ears

[sphynxie]

You guys should see what lives in your livingroom rugs I hear. Much nastier things than ear mites that's for sure.
We looked in microscope on cutouts in biology class when I was in school and even the most clean homes has some pretty nasty things living as house guests.

Ear mites looks pretty cute if you compare with
http://www.greendrycarpetcleaning.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/mite.jpg
and those there are thousands of in any carpet. Every square meter...


:Laugh::Laugh::Laugh:

Sleep well hihi.

Ok definately gross! Thank goodness we just re-did our house to all tile and hardwood floors. Now I know I made the right choice

 

[holly_savage]

I second the opinion on having it looked at by a professional. Kokka had been scratching at her ear for a few days and a lot of scratching. SHe kept scratching at her ears so bad that she had scratched up the side of her face pretty bad, so off to Dr Adams we went and with her it wasn't mites but yeast. He gave us the drops and all is well now, and amazingly her ears have been the cleanest I have ever seen them! So sometimes dirty ears aren't just dirty ears!

 

[TotenEngel]

You guys should see what lives in your livingroom rugs I hear. Much nastier things than ear mites that's for sure.
We looked in microscope on cutouts in biology class when I was in school and even the most clean homes has some pretty nasty things living as house guests.

Ear mites looks pretty cute if you compare with
http://www.greendrycarpetcleaning.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/mite.jpg
and those there are thousands of in any carpet. Every square meter...


:Laugh::Laugh::Laugh:

Sleep well hihi.

haha, again another reason we lifted the one room of carpet we had and put down laminate flooring!!!!

 

[tessblack]

Oh I have had a horrible time with Tux's ears. I took him to our vet (Chain vet, lots of fresh out of school vets) the tech cleaned his ears and when we got him home he could not stand up properly and kept falling over. Took him to emerg that night and they had no idea what to do and it seemed like the lady had never touched a cat before. Then went back to normal vet and they did not want to deal with it and had no answers. Finally went to the cat hospital and got him sorted out. Great vet who had worked with cats for over 20 years and answered all my questions. He handled him so well and Tux even let him exam his ears. Without a $2000 ear scope it was hard to tell if he had a puncture or tear in the ear drum. The doc gave me some ointment to put in his ears, filling the canal and then holding the ear closed. He shakes his head and all the stuff comes out, kinda gross but there ears are better. He told me never to put liquid in because if the eardrum is compromised at all it will screw with there balance. He also said it happens that techs can be to rough and hurt the nerves around the ears. Tux still has issues when he shakes his head, he looks side ways for for a few seconds but otherwise is fine. He said we cannot surgically repair the eardrum but with the medication and time it should get better on its own. He also prescribed a animax cream for general cleaning once a month.
When this all happened I thought my husband was going to punch some out, he was so mad. Especially because they would not take any responsibility.

 

[Ahicks99]

Awwww I see Thanks all for clearing that up. And opening up my eye to filthy carpets!

 

[dpannell]

My vet taught me to clean the ears of my girls using q-tips. I use only q-tip brand (quality cotton for absorption and well made to prevent fibers from coming off the end of the applicator). At the recommendation of my vet, I use Virbac Epi-Otic Advanced Ear Cleanser. Initially, I used it for seven days, twice a day, then after each bath ongoing (weekly). It's important to use it AFTER each bath, as this product has a drying agent that will dry out any water remaining in the ear that the cat is unable to "shake out". I squirt it liberally into the ear canal, until it is full/overflows from the ear canal; then at the base of the ear I gently massage for 25-30 seconds; I hold the head while doing this to prevent shaking (of the head to get the liquid out of the ear). Once done massaging, I prepare for the the shaking (loosely hold towel up to catch flying liquid from ear due to shaking head). Once the shaking ceases, I clean the ear canal with a q-tip that has been cut in half, repeating until clean. Ear canal is "L" shaped and you don't want to go farther than recommended and/or taught by your vet (I won't say or give directions on how far I go so that there will be no misunderstanding, leading to harming your cat's ear(s)). You really should be taught this only by your vet.

PS. I've tried the cotton ball in the ear prior to bathing...didn't work for me. They either shook it out or dug it out first chance they got.

 

[NakedNinja]

Some really great info here. Gabey had nasty yeasty ears when we got him. We're still treating him for the yeast, because if we don't stay on top of it, it comes right back.

I like the "soaked cotton ball" idea, since it makes me really nervous to put liquid directly in his ears. Will do that for a while and see how he does.

 

[gothicmist]

tonight was a rough one, bath time went horrible and i am positive she didnt bathe him like she said she did i am covered in scratches, and he didnt like his ears cleaned at all. i will have to get some cotton balls. she said he let her wet a qtip with warm water and use it but he wouldnt let me near him he was very unhappy (though 25 minutes later im in bed and he is right here purring). where can i get cleaner? (this may sound dumb but can i use dog ear cleaner? i have these neat wipes i got for my terrier that work on his scum) any advise would be great. the walmart by me has dog ear cleaner but no cat. i do have a petco and petsmart GAG but i will go there if i have to. my vet is an hour away or i would go there.

thanks for everything guys.

 

[Gizzymom]

tonight was a rough one, bath time went horrible and i am positive she didnt bathe him like she said she did i am covered in scratches, and he didnt like his ears cleaned at all. i will have to get some cotton balls. she said he let her wet a qtip with warm water and use it but he wouldnt let me near him he was very unhappy (though 25 minutes later im in bed and he is right here purring). where can i get cleaner? (this may sound dumb but can i use dog ear cleaner? i have these neat wipes i got for my terrier that work on his scum) any advise would be great. the walmart by me has dog ear cleaner but no cat. i do have a petco and petsmart GAG but i will go there if i have to. my vet is an hour away or i would go there.

thanks for everything guys.

I use epi-otic... which can be purchased at your vet, on-line... and I think Petco (not sure)... It works GREAT on the gunk!