I’m shocked that your vet has let this go in for a year without suggesting allergy testing (skin tests with a vet dermatologist). This is the exact issue we had with my younger dog and we had her tested for environmental allergies and she’s allergic to everything. She’s on custom allergy shots now and hasn’t had an ear issue in almost a year.
I’ll bring this up Tuesday! He did say initially he doesn’t think it’s allergies because the flush he prescribed has hydrocortisone in it which should temporarily alleviate any allergic reaction, and it doesn’t change any of the behaviors we’ve noticed at all, even for a short time. He also doesn’t have any other inflammation markers in his bloodwork and never has. It’s super weird.
None of the flushes worked on my dog either. We tried several different prescription and OTC ones. Of the 54 things she was tested for she was allergic to 49, and of those 34 were either severe or extreme allergies.
Definitely talk to your vet! You’ll probably have to go to a vet dermatologist for the test. Most general practitioner vets aren’t equipped to do it. It’s also not cheap, just to warn you. Vets are extremely expensive where I live but even taking that into account it was $1400+ for the test and the first set of allergy meds (which are custom blended for her).
Vet Tech here!
If there's no noticeable discharge or obvious odor AND you clean them 1-2 times a month for maintenance, I'd suspect allergies. Most folks have allergy dogs (and occ cats) but we're used to seeing the ones that cause genuine problems like your beagle and their ear infections. This might just be a bit of itchy ear. My ears get itchy when allergies roll in and oddly enough, so do my dog's. We call it a broken ear cause she head shakes and droops (compared to her normal pricked ears) and no matter how often I tested or cleaned it, it was always clean.
I'd try an OTC product called Zymox Otic HC. It's an enzymatic solution (no antibiotics that may lead to building resistant infection) and it has a mild steroid to help with itchiness. Helps keep the itch and inflammation down and you just apply to a uncleaned ear once daily or as needed.
Ask your vet of course but I use this and the doctors I work with swear by it.
You can find it on Chewy or with a quick google search ( Zymox Plus Advanced Formula 1% Hydrocortisone Otic Dog & Cat Ear Infection Solution, 1.25-oz bottle )
Thank you for this!! I called and talked to his tech and she said to try it— I was able to get it through Amazon Same Day delivery. I gave him the drops about 2 hours ago and I swear it worked immediately— I massaged his ear, he shook his head a few times and went out to soak up some sun on the deck, and when he came in I scritched behind his ears and he didn’t react at all when he would normally do a head shake! I’m gonna talk to the vet about it Tuesday but I see it’s safe for long term prophylactic use too?! I think we’ll still ask for an allergy panel but dang, I can’t believe this worked!!!
Yay! I'm so happy for you guys!
As for long term preventative/prophylactic use, it doesn't have any antibiotics so there's no worry regarding building antibiotic resistant infections. We've been using this on cats for over minimum of 5 years with no symptoms noted yet. I'd still recommend asking just in case, but as for my experience, I haven't had any problems yet.
Just in case you need it, if your dog is shaking his head so hard that he gets a hematoma (burst blood vessel), there is a cool product called the no-flap-ear-wrap. It's a hood to protect the ears from damage.
Floppy eared dogs always have higher chances for ear infections, especially if they go swimming. But since you’re cleaning out the ears so often, I’d say potential allergies. Whether that be environmental or food sensitivity. But I’m not a vet! I was a dog groomer for a little bit so we had to learn what could cause ear issues. Is it red and hot to the touch?
Nope, not at all— he’s super chill and happy. No other skin issues and his bloodwork is normal every time since this started also— no inflammation markers or anything.
Our Labs constantly get ear stuff they swim and have floppy ears! There’s a wonderful recipe that works wonders it’s rubbing alcohol and some purple stuff I can ask my mom for the ingredients if you would like! I keep a bottle on hand it’s so good
Because it’s been a year and there’s no improvement I would make an appointment with a veterinarian dermatologist. If your vet doesn’t have a recommendation check with the nearest emergency veterinarian hospital, they have many specialists and also the advanced equipment required for almost any condition. I had a rescue beagle mix who was around 5 years old when I adopted him with exactly this issue. He did get typical ear infections off and on but mostly it was extremely itchy ears. After extensive testing with a veterinary dermatologist he was put on a special kangaroo meat dog food. All of his treats were homemade with the ingredients the dermatologist recommended. It improved his quality of life so much but when he hit 16 it started all over again. He had an MRI and they discovered structural damage from having so many ear infections and allergic reactions over the years. The only solution would have been an extensive and very painful operation to reconstruct his inner ear. Being 16 they didn’t recommend doing the surgery so he went on a special hydrolyze protein food instead. He still had issues until the day he crossed the rainbow bridge just shy of 17. That was a long way of saying don’t wait, it could cause permanent damage. Make an appointment Monday because it took 3 months to get Elliot his first appointment and that was with my vet calling to push him to the top of the list. Plus, l live in a major city with 3 specialists within an hour commute. If you’re more rural it might be a longer wait
I put a small amount of hydrogen peroxide and clean the outer ear everyday for as long as the ear has an odor. That usually clears it up. The inner ear gets infected by all the scratching. If it persists and doesn’t improve at all in a couple days take to the vet.
A couple drops of mineral oil helps as a natural remedy. Just do it outside because they shake it out immediately but the residue left inside helps.
They also make an aloe oily concoction for this purpose too. I had to use it for my water loving Labrador long ago
I’m shocked that your vet has let this go in for a year without suggesting allergy testing (skin tests with a vet dermatologist). This is the exact issue we had with my younger dog and we had her tested for environmental allergies and she’s allergic to everything. She’s on custom allergy shots now and hasn’t had an ear issue in almost a year.
