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Hi Dr. Mag, I noticed one of our dogs shaking and scratching at their ear tonight. I looked in the ear and it is red and has dark brown ear wax on the outer ear and smells a little musty and sour. The other ear is normal, no smell and no redness. I removed the wax with cotton but do not have ear cleaner. Would I be able to purchase some cleaner from the vet? Or could you recommend one for purchase? This is for Zoey. Thank you!
I have a 14 year old female shitzu that has recently been licking her butt a ton. When I try to get close to her rear, she will either turn away from me or run and hide. When i was giving her a bath the other day, when I was trying wash her rear, she yelled. I was able to get a quick look when I was drying her off before she ran from me and there looks to be a white sore on the side of her anus. Would an antibiotic ointment or an antifungal ointment help?
Hello,
Your dog needs to be seen by a vet. I can’t tell you if the bump is even relevant to the clinical signs she is showing. She needs to be examined and a rectal exam done too. It might be allergies. Parasites. Anal sacs. Or even am impacted anal sac. These require oral antibiotics, pain meds and maybe even a drain. Please see a vet ASAP.
Good day- We are the proud owners of a one-year-old English Pointer named Bruno and a proud patient of Dr. Magnifico’s. Recently, Bruno has been shaking his head more often and scratching his ears. He has also been sleeping much more the past few days. When not sleeping, he is still pretty playful and eating/drinking. How do you know if he has an ear infection or not? His ears have been professional cleaned, but same actions with his head. Also, no smells coming from his ears. Any suggestions? Thank you.
Hello,
Ear infections are best diagnosed with an otoscope visualization and a swab and microscopic slide evaluation of the ears. In some cases there is simply dirt and debris and only an ear cleaning is needed. In others it is infection and therefore an otic antibiotic or antifungal is needed and in some cases it is just a red itchy ear due to an allergy. In any and all cases of head shaking it is imperative to identify what is going on and alleviate it ASAP or you can get an aural hematoma. Which adds two things to treat for and a painful pup too. Please call me and we can take a peek to see what’s up. As you are my client I will add the following at home tips.
1. Look at the ear flap. Is it red? If so this indicated inflammation and discomfort. Try diphenhydramine mg size equals weight of dog. Ie 50# dog = 50 mg diphenhydramine orally every 8 hours. If two doses don’t knock it out see me!
2. Is there any dirt or debris that looks like dark chunky wax inside the ear canal? If so you need to clean the ears. I have a video on this on my YouTube channel?
3. Do you see any yellow liquid in the ear? Does it smell terrible? If so you need a vet ASAP!
4. If it hurts to touch the ear see me ASAP.
Whatever the cause is once you have one ear issue you should expect more. So ask your vet about at home care and ear cleaners to help avoid this from happening again. Also lots of red rated head shaking dogs have allergies. Ask about this before you get an aural hematoma. (YouTube on that too!)
My male cat keeps biting and taking chunks of hair out of my female cat who is very fluffy. He plays rough like that with her and I don’t know how to make him stop. She cries and it obviously hurts her having hair ripped out. I yell at him, put him in a separate room but nothing stops it from happening again. They both are fixed and he’s not trying to mount her. He will bite anywhere, tail, leg, side, etc.
Are they playing too hard? How sold are they? In some cases they don’t have any idea to respectful boundaries. Like the male is way to excited and gets aggressive about playing. Can you give him toys and help him play with toys, laser pointer, etc do he is a little worn out before he sees her? Anything to try to relive the playmate birder she carries alone. Also be careful with yelling. Cats just don’t get reprimand. It usually backfires.
Good afternoon!
I volunteer at a local rescue in their feline only facility. We received a young cat, named Cami, recently that is 9 months old. She has a right head tilt that started about 2 months ago (7 months of age) according to the person who had her since she was a kitten.
A local vet attempted an exam but did not have a scope small enough to look into her ear and the exam became very uncomfortable for Cami. The plan was to get a smaller scope, knock her out and do the exam. Unfortunately, they are unable to acquire the scope at this time. The suspicious is that this is a polyp.
Any ideas what this could be? We are currently wondering if this could be something treatable with medication (to try first) or should we pursue the polyp investigation. Since we are a rescue we are trying to balance the cost but still address Cami’s needs.
Cami shows no distress because of her condition. She does not scratch the ear or shake her head. And is awfully cute!
