the ear canals get inflamed, the immune system has a hard time controlling the normal yeast and bacteria found on the skin and they grow out of control. This causes more inflammation leading to the ear infection symptoms we are familiar with.

At Creature Comforts, Dr. Stanley examines the ears of pets during every exam. There are many pets with mild infections that their owners don't know about! When we are concerned about an ear infection, we do an ear cytology to determine the kind of infection the pet has. This is where we take a cotton-tipped applicator and collect a sample of the ear wax, then look at it under the microscope. This is an important step because some kinds of bacteria are more susceptible to some ear drops than others. Some ears don't even have bacteria and need an anti-fungal ear drop. 

Once the type of infection has been identified, Dr. Stanley will prescribe an appropriate ear drop to treat the infection and inflammation in the ear. She will also prescribe a medication to address the underlying allergy that led to the ear infection in the first place.

Does your pet scratch their ears and shake their head? If so, they may have an ear infection. Let us help get your "creature's" ears comfortable again.