Otitis in dogs: causes, symptoms, treatment

Otitis in dogs is a fairly common phenomenon. Most often this pathology is observed in the cool season. With untimely care, otitis can take a chronic form that is characterized by a recurrent course. Ear infection can affect the external, middle or internal auditory canal, so appropriate methods are selected for the treatment of this disease. The causes of otitis can be various allergic reactions, parasitic infestations, the formation of tumors in the auditory canal, increased release of sulfur, as well as ingress of foreign bodies into the auditory passage.

Factors that provoke otitis in dogs include the following: long hanging ears, injuries, water or hair ingress into the ear canals, as well as skin and autoimmune diseases. With one-sided lesion, one can suspect the presence of polyps or other formations. If the ears are not properly cleaned, the form of the ear canal is broken in the dog, as a result of which it becomes more susceptible to the infections that provoke the ailment.

Symptoms of otitis in dogs:

- pain in the ear;

- allocation of serous fluid, pus or blood from the ear ;

- edema and reddening of the external auditory orifice;

- an increase in submandibular lymph nodes on the affected side;

- difficult chewing;

- soreness when opening the mouth;

- eye discharge;

- strabismus.

Otitis in dogs can be caused by pathogens such as otodectosis, otodemodecosis, bacterial and yeast infection, hypersensitivity reactions, and autoimmune diseases. Each type of infection is accompanied by characteristic symptoms and manifests itself with inflammation of varying degrees of intensity.

Chronic form of the disease

In a dog, chronic otitis can develop with prolonged progressive external inflammation of the ear canal. In this case, there may be a thickening of the epithelium, which lining the ear canal, narrowing of the auditory canal, as well as increased secretion of the secretion of the ear exudate. In more severe and neglected cases, chronic otitis in dogs leads to deformation of the cartilage and ossification of the ear canal. To eliminate this problem, complete surgical excision of the affected ear tissues is performed, since conservative treatment is ineffective in this case.

Treatment of otitis in dogs

How to cure otitis in a dog, can only determine the vet, taking into account the nature of the occurrence of a particular inflammation. First of all, cleaning of the auditory passage with a special physiological solution is appointed , then therapeutic drops are applied, and after that a long antibacterial course of treatment is prescribed.

If the disease is caused by the formation of a tumor, it is advisable to perform its surgical removal. Chronic same purulent otitis, which is accompanied by a violation of the integrity of the tympanic membrane, requires regular washing of the ear canal with a warm physiological solution.

Systemic drugs and ear drops are prescribed only after laboratory testing to identify a parasite that provoked the disease. Do not self-medicate, otherwise the consequences can be the most sad - except that your pet will lose hearing, it can develop serious brain damage.