Thank you, in advance, for any help you can offer!
Hello!
In cases like these I really prefer to get a good exam before jumping on other treatment options. After I am sure there is nothing abnormal in the ear we talk about other possible causes of head tilt. I think it might be best to sedate and examine for ear issues and even a polyp in the oropharynx area. Start here. Try not to do otics until you get an exam done. I hope this helps. Let me know what happens.
Thank you! I appreciate your advice – I’ve seen your videos on polyps and you’ve seen a friend’s cat for nasal polyps. Will let you know what we find out.
My puppy has a lump on the right side of her face. My dog sitter pointed it out to me when I picked her up from daycare today. It is soft and tender to the touch. She does not like when I try and touch it and I am unable to look inside of her mouth. It seems like it is really bothering her. She is eating and drinking normally this evening, but created herself and seems like she is in pain. I made her a vet appointment for tomorrow afternoon but is this something I should be seeking more immediate attention for?
Good morning-
Sorry that your pup has an issue. I think if it is worse this morning that you should give a call to the vet and see if they can push your appointment up. And I would definitely note any changes…. more swelling, warm to touch, lethargy, change in appetite, etc. also try to think back and maybe even ask your dog sitter for help- see if you can pinpoint when it first appeared and what it could possibly be connected to. For instance, could it be a spider bite or some other bite? Or has pho’s mouth been tender lately? Could it be a tooth abscess? Anything to help your vet narrow down the possibilities to get the right treatment. Best of luck to you!!!????????
Hi- just checking in. How did things go at the vet?
Hey! – We took our girl to her appointment yesterday and the vet said that everything seems normal (temperature, eating habits, energy level, etc.) so we were directed to just keep an eye on it for now. There isn’t any point of origin around the lump so the vet speculated that it could possibly be a hematoma from playing rough with other bigger dogs at daycare. It doesn’t appear to have changed in size, but Norma’s (our puppy) disposition seems just slightly off. She vomited a little bit this morning as well, but she did also get a Lyme’s vaccine yesterday so there are a lot of factors at play. She’s staying home from daycare today and my partner is keeping a close eye on her. Thanks so much for your response and for checking in!! 🙂
Hi I have read your article about seromas and how to best leave them alone. Now my kitten has one after her desexing surgery however hers keeps getting bigger. At what size does it become concerning?
It doesn’t look infected and she is behaving just fine.
Thank you!
Good morning-
Have you already gone to your follow up visit to the vet? If not- I would ask them to look at it. Meantime, so long as it is not warm or sore to the touch or bothering her, I would just keep a close watch. If her behavior changes (lethargic, loss of appetite) I would call the vet ASAP. I’m assuming you’ll have a few kitten check ups in the near future, so your vet can also help you monitor it. Seromas can take a very long time to resolve. Best of luck!!
Hey! Thank you so much for your response! I’ve been to the vet and they have said to give it some time. They have already removed three of the four stitches and we have an appointment for the last one next week. She seems okay I am only worried now that she sleeps 90% of the day which is very unlikely! Do I need to worry or is that normal after an operation?
I agree with Sarah! Seromas aren’t inherently dangerous but they can also hide an underlying issue so it’s best to have your vet check it. Thank you for having your kitten spayed. It is so important to help them live longer healthier lives and control the over burdened pet population. Best wishes to you both. Let us know what happens.
Hi Krista,
Thank you so much for your reply! I have been to the vet and they said to give it some time. We have another appointment to remove the last of the stitches next week!
She is just still so tiered sleeping 90% of the day… is that normal? She is eating fine and extremely snuggly. Just out of character for her to sleep this much.