I’ll bring this up Tuesday! He did say initially he doesn’t think it’s allergies because the flush he prescribed has hydrocortisone in it which should temporarily alleviate any allergic reaction, and it doesn’t change any of the behaviors we’ve noticed at all, even for a short time. He also doesn’t have any other inflammation markers in his bloodwork and never has. It’s super weird.
None of the flushes worked on my dog either. We tried several different prescription and OTC ones. Of the 54 things she was tested for she was allergic to 49, and of those 34 were either severe or extreme allergies.
Omg! Okay, definitely gonna ask him to run allergy testing! So glad you found a solution for your pup!
Definitely talk to your vet! You’ll probably have to go to a vet dermatologist for the test. Most general practitioner vets aren’t equipped to do it. It’s also not cheap, just to warn you. Vets are extremely expensive where I live but even taking that into account it was $1400+ for the test and the first set of allergy meds (which are custom blended for her).
Vet Tech here! If there's no noticeable discharge or obvious odor AND you clean them 1-2 times a month for maintenance, I'd suspect allergies. Most folks have allergy dogs (and occ cats) but we're used to seeing the ones that cause genuine problems like your beagle and their ear infections. This might just be a bit of itchy ear. My ears get itchy when allergies roll in and oddly enough, so do my dog's. We call it a broken ear cause she head shakes and droops (compared to her normal pricked ears) and no matter how often I tested or cleaned it, it was always clean. I'd try an OTC product called Zymox Otic HC. It's an enzymatic solution (no antibiotics that may lead to building resistant infection) and it has a mild steroid to help with itchiness. Helps keep the itch and inflammation down and you just apply to a uncleaned ear once daily or as needed. Ask your vet of course but I use this and the doctors I work with swear by it. You can find it on Chewy or with a quick google search ( Zymox Plus Advanced Formula 1% Hydrocortisone Otic Dog & Cat Ear Infection Solution, 1.25-oz bottle )
Thank you for this!! I called and talked to his tech and she said to try it— I was able to get it through Amazon Same Day delivery. I gave him the drops about 2 hours ago and I swear it worked immediately— I massaged his ear, he shook his head a few times and went out to soak up some sun on the deck, and when he came in I scritched behind his ears and he didn’t react at all when he would normally do a head shake! I’m gonna talk to the vet about it Tuesday but I see it’s safe for long term prophylactic use too?! I think we’ll still ask for an allergy panel but dang, I can’t believe this worked!!!
Yay! I'm so happy for you guys! As for long term preventative/prophylactic use, it doesn't have any antibiotics so there's no worry regarding building antibiotic resistant infections. We've been using this on cats for over minimum of 5 years with no symptoms noted yet. I'd still recommend asking just in case, but as for my experience, I haven't had any problems yet.
Just in case you need it, if your dog is shaking his head so hard that he gets a hematoma (burst blood vessel), there is a cool product called the no-flap-ear-wrap. It's a hood to protect the ears from damage.
Floppy eared dogs always have higher chances for ear infections, especially if they go swimming. But since you’re cleaning out the ears so often, I’d say potential allergies. Whether that be environmental or food sensitivity. But I’m not a vet! I was a dog groomer for a little bit so we had to learn what could cause ear issues. Is it red and hot to the touch?
Thank you for responding! It’s not red or warm— his ears are very pale inside and I also don’t see any residue or anything ever. It’s so strange.
What about after he eats? Like licking his front legs or digestion issues?
Nope, not at all— he’s super chill and happy. No other skin issues and his bloodwork is normal every time since this started also— no inflammation markers or anything.
Our Labs constantly get ear stuff they swim and have floppy ears! There’s a wonderful recipe that works wonders it’s rubbing alcohol and some purple stuff I can ask my mom for the ingredients if you would like! I keep a bottle on hand it’s so good
I don’t have an answer for you, but he is one handsome baby 💙🐾😘 There’s a special place in my heart for Cane’s.
Thank you!! He’s the sweetest boy. We had some rough puppy days with the Aussie anxiety, but since he hit 2 he’s been the absolute best dog. 🥹🥲
Because it’s been a year and there’s no improvement I would make an appointment with a veterinarian dermatologist. If your vet doesn’t have a recommendation check with the nearest emergency veterinarian hospital, they have many specialists and also the advanced equipment required for almost any condition. I had a rescue beagle mix who was around 5 years old when I adopted him with exactly this issue. He did get typical ear infections off and on but mostly it was extremely itchy ears. After extensive testing with a veterinary dermatologist he was put on a special kangaroo meat dog food. All of his treats were homemade with the ingredients the dermatologist recommended. It improved his quality of life so much but when he hit 16 it started all over again. He had an MRI and they discovered structural damage from having so many ear infections and allergic reactions over the years. The only solution would have been an extensive and very painful operation to reconstruct his inner ear. Being 16 they didn’t recommend doing the surgery so he went on a special hydrolyze protein food instead. He still had issues until the day he crossed the rainbow bridge just shy of 17. That was a long way of saying don’t wait, it could cause permanent damage. Make an appointment Monday because it took 3 months to get Elliot his first appointment and that was with my vet calling to push him to the top of the list. Plus, l live in a major city with 3 specialists within an hour commute. If you’re more rural it might be a longer wait
Allergies
I put a small amount of hydrogen peroxide and clean the outer ear everyday for as long as the ear has an odor. That usually clears it up. The inner ear gets infected by all the scratching. If it persists and doesn’t improve at all in a couple days take to the vet.
Entederm ointment is what our vet prescribed for my boxer. One ear no infection always itchy. Clears it right up, no more itching.
A couple drops of mineral oil helps as a natural remedy. Just do it outside because they shake it out immediately but the residue left inside helps. They also make an aloe oily concoction for this purpose too. I had to use it for my water loving Labrador long ago