Nearly half of all dogs are susceptible to ear disease, so what exactly should be done to prevent and treat it?

Which part of a dog’s body is most susceptible to disease? That’s right, the ears. If you think about your surroundings, even a healthy dog must have had an ear disease, especially in summer. There’s no way around it. Dogs’ ears are naturally the best place for bacteria to breed. Once a dog has an ear disease, it will directly lead to hearing loss, ear canal pain, and tinnitus symptoms, so dog ear health can not be ignored. Ear disease classification dog ear disease, usually contains external otitis, otitis media, inner ear infection. A. Etiology of otitis externa: There are many factors that cause otitis externa, such as friction, scratching, foreign bodies, parasitic parasites, and especially water immersion are common causes of otitis externa. Especially in small long-haired dogs, the ear canal structure is very small, plus the coat is very long, after bathing or being drenched by rain, if the water enters the ear canal is not easily discharged, resulting in the development and reproduction of microorganisms in the moist and warm environment, causing otitis externa. Symptoms: 1. Initially, the outer ear canal is flushed, edematous and itchy, and a yellowish plasma discharge flows from the ear canal, staining the lower part of the ear coat. As the disease progresses, local swelling increases, or pustules appear, and a brownish-black, foul-smelling, purulent discharge flows out, often leading to hair loss or dermatitis at the root of the ear, and reduced hearing in the affected dog. 3. Before treating an acutely infected dog with otitis externa, block the external ear canal with a skimmed cotton ball, then cut off the surrounding hair and flush the canal with saline, 0.1% Neosporin or 3% hydrogen peroxide solution. 2. 3. Use an otoscope to examine the deep part of the external ear canal, and use otologic forceps to remove deep foreign bodies, ear wax or tissue fragments, and finally apply glycerin borate (1:20) or glycerin tannate (1:20) solution to the external ear canal 2 to 3 times a day. 4. For purulent otitis externa, after cleaning as described above, apply antibiotic ointment to the ear canal. 5. . For dogs with obvious systemic symptoms, antibiotics can be used for systemic treatment. For dogs with deformed ear shells or long tumors, external ear drainage should be performed. Causes of otitis media and otitis media: Otitis media and otitis media often occur simultaneously or sequentially. Common causes include infection by pathogenic bacteria through the bloodstream, infection by the spread of otitis externa or direct infection through the perforated eardrum, and infection through the eustachian tube. Symptoms: 1. Dogs often have constant head shaking, spinning (to the affected side), ataxia, ear pain, deafness, and ear leakage. 2. In severe cases, inflammation invades the facial and parasympathetic nerves, causing facial paralysis, dry keratitis, and perforation of the tympanic membrane visible on otoscopic examination of the nasal mucosa. Eustachian tube infection or blood-borne infection can be seen as ectopia or discoloration of the tympanic membrane. Treatment: 1. Systemic application of antibiotics with middle ear washings. The middle ear irrigation is performed under general anesthesia and the irrigation fluid is saline at 37-38°C. 2. The irrigation fluid is injected into the middle ear through a 10 cm long, 1 mm diameter middle ear catheter via the tympanic orifice. The flushing solution is then aspirated after flushing. Repeat the flushing until the flushing fluid is clean. To prevent ear disease in dogs, the following measures can be taken: 1. When bathing, it is best to stuff the dog’s ears with cotton balls to prevent water from splashing in. 2. For puppies, avoid lying on their backs to eat milk, as the physiological structure is not yet sound and milk choking can easily cause otitis media in many cases. 3. 4. Make sure the ear canal is dry. You can insist on a few drops of a solution made of medical alcohol, white vinegar and mineral oil every day. 5. Take plenty of rest during the illness, avoid strenuous exercise, ensure sufficient sleep, and try to keep the affected side of the dog facing downward to facilitate the flow of fluid. 6. 7. Give your dog more vitamins and manganese-rich dog food and formula, which need to be strengthened at this stage. Note that if there is fluid oozing from the dog’s ear, the owner can collect the fluid and give it to the vet’s physician to do a microbiological test for better treatment.