Ever noticed that your pet dog is scratching so intensely? The excessive ear scratching and head shaking can bring discomfort to your fur buddy. But what’s wrong. Blame it to tiny critters called ear mites.
What Are Ear Mites?
Ear mites are microscopic arachnids that live on the surface of the ear canal of dogs. They are very tiny and barely visible to the human eye. Ear mites can cause severe itchiness, which is very upsetting to your pet.
Signs And Symptoms That Your Dog Is Suffering From Ear Mites
Otodectes cynotis mites or ear mites are parasitic infections that can affect your pet. The symptoms include:
- Intense itch
- Scratching on specific areas like the head, ears, and neck.
- Ear discharges that are dark and waxy.
- Foul odor from the ear due to accumulation of wax
Diagnosing Ear Mites In Your Pet Dogs
If you happen to notice that your dog is suffering from too much discomfort with intense scratching and exhibits the above-mentioned symptoms, then the poor dog may need medical assistance because of ear mites.
A visit to the veterinarian is the best thing to do in this situation. Your vet will be able to perform a complete physical examination, which includes thorough ear and skin examination. They may need to get skin tests and ear swabs to be able to identify the mites that may have infected your pet.
As soon as your vet is done with the testing and have the result, they can prescribe some medication for your dog. Part of the medical procedure is looking into your dog’s ear canal to see the mites and get rid of them.
Treating Ear Mites In Dogs
Ear mites can be treated, and it can be treated on an outpatient basis. As soon as your vet is done with your dog’s physical exam, a prescribed medicine will be given to you and treat your dog at home. The most common treatment is over-the-counter ear mite treatment, which will allow you to use ear drops fro 10 to 30 days. Make sure that you follow your vet’s instructions regarding the medication process.
There is also a newer treatment process that can kill ear mites quickly. These medications or treatment process are only available and can be administered by your dog’s doctor. The new ear medication can kill ear mites with just a single application.
The important thing to remember in treating ear mites is to make sure to clean out all the debris from within your dog’s ears canals. Ask your vet with the proper way of cleaning so that you can also do it at home without your doctor’s assistance.
Follow checkups are also important as they may be required by your doctor as part of monitoring your dog’s health progress. Contact your veterinarian if you have inquiries regarding your dog’s recovery.
Are Ear Mites Contagious?
Unfortunately, Ear Mites are highly contagious and can be passed on from one pet to another. It can be passed on to another dog or other pets like cats, rabbits, hamsters, gerbils, ferrets, and mice.
Preventing Your Dog From Getting Ear Mites
Ear Mites are commonly transmitted from other dogs. Social interaction with infected dogs can cause ear mites. They can be passed when your dog sleeps beside the infected dog or even by playing. It is important to include checking for ear mites as part of your dog’s health routine.
Check for ear mites even for just once a month just to make sure that these nasty creatures are not camping inside your dog’s ears. If you see that your dog is showing initial symptoms that it is suffering from ear mites, do something about and do not wait for it to get worst. Call your veterinarian as they can provide assistance in choosing the most effective medication to prevent your pet from having ear mites.
Are Ear Mites Harmful To Humans?
It is very good to know that ear mites are not considered to people. But for safety reasons, it is best to keep healthy surroundings to avoid them.
Managing Ear Mites At Home
Now that you know how these mites can affect your dog’s health, it is best to get rid of them as early as possible. If you have multiple pets in the household, make sure to check the other pets for ear mite’s infection.
Keep a clean environment all the time. Make sure that the beddings are clean. Sanitize them with hot water and run them through a hot dryer to dry them off.
Clean the areas where your pets stay most of the time.
If left untreated, these ear mites can severely damage your dog’s ear canal and eardrums resulting in permanent hearing loss. Call your veterinarian to help treat ear mites. We don’t want our fur buddy to suffer from the discomfort of having these mites.
Medications To Treat Ear Mites In Dogs
There are several ear mite treatment products made from natural aloe vera that can be used to conveniently treat pet ear mites at home. Bio-Groom is a non-sticky formula that looks like gel and acts to eliminate ear mites, ticks and ear ticks in young cats, puppies, and adult dogs.
- EAR WASH FOR DOGS – Our ear mite treatment for cats & dogs helps keep your pet's ears dry & reduces odor. It's a safe ear...
- REDUCES EAR CANAL ODOR – Our dog ear wash gently cleans & dries the ear canal while removing excessive wax build-up....
- CRUELTY-FREE PET SUPPLIES – Our cat ear mite treatment is non-stinging, non-sticky, non-oily & mild to not irritate your...
Last update on 2024-10-10 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
It even works in rabbits and ferrets infested with ear mites! Make sure you don’t apply too much of the treatment inside your pup’s ears as they will feel the discomfort and try to shake it out.
Aside from ear mites, your pets can also suffer from skin irritation caused by fleas, ticks, and lice. We compiled a helpful list of the best flea and tick preventative collars to help you in your purchase for overall pet protection.
