Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Tips On Curing Your Dog's Ear Infections

One of the simple things to do to keep you dog's ears healthy is to clean out the debris or ear wax. Yes, our doggies get that too and it is really a good time to check for ear mites especially if your dog is scratching its ears.

When is bath time or if your sending your dog to a groomer make sure that the ears are protected during bath time and also cleaned carefully by an experienced and licensed professional groomer. It should be part of their cleaning regime to also trim the hairs around your pets ears and clean and dry the ear areas.

If your dog is a swimmer and water gets into the ear canal it can lead to infection or further problems. A dog's ear canal is shaped differently like an L shape to protect the inner ear and ear drum from damage. That being said it also leads to infection if not cleared out properly from time to time.

If you go the conventional medicine route a veterinarian will prescribe anti-biotic or anti fungus medications which will lessen your dog's immune functions.

There are home remedies that can handle the mites and infection without harming your dog's immune function which most people want to keep intact and healthy.

What Causes Ear Infections:

Dogs and cats have a higher hearing ability than humans and we want to protect that asset as much as we can with preventative pet care. Most often and about 80 percent of ear infections are caused by parasites, debris, allergies, and ear mites especially in cats.

Yeast Infections In Dogs:

It makes sense to me to treat ear infection in a natural and helpful way than to give antibiotics which can cause other problems with their side effects and damage to the immune system. If you see a brown or pink wax this is usually an indication of a yeast infection. If you want to treat this yourself, you can dilute a small amount of apple cider vinegar and equal parts water, and keep it in a small glass bottle. Put a few drops in each day and massage the ear and jaw area mildly, then remove with a cotton swab or cotton ball. Do not do this if your dog has an open sore or wound in its ear.

Adrenal Glands:

Your dog's adrenal glands plan an important part of keeping ear infections to a minimum which can be assisted by giving your dog a daily dose of Vitamin C especially as stated previously if your dog is a swimmer it may get ear infections on a regular basis. Of course a natural and healthy diet will maintain your dog's ability to fight infections and avoid the substances that cause lowered immune function.

The capability of your dog automatic immune system should be kept at a higher level to offset the toxins, and ear wax build up which lead to infected ears.

Some dog breeds have naturally droopy ears such as Basset Hounds or Cocker Spaniels will be more susceptible to ear mites its just the way they are built.

If you can tie your dog's ears up with a bandanna or a hat this will allow the air to circulate into the ear canal and dry up any moisture. It may look funny but it works wonders to prevent moisture build up in the ears.

You can trim the hair around the opening of the ear canal also to keep the air circulating and perhaps your dog may even hear you when you call. After a bath dry the ear as much as possible with a towel or carefully use a cotton swab to absorb excess moisture in the ear area.

When to Bring in The Vet:

If your dog is smelling near the ears and there is vigorous scratching, the ear can be infected as big as a balloon inside that leads to a Hematoma, which has to be drained by a veterinarian.

If your dog is also tilting, or walking crooked or in circles its time to call in the reserves. These are severe cases that have been left untreated for a period of time and may require immediate antibiotic medicines to get it knocked out in a hurry before further permanent damage to your dog's ears.

If your wondering why you dog is not coming to you when you call, check inside its ears.

Written by: Teri Salvador

Teri Salvador is a freelance writer with a site concentrating primarily on dog health issues that offers frequently updated articles on natural remedies, pet product reviews and current articles on pet foods. Also added sections on Horses, Cats and Reptiles. Visit:
http://www.DogHealth1.com

Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Teri_Salvador

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