Itchy Doggy Ears, but No Mites? Any Ideas?

[LotusWolf]

Hey everyone.

My dog, Dally, has been having a very bad issue where she constantly digs at her ears and also gnaws on her legs to where they are horribly scabbed and bleeding and she yelps out in pain when she hits a scab.

I've had animals with ear mites before and that's the first thing I suspected, of course. I took a q-tip to her ear canal and there isn't any debris and no sign of mites, just wounds from her digging constantly and no foul smell. The spots on her legs I suspect to be just ordinary hot spots, but as far as her ears go, I just have no clue.

She has the floppy ears of a Dachshund and I've trimmed her nails but of course, that doesn't help too much. She's going back to the shelter vet next week for a follow up on her heartworm treatments and I'll be able to ask them if they have any idea then. I'm about to get her a 'cone of shame' next week until we can figure out what to do and what's going on. She won't like it at all, but at least she won't be able to tear her ears open anymore and they'll have a chance to heal.

Anyone else have any experience with these symptoms?

[nancycccslp]

It could be yeast.  It's allergy season so it could also be allergies.  Both take specific meds so your dog needs to see a vet.

[LotusWolf]

As I said earlier, she'll be in to see the vet next Wednesday. Between then the best I can do is keep her ears clean and try to keep her from digging at them so badly. Will keep updated on what the vet guesses it can be, though. I just want my mutt butt to be comfy.

[CamieDoll]

Could definitely be allergies, could be food allergies, also could be an ear infection sounds like it might be a mixture of things. My dogs have food allergies and general outdoor allergies and one of mine will often get ear infections, something that helps with ear infections (my one that gets them is half poodle) he has curly messy fur and big floppy ears and the fur can clog their ears, so I always make sure his ears are clean and free of hair, (the groomer can pull hair from the ears also) the vet gave me an inexpensive solution to massage into his ear. I always know when his ear is bothering him because he shakes his head and itches it and i can just tell thats what is going on when he does that. Hope this helps!

[eyohkay]

If it was a yeast infection, you would know it.  My pup is getting over a yeast infection in his ear right now, and the smell was unmistakable once I put two and two together.  Blech.

[LotusWolf]

I forgot to post on here after we picked her up last Friday. The vet said it could be an on and off yeast infection and told us that she uses diluted listerine on cotton swabs to clean her dog's ears to prevent it.

[eyohkay]

That doesn't explain her leg chewing, though. 

[Andrea12065]

you can try to clean the dogs ears out wth apple cider vinegar, my mom did when her G.S was alive and it worked well

[RattusNorvegicus]

What about foxtails?? As you said, your dog has long ears, so that would make her susceptible to getting them in her ears. It would also describe the paw gnawing, and painful to the touch. I had a Cocker spaniel who always got them in her long ears, and had to get them surgically removed.

[LotusWolf]

That doesn't explain her leg chewing, though. 

*Sorry, forgot to post the answer for that one* The vet thinks it's just a nervous habit that her hound actually has as well and as she hasn't been chewing as severely as she has been, it's fallen down the list of worries and she hasn't created any new sores or scabs. Dally is a very nervous dog and we have strong reason to believe before her previous owners turned her in that she was abused.

Even two months later she still cowers down and is scared of certain people. The poor girl hates loud noises and gets scared very easily. We were told the owners before us adopted her 4 years ago as a puppy and brought her in because they didn't want to deal with her or treat her heartworms, leaving it to be the shelter's problem. She must not have been in there long before we picked her out because she wasn't listed on the website and she hadn't started her treatment yet.

She has gotten a lot better with trusting some people. We think someone elderly or possibly a smoker could have abused her (my grandma is both, we don't smoke in the house because of my fiance's health and we both hate it anyway) because she's the only one she's ever growled at. She growled when she came through the door and ran to her bed, tail tucked. As I said earlier, only person she's done that with. But, my grandma brings her treats every time she comes over and she's starting to get used to her. 

[nakedrats]

My foster kitty was chewing on his legs, and it seems to be a food allergy.  He was on a chicken based dry food (very skittish, and needed food out all the time so he'd have a chance to eat) and ended up with the fur chewed off of his legs.  I switched him to an all beef canned food (EVO 95% beef) and he stopped chewing and his fur grew back.  I just switched him to an all poultry (EVO 95% chicken/turkey) canned food, and within a few days, I noticed him chewing again.  I think he may be sensitive to chicken and it makes his skin itchy. 

You might try changing her diet to a new meat source (read the ingredients and try to minimize shared ingredients).  If you can do canned, I recommend the EVO 95% food.  The 95% beef food is beef + vitamins and minerals, so there's not much in there that's likely to cause problems.  Some dogs can be sensitive to a meat source, or a grain or veggie in the food, so it can be difficult to figure out what ingredient in a dry kibble is problematic.  They can have a lot of ingredients.

Or ask the vet about treating her with benadryl.  If the benadryl clears it up the chewing, you kow it's an allergy related problem.   

[RattusNorvegicus]

Did you see my post above? I just want to make sure foxtails are ruled out because they can be fatal.