Please help, dog's ears are so so bad now

[bellablue]

So I've taken my girl to two different vetsnow, both of which prescribed steroids and oto/antibiotics.....absolutely did not help at all.
Bella has been battling itchy paws and especially itchy ears for months and months and months now.
Lately her ears have gotten HORRIBLE, I'm talking FULL of scabs, raw red, bald from scratching on the outside horrible. What is the best thing to do to give her a little relief? I absolutely cannot take her being like this anymore, she is constantly shaking her head and is very discontent.
So I've been doing a lot of reading lately and it seems that these are all common signs of a food allergy...but how likely is it to be something else?
Can someone reccommend a regimine to clean/relieve her ears and what to feed her?
Wellness super5 seems to be a popular choice, but what else can I do?

Any help is highly appreciated. I love my baby so much and I must get this cleared up(since neither vet could handle it).

Thanks in advance,
Adam

[Ariel Payopay]

You can also try Wellness Fish & Sweet Potato. It's good for the skin and coat especially for dogs with sensitive skin. There have been plenty of cases where a dogs diet was changed and all their skin problems went away.

[X-girl]

I'm sorry to hear you and your pup are suffering like this. I can't offer too much help but I am sure others on this forum can and will. I can tell you that a friend who rescued an English Bulldog from a neglectful owner had similar issues with him. (His ears were so badly infected by the time she got him that he needed surgery!) Over time it became obvious that his immune system was severely compromised by his previous owner's lack of care and all sorts of skin issues cropped up on him pretty regularly. Most (not all) of his skin issues have eased up since she has begun feeding him Wellnes Fish & Sweet Potato. (I have seen a lot of people on this board speak highly of this food for dogs with allergies, too.) She tried every imaginable thing she could before finding success with the Wellness. If it's not something you've already tried, it's the best help a "newbie" can offer.

I hope you are both feeling better soon!

(It took me so long to compose this Ariel beat me to it! But, at least, I don't sound like I have no clue what I am talking about since he recommended the same thing I did. )

[damienApbt]

i've been there with my boy rod. although not as constant. rod's has seasonal allergies. his ears get real bad sometimes and he always chews his paws. here are some of the things i do.

-first off i switched his food to wellness fish & sweet potato. thats my latest solution. i've seen a dramatic improvement in his itchiness

-i have a solution that breaks down all the grime. i squirt it in his ear and massage it in good. then get a cotton suabe (sp?) and wipe it out. i also use a q-tip or 4. but be carefull not to dig with them it pushes the crap down more. i use them to get that excess crap out that gets stuck in there.

you could even douse the cotton ball with the solution and wipe away.

-i also use benedryl for him too. or a generic brand baught in bulk is a good idea.

-after i cleaned out his ear real good, i'd squirt a bunch of cordizone cream in there to help numb the pain.

-also the vet prescibed me with some oinment to squirt in there too. but i found the cortizone stuff to work better.

-antiobiotics are always good too. which you probably know.



as far as reoccurring ear infections its usually a good sign of food allergies. if your pup has it yr round than i would look into food allergy stuff.

theres nothing worse than seeing your pup mutilating itself, i know that for sure. the constant head shaking is a bitch too.

[mnp13]

You may want to start off with a completely bland diet and see how she does. Then you can try small bags of different foods and see what works best for her.

If it is allergies you should see an improvement in a few days after changing foods.

Remember to cut out all treats as well, as you don't know what the allergy may be.

Michelle

[moto1320]

In the mean time you can use over the counter cortizone 10 cream externally for the itching/scratching. Good luck.

[CinderDee]

I have the same problem with my dog.

Did your vet give you anything for her ears? I'm using Otomax and it's really helping. My dog is also on Atarax 3x per day.

I tried the Wellness and it didn't help my dog at all. I'm still trying different foods.

Good luck!
Dee

[addy's daddy]

my old Luther had this same problem. His was very bad and had my OLD vet stumped.

..food alergy.. was first suggested Lamb & Rice dog foods

then we went thru a slew of medications, nothing.

I switched vets and Revolution was reco'd.

It ended up being Myoptic (?) Mange. It was a hereditary trait and could never be completely removed, only treated.

Luther had bad ears first, and then little breakouts on his face and head. Then it got into his undercarriage. It smelled really bad, and you just couldnt stop it. VERY NASTY STUFF.

Benedryl daily and baths with baking soda and tar shampoos seemed to help.. slightly.

this is prolly not much help but It drove me (and him) nuts for years.

[barbponys]

Wellness Fish and Sweet Potatoe is a good place to start. I would also recommend supplementing with flaxseed oil. Help the skin heal a bit.

The biggest bang for you buck would be a bland raw diet. No grain, just meat and a few veggies. Get his system cleared of all the junk, it usually takes a couple of weeks but getting him off all dry food will make a huge difference. His body will suck up the nutrients and start to heal right away.

Chronic ear infections are a classic sign of food allergies. Damiens routine sounds good. Once you get it under control regular cleaning with apple cider vinegar and water(50/50 solution) works well. Just make sure the ear is dry when you are done.

[bellablue]

I've been reading up on the barf diet and it sounds like a good option...but do you literally just buy the meat, chop it, and toss it in a bowl? No heating? No prep?

Also, is Wellness food special order only?

Adam

[damienApbt]

wellness is sold in pet stores.

[jmann4]

I've been reading up on the barf diet and it sounds like a good option...but do you literally just buy the meat, chop it, and toss it in a bowl? No heating? No prep?

Also, is Wellness food special order only?

Adam

Raw meat = Yup.

You can steam the meat for a minute or two if you're worried about bacteria. That goes for any meat you feed. Stem until it's super rare but not cooked through.

Wellness = No.

You can get it most anywhere. It may take some looking, but you can find it online if you can't find it in your local pet stores.

[Skeptik]

http://www.omhpet.com/locator/locator_form.asp

try this link... this is how I discovered a local feed store that carried Wellness

[bellablue]

damn dog...first off she eats the entire bottle of supplements I ordered, then after switching to a raw diet the damn dog manages to get to and eat two entire loaves of whole wheat bread! Now her ears got bad again after starting to look better.

I just bought some apple cider vinegar, but she has some open sores in her ear, should I wait til they're scabbed over or healed to use the vinegar solution?

Is it ok to use cortisone cream on top of sores and scabs?

I finally found some wellness and I've started her on that so we'll see what happens.

[barbponys]

The vinegar will sting on open sores. I would wait till they are pretty much healed before using it. If the ears get bad I use a vet prescribed wash till they heal then I use the vinegar/water to maintain the ears.

The cortizone cream can be used on open sores, I've used it on suture sites to keep them from licking.

Sounds like you have proof your dog is allergic to wheat, the reaction to the bread is a positive sign of that. Now that you know that read treat ingredients religiously, 90% of them have wheat in them in one form or another. If you don't see a significant improvement on the Wellness Fish I would assume a sensitivity to the barley or rye. Barley is more likely than rye but you never know. You might consider continuing with the raw one meal a day too, it will help the body heal much quicker. Don't do raw and kibble together, separate the meals. Good luck.