My cat's ears stink, have black discharge, and sound wet. Vet needed?

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. The odor you are smelling could be due to an ear infection or ear mites. I would recommend having a veterinarian examine the ears so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

It sounds like your cat may be dealing with an ear infection. Ear infections can be caused by bacterial, parasitic or fungal infection, or a combination of these, and can be associated with dietary or environmental allergies or sensitivities, immune system disorders, or a combination of the above. Your cat needs to see a vet. Your vet can look at a sample from an ear swab under the microscope and treat appropriately based on what is found. Your vet will also need to examine the ear with a scope to see if the ear drum is intact, as some medications cannot be used safely if the eardrum is ruptured. Ear infections can be very painful, and can sometimes progress to include the middle or inner ear, where they can cause neurologic signs or permanent hearing loss. Please book an appointment to have your cat seen by a vet as soon as possible. Good luck!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Judging from the picture you provided, I see black waxy material and also a tattoo that has been done on the inside of the pinna. The tattoo is likely to indicate that she has been spayed and it is in the pattern of a circle with a linear line through it. That is not a concern at all and will be permanent. The black wax may be due to ear mites or an ear infection though. I would recommend having a veterinarian examine Fluffy so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further!

This is very likely to be a mite infestation, you will need to take her to the vet to get it confirmed and treated. generally speaking i do not recommend bathing your cat ever, unless she somehow got herself dirty to the point of no return, cats should not be bath and most of them really hate it.

It is difficult to diagnose an ear infection without examining the discharge under a microscope to see if there are any bacteria, yeast, or mites. Based on the pictures, it does not appear to be a large amount of discharge. There aren't any OTC ear medications for infections but you could clean the ear with just an ear cleaner labeled for cats and see if that helps. Clean three times a week for now and then once weekly and see if that gets rid of all the discharge. If not, he really needs to go to a vet for treatment.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. If Mimi is scratching one ear more than usual, it is likely that she has an ear infection. Ear infections can be bacterial and/or fungal in origin. If left untreated, simple external ear infections can progress to middle or inner ear infections, leading to vestibular disease or even central nervous system signs. I recommend making an appointment with your veterinarian to have Mimi checked for an ear infection. He/she will likely perform an ear cytology, meaning he/she will swab her ear and look at the material under a microscope. This way, your veterinarian can look for evidence of bacteria and/or yeast and treat her accordingly. I hope this is helpful!

I would purchase a pet ear cleaner and perhaps some ear medication from PetCo. Once you get all of the discharge out of the ear it should improve. This needs to be cleaned twice daily to start, then once a day until it is looking better. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your kitty.