My cat has chronic ear infections and a polyp. What to ask vet?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Rey! From your pictures I think that Rey likely has an ear infection with either bacteria and/or yeast. Ear mites are also possible. Polyps can lead to ear infections are usually removed surgically. In order to diagnose an ear infection, ear mites or a polyp she needs to be examined by a Vet. They will provide ear cleaner and ear drops and if she has a polyp they can discuss surgical options. I hope this helps and I wish Rey the very best!

I would recommend bringing him back to the veterinarian. The polyp removal may or may not help but it is recommended to have it removed. I would talk to your regular veterinarian to see exact cost of the surgery since every place is different. They would be able to see the polyp on their physical examination and give you a proper quote. As long as on physical examination Duncan looks good and he blood work is good then I would recommend even at his age it is ok to go through the surgery. They typically recover very well and quickly. He may need a few days of medications. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I'm sorry to hear Millie is having these issues! Many times in cats an ear infection indicates an underlying problem like a food allergy or ear polyps. It would be a good idea to talk with your veterinarian about putting Millie on a special prescription diet for food allergies (like Royal Canin hydrolyzed protein). Sometimes sedation and a deep ear flushing can be helpful and a veterinarian can also look for the presence of polyps while Millie is sedated. You may also want to look into a veterinarian who is a board certified dermatologist in your area. They may be able to help you with Millie as it sounds like she is a more complicated case. Finally, if Millie is sleeping more it would be a good idea to have blood work on her. She may have some other underlying condition that is affecting her health. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and I hope Millie is feeling better soon!

Harvey is beautiful! I am sorry to hear about his polyps but it is wonderful you are trying to get him help. Some polyps are simply removed without needing a CT scan, however if he is a complicated case it may be beneficial to be thorough. And be prepared that sometimes, no matter what you do, they recur. If he is a 'repeat offender' and has had a complicated history with polyps, it may be a good idea to have advanced imaging done, like the CT that was suggested. You could also consider asking your vet for a referral to a specialist- depending on who is nearby there may be an internist or a dermatologist who sees many cases like this and can help tailor therapy. I hope this is helpful and that Harvey feels better soon!

Poor cat. Her balance issues are very suggestive of an inner ear infection, which also means that she probably has a ruptured ear drum due to the chronic ear infections. Some pets are prone to repeat ear infections because of stenotic (narrow) ear canals, polyps inside the ear (quite common in cats, also will have nasal discharge), and a thyroid issue (not as common in cats). I would recommend getting Daisy back to the vet for oral antibiotics to treat the inner ear infection and just a sterile saline wash to clean the ears out, since no topical medication is safe to use in a ruptured ear drum. Then I would seriously consider checking for polyps and if not found then consider having a total ear ablation surgery for Daisy. This involves removing the inner ear canal which will essentially prevent any future ear infections from occurring. This is a drastic procedure and should be thoroughly considered after discussing the pros and cons with your veterinarian. But considering the severity of Daisy's ear problem, it definitely seems like an option that may be in her best interest. Here is more information about the surgical procedure TECA (Total ear canal ablation) and another similar procedure that can be done for Daisy- http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1708

In a senior cat, there is always a chance any lump could be cancer unfortunately. If it is cancer, the vet will likely want to do further tests to see if it's spread. There may be chance this is just a polyp, and removing it is curative. You need to be aware that any surgery carries risks due to anesthesia, but the vet wouldn't recommend the surgery if they didn't feel it was safe for him. I do recommend having the surgery done. I hope this helps!

Hi and thanks for your request. Neoplasia, chronic renal failure (CRF), and idiopathic hypercalcemia are common causes of elevation of Calcium levels. The approach to this problem with elevated Ca++ I would recommend is: - repeat the blood test and analyze the ionised Ca++ (which can give you a reliable information about the calcium levels). At the same time I would recommend to perform a urine analysis and determine the SDMA value on the blood which can be an early indicator of renal failure; - If then this is a true elevation (Ionised Ca++ elevated) I would recommend to perform x rays of the chest and an abdominal ultrasound. This is to rule out any possibility of a tumor, especially lymphoma which is a common reason for this problem. - Based on these results you can then either treat appropriately or look for other uncommon causes like Hyperparathyroidsm (HP), Vitamin D toxicosis, granulomatous diseases such as Actinomycosis and Criptococcosis, and Hypoadrenocorticism. Regarding the ear discharge, these are typical signs of an infection and antibiotics ear drops are often resolutive. Hope this answer was helpful, and at least gave you an idea of the next steps necessary in these cases, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!