Hi, I have a 16 yr old shih tzu that has had brain tumour surgery but had complication of regrowth of a cyst several times and went for fine needle cyst drainage quite a few times. She has degraded to the point of being totally non-ambulatory except for some head movements. She has to have her urine and stools expressed everytime and she has to be handfed. But she still eats very very well. I need advise on what my pet needs at this point and whether is there any reason/last wish that is making her hang on so dearly to her life despite her quality of life and body already failing her? Shes like a family. i am torn between keeping her alive and letting her go if shes suffering but my love for her and our bonds is muddling my thoughts and decisions. I have taken care of her intensely for almost a year now from prior surgery to post surgery and she had so many complications, cyst regowth several times, loss n regain limbs ability, pneumonia, anemia. She always pulled through but now shes at a stage where shes really just hanging onto her dear life i feel, lying the whole day, only able to move her head during mealtimes when she is hungry. I have spent over 30 thousand dollars this while for her medications and procedures and vet visits, she even goes for rehab/pt/accupuncture and hyperbaric which are very costly. It has gotten to a point that I am spending more than I earned every month on her rehab (even though she cannot move, she still does ultrasound therapy on her severely arthritic joints and some accupuncture to relieve any pain from not moving everyday and her mountain of medications and supplements. I really cannot imagine life without her, she is my pillar of hope and support in my dark and depressed life and family full of issues. Now my pillar is crumbling. I still take care of her, i dont care about my finances, i stopped going out except to work, i bring her everywhere whenever i can in a dog pram she just lies motionless. Its amazing how she would wake and eat so very very well and finish all her big plate of food every day twice a day but lies motionless and tired after that. Its amazing how she would use her whatever remaining energy to poop when i try to rub and stimulate her anus once everyday without fail. She would be so tired after all that. It kills me to see her like this. Before that she can move n walk or at least drag ard the hse n look happy still so its ok worth all these. I wake up 3 4 times every night to help her drink water eat snacks she would wake from hunger and pant everynight even now maybe from prednisolone. But now shes just motionless and heart murmur has reached grade 5 or 6 and anemic and totally cannot move at all but still eats super well and pee poo normal with help express. A part of me feels like euthanasing her to end her misery and my own heartache seeing her suffer yet i cant bring myself to do it thinking that she would be reallly gone and that i might have done it wrong because shes still wants to be ard and live that is why she is hanging on so dearly. Please advice me..please. i am so loss and torn between choices its killing me every moment im awake.
hello,
this question was answered elsewhere. I applaud you for your dedication and devotion to your pup. You have gone above and beyond. i wish you well,
Five days ago my 7year old German Shepherd was out side playing and running with my beagle puppy. Next thing I know she is yelping in pain and rolling around on the ground. By the time I get to her she has stopped crying out and is laying still. I realize both hind legs are paralyzed. We immediately take her to the vet and she is examined. She doesn’t appear to be in any pain and she DOES have deep pain sensation! She is immediately started on Steroids, Muscle Relaxers, and Anti Inflammatories. She remains at the vets for five days and receives cold laser therapy and a small amount of PT. She never looses her DPS and really seems to be in good spirits. I took her home yesterday and I am determined to help her regain her mobility. I do not have a true diagnosis and seeing a Neurologist is not going to happen due to finances and living so far from one. My vet told me to take her home and gave me range of motion exercises and told me to buy her a harness. He said it will just take time. She is able to relieve herself without help! She is reacting more each day to us touching her legs and back!!
I am so confused and have read everything I can find on the subject and can’t get any answers. Should I start working with her and letting her walk or should I confine her to her kennel for a while? Should I use a harness or not? I just wish I had some answers!! Please help!!
Hello-
I am so sorry this has happened. I would monitor her closely as you have been. I would also check in with the vet daily and gives progress report and get advised on each thing you should be doing with your dog as far as therapy and recuperation. I hope she improves and gets better!!
Hi. I have a 7 months female husky and she has jaundice symtoms. I’m really stress to her coz i really love my dog. And I want her to survice to her situation. Is any idea for hime remedies treatment for this kind of symptoms. I kinda scared and nervous on what will happen to her on the nextday. So please of you know some home treatment for her support. Please 🙁
If you suspect jaundice or some type of liver disease, you need to get to gather vet right away.
However, i just need something that i can lessen her pain. 🙁 or additional treatment not only for medicine
I understand that, but the only way to get treatment is for a vet to assess her situation and give a proper and full diagnosis. Please get to a vet right away to get help for your dog.
Hello,
Is there anyway you could have her seen? The reason I ask is that we always want to differentiate between inflammation (red ears can be a sign) and infection as they take different treatments. I am at the clinic tomorrow. For now you can give Benadryl (50 mg) by mouth to see if it helps the redness. If you prefer to not leave your home we can start with an ear cleaner you can pick up here and see if this helps. If there is pain or a foul odor coming from the ears you really should have her seen ASAP. Be safe. Krista.
Hi. Thank you. I can bring her for an exam tomorrow. I will call the clinic in the morning to see what time is best. Thanks again!
Hope you are all well. Please stay safe!