Since there are allot of Dog owners here, I Need some advice, Per the Vet, Tony is prone to allergies and with that comes ear aches, From time to time he will shake his head, Until recently the ear wash and a good cleaning worked, Last month he started shaking his head more and more, I can hear the fluid in his ears. A trip to the vet two weeks ago and i got Mometamax " Ear Drops" which worked for a week, today hes back to shaking his head. Again i can hear the fluid in his right ear, the ears look clean but his not feeling well. Any Ideas b4 i go back to the vet and pay another $150.00.
Thanks.

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If your vet did not perform a cytology (sample of the ear debris on a microscope slide), this needs to be done before anything else. Empirical (best first choice) therapy is not always successful, and your dog may have an infection that is beyond topical meds. The mometamax is a good combination (anti-itch, antibacterial, anti-yeast) product but is not enough for all infections. Ask your vet to do a cytology and check for yeast, and different bacterial populations. If there is more than one population of bacteria, then a culture and sensitivity should be performed in order to target the treatment better. Long story short, you need to go back to the vet for more looking. They should also check his ears for anatomic defects, including masses / polyps and the integrity of his ear drum, often inner ear infections can "seed" the external canals. Lastly, you should know that ear infections are not a primary problem, and to prevent their recurrence, you need to work with your vet to determine the underlying (likely allergic) cause; as a side note, about 40% of the dogs I see with chronic aural yeast infections have an underlying food allergy. Any more questions and I'm sure that myself or makvet can help you out!

Excellent Steve, My Wife did change his food recently i wonder if thats a contributing factor, Im calling the VET right now.

right on dr. steve those nasty recurrent ear infections can alot of times be chased down to food allergies. Only one suggestion though changing the food is not enough unless you know what you are changing it to. You need a novel protein and carbohydrate to adequately assess food allergy potential. What this means is something your dog hasn't been exposed to in its food (ie. fish/potatoe, kangaroo/oats, etc) Most commercially available foods are based on chicken and rice so just changing foods is sometimes not enough.

Also a food trial needs to be very strict (only food the dog sees for a minimum of 8 weeks is his own diet)

About the momentamax, this is a medication not a cleaner. The two need to be used together. If you are not cleaning with at least an antibacterial/antifungal cleaner you are doing yourself and the dog a disservice (ie malaseb/T8 Keto). Must clean ears first with the correct cleaner then medicate correctly.

I see too many referrals for bad ears when the owners clean with water, alcohol, or peroxide, or just use the cleaner they can get from Petco.

I thnk i need a new VET, WHy hvsnt my VET told me this ? DR Steve where are you located, can i make an APPT ?

well stated and added Dr. Mark, thanks for your words:) Good luck with your vet WB, and if they can't help you, I can probably point you in the right direction. My office is in Iselin, if you are in south Jersey that might be a stretch; but I can find you some people who know what they are talking about and who may be closer to you. As a side note, I'm sure you feel my pain, Mark, of the many people that walk in with their new diet after you spend a 30min appt explaining the theory behind it and they tell you they switched from purina to hills because it was a new food:( I am currently on a venison kick for most of my food trials, lots of it available now, with varying carb contents; tough to find venison treats and it stinks up the house when clients cook it, so I've been using the Hill's hydrolyzed (gentle snackers, etc) treats for those treat addicts with food allergies.

The inhouse vets rock!

no Drew, you rock, we're just fulfilling our ethical responsibilities. . . we're only not charging because you guys own cool trucks:D

I won't be too much help since I am in central PA. I am glad to help you out in anyway possible.

I do alot of long distance advice for some of my friends who have, what's the best way to put it; not the most educated vets in the world.

Glad to help.

I agree that if you didn't own the beast ,I would just have to not talk to you.

we're only not charging because you guys own cool trucks:D

I agree that if you didn't own the beast ,I would just have to not talk to you.

Wow, vets do have a sense of humour! ;):D

Wow, vets do have a sense of humour! ;):D

we have alcohol problems also. dr. steve will have to chime in also.

alcohol is the only problem the governemnt will let us have. . . tough to prescribe without a DEA license:) So cheers Mark:D