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My 7 year old pug Butch has been having problems with yeast infections in his ears for about 2 years now. I tried the drops and antibiotics the vet gave me, but neither worked for him. In fact, he turned out to have a reaction to the antibiotics.
I've read on here that equal parts water/vinegar/alcohol will do the trick, and I plan to start that tonight. However, can anyone tell me how much I should use. I don't want to flood his ear canal.
Also, he has been scratching a lot more lately, and while he's always had a problem with dry skin, it seems to be worse then usual. Could the infection have anything to do with that? The Vet told me to give him Benadryl, but I don't want to give him otc medication everyday. Please help. Thank you.
By <href="http://www.thriftyfun.com/profile.ldml?profile=thr978411">luvmypug674 from Pittsburgh, PA
Oh my gosh! Butch is so cute, you should enter him in the pet photo contest!
However the archived 4/28/2008 has some good advice. I suggest using an eyedropper (or a turkey baster, as it's the same principle. You do not want to pour the mix in, but rather control the flow by drop) to put the mix in the ear.
The archived mentioned above also has quantities you should mix too. I hope the infection clears up! Good Luck!
(11/19/2009)
By cara
Do Not Use Water or Peroxide (which has water in it) in your dogs ear. Vinegar also adds to a yeast infection If you must use anyhting I suggest swabbing it out with alcohal I really would try another Vet if you aren't happy or if that is not an option go to a place on the internet like Drs foster and smith I really think that a Vet's help is a necessity! (11/21/2009)
By Candi
Believe it or not, animals get a lot of the same things we can get. Candida is probably the problem and yes, antibiotics make it worse. Ears and sinus passages are a favorite. It's warm, moist and with not a lot of ventilation. I think the vinegar and alcohol mix is equal parts.
Here's another thing I found out from my dr, candida has a narrow range of Ph, so going lower, like with the vinegar or going higher can help. For myself, when the vinegar doesn't seem to work, I use a liquid mix of potassium bi-carbonate. You could try dissolved baking soda. It's Ph is about 8 or so, vinegar is about 4, I think. Candida likes about Ph-5 or there about. Iodine is good for drying up candida, too. The thing is candida adapts to different conditions and it's alive, so it does try to hang on and live.
What happens is those places encourage the over-growth and then the infection sets in. Candida first, then infection. Kill the candida, infection will clear by itself.
I haven't tried this, but making the mix with either vinegar or baking soda and add a few drops of iodine, sort of a one two punch. I would drop whatever mix u use in the ear a few drops at a time and then close the ear and rub really well. The rubbing will probably feel good, as candida makes things itch. Tthen check to see if the inside ear is wet, if not a few more drops and do the same.
You could also, try the vinegar mix on his itchy skin, too. This is have done and it stops the itching and balances the natural Ph of the skin. It works well on skin and for the ears or skin, use as often as the dog seems in distress. I would think at least 4-5x a day.
I know some think that the infection is the problem, it's not. It's the same with colds and flu. Candida gets bad and all the others follow. Someone said peroxide, this has worked for me occasionally, but it doesn't seem to work as well as the other stuff I mentioned. (11/21/2009)
I don't understand why anyone would pay to take their pet to a vet and then "not want to follow the vet's advise". Why would you pay good money and then "not want to"? Please help me understand this. Your dog is obviously suffering, please do something to get him some relief. (11/22/2009)
By Kathy
I don't think alcohol is a good idea. Imagine how that would burn way down in a sensitive area. My dog is prone to yeast infections in his ears too. He has gotten them raw inside in the past from scratching. We took him to the vet and got two ear washes.
You mention the dry skin problem. I found a canine formula by searching on line. It's called the Missing Link (Onega 3 Superfood Supplement). It's a powder to mix in food. I generally give my dog 2 heaping teaspoons midday mixed in plain yogurt (also good for the yeast problem). His dry skin has cleared up and it has done wonders for his coat which is better now than when he was much younger. It's just beautiful now, thick and shiny, soft and full. Before it was falling out all over and had become smelly, dull and wiry. (11/22/2009)
One of my dogs was always scratching her ears and the insides were red as tomatoes. I too thought she had a chronic ear infection. Turned out she had ear mites. I get olive oil (about 1/3 cup) and cut up garlic cloves (more the better). Let the garlic sit in the olive oil for a few hours. Get an eyedropper and suck up the oil only. Put a few drops in your dogs ears. Rub the ears from the outside. Your dogs ears will smell like garlic but it's the garlic that kills the ear mites. After a while flush out the ears with warm water or a good ear cleaner solution. If a lot of junk comes out of the ears, your dog probably has an ear mite problem. (11/23/2009)
By Ce
What about peroxide? It cleans ears and helps kill the irritant that is causing the ear infection. Repeat over several days. (11/24/2009)
By joanne
Your pug has long floppy ears. Great for developing a yeast infection, His ears are a warm, dark, moist eviroment. You need to constantly clean his ears to help prevent a yeast infection. Dry skin may be an indication of a food allergy which also can cause ear infectins. Check out an ear cleaning (wax, pus, cerum etc) product called EARKLEEN. It is a patented formula that contains all the previously suggested home remedys plus more and is Ph adjusted to about 6.5 (slightly acidic). (12/26/2009)
By Robert
I agree with the other users who said our dogs have many of the same problems we have -- including ear infections. I've noticed that the antibiotics prescribed to my dogs are the same ones that doctors have prescribed to my family. However, some users also suggested a mixture of alcohol, vinegar, and water dispensed with a dropper. I was to strongly discourage this practice. Last year, I had an ear infection for months, which proved to be resistant to multiple types of antibiotics.
Eventually, an ENT suggested I use the alcohol/vinegar/water treatment for 10 days. I wish I could go back in time and ignore his presription. The mixed solution damaged my eardrum and resulted in scar tissue. One week he was saying, "This isn't bad at all; we'll clear it up in 10 days with time-tested vinegar and alcohol!"
Within two weeks he said, "Well, now the eardrum is scarred. I don't know how that happened. It looks like the vinegar and alcohol weren't appropriate." And, now I'm left with a scarred ear that aches, especially when exposed to cold weather or wind. I would not take the risk of putting these substances in the ears of my pets or children. Mine is but one experience, but I submit it to you before you make the mistake I did. (03/13/2010)
By Temporary
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