Wednesday, August 15, 2007

My Lab has had ear problems all his life part I

Readers E-mail - Leanna (USA) Writes

This is part one of a two part reader's e-mail question.

My Lab has had ear problems all his life. He has had surgery on both of them.

He scratched them until he developed big blood clots under the skin...Poor thing....

He has a yeast infection in his ears and on his feet all the time.

He lived with my daughter for three years and she took him to the vet for these conditions....She, and I do this as well...clean his ears with some sort of solution that has alcohol in it....it's purple....it seems to bring some relief but it's an on-going condition....

Question: do you know of anything that might get rid of this and can I use regular old medication for atheletes feet on his paws?

I really would appreciate any advice you could give me as the poor thing, though very docile, is constantly shaking his head and licking his feet.

Leanna

All About Labradors Blog Answer:

Below is my reply to Leanna's initial e-mail question, and in red lettering you will read her answers.

Hi Leanna,

Thank you for writing and I'm sorry to hear about your Labrador Retrievers problem.

In order for me to try to be of some help to you, I will need some further information.

How old is he?

He is four

How old when he started getting these infections?

Since he was a puppy

What was the vets diagnosis and treatment (beside surgery)?

No real diagnosis....just that some Labs have trouble with their ears and he was one of them...He gave me something to use, but when I would put it in his ears...he would nearly go wild....it must have really hurt....so I stopped it.

Continue Reading...


What kind of dog food does he eat? Please tell me name brand and flavor (chicken and rice, beef, etc)

He eats Wal*Mart's version of kibbles and bits...the chicken.

Do you feed him anything else besides the dog food (treats, table scrapes, etc.). Be specific with name and flavor of treats.

Yes, we do feed him table scraps....not a lot...and in the last week he has eaten three packs of hotdog buns....Not because we let him....He has a way of sniffing out this stuff....and just getting it.....Day before yesterday....he got in the bread box...how he got it open I'll never know....He also knows how to put his paw on the trash can lever and open it. Smart dog.

Is the purple solution called, Gentian Ear Treatment? Is it called Blue or Purple Power Ear Solution as seen on the All About Labradors blog:

http://allaboutlabradors.blogspot.com/2007/01/black-lab-with-incessant-ear-infection_15.html

If its not can you find out what it was called and the ingredients.

Actually, my daughter has had him for three years and just gave him back to us...because she had two other big dogs....she's the one who has been treating him with the purple stuff.... I'll see what I can find out...

Anything else you can tell me about this condition.

Nothing else

What is his name :)

His name is Tank. He is not a full blooded Lab....He weighs about 85 pounds and has a huge head and paws....he has the most precious disposition.....

With all the email questions I receive, I always ask a favor of the person writing. If you have any photos of your Labrador Retriever, that you could email me, I would love to post them to All About Labradors and/or Labrador Retriever Pictures blog.

I haven't got any recent pictures...just puppy ones....I'll take some and send you one.....

Please get back to me with the answers to these questions at your earliest convenience.

Thank you so very much for responding ....I am desperate to find a solution for him....Right now his ears seem to be ok....He hasn't been shaking his head as much.....

I don't know if this is significant or not: My daughter lived in South Carolina where the weather, as you know, is hot and humid. We live in West Virginia and I was wondering if the change in climate might help his condition. It's cooler and we have fewer months of real heat than they do down there....I didn't know if the heat and humidity would complicate his condition.....

Also, did I tell you initially that between the pads on his feet....his feet are so red and he licks them alot...one of his feet even looks swollen. I thought maybe some medicine for athletes feet might help....except I was worried it might make him sick if he licked his feet after I had applied it.....Poor baby, he is a train wreck...but he is a silent and sweet sufferer...

Thanks again for your help...Leanna


Talk to you soon,

Fay

To read part two of this reader's e-mail click: My Lab has had ear problems all his life part II.

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