Why is my kitten's ear flaky with hair loss after ear mites?

This sounds very frustrating! Mittens' ear crusts could be a result of a fungal infection (such as ringworm), bacterial infection from allergies, or vasculitis (from underlying systemic disease or immune compromise). If the final fungal culture is still negative, consider talking to your vet about performing blood testing to evaluate underlying organ function and a skin biopsy. Good luck!

I would be worried as well. I suggest you have Penelope back to the vet for a follow-up. It looks like the ear flap is red and swollen. It is not likely ear mites because only one ear is affected. In over 25 years in the veterinary industry I have never seen only one ear affected with mites. Something else may be going on. Hopefully it is just a mild infection from the scratching but why she is scratching.....I don't know. Without examining her myself it is hard for me to say.

These skin lesions look like bacterial or possibly fungal infection. Mites can be responsible for it as well. A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Antibiotics may be needed. Hope this answer was helpful, 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.

Unfortunately, without seeing it in person, I can't say for certain what is causing this rough and bumpy patch beneath Shiki's ear. I can say that if she is scratching below her ear, that can be a sign of an ear infection, and I do think she should see a vet for it. Ear infections in cats can be caused by ear mites, yeast, or bacteria, and can only be treated by medications from the vet. I recommend having Shiki seen by a vet tomorrow to diagnose if she does have an ear infection, and to get medications to treat it if she does. It's important to treat any ear infection promptly, as leaving it untreated can lead to hearing loss.

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.

Poor Toby! He could have a middle ear infection caused by yeast or bacteria that you cannot see. His symptoms do indicate a problem with his ears, and I would take him into the vet today or tomorrow for an exam. The vet can look down his ears with an otoscope to see if he does have an infection, and can treat him for it. It's important to have any ear problem examined and treated promptly as leaving it untreated can lead to hearing loss.

Because all of them are affected, ear mites would still be my first suspicion, even though your vet did not find any under the microscope (the fact that you just cleaned the ear before that might have something to do with that indeed). it can take 4-7 days for the cats to stop scratching their ears after the treatment has been started. other reasons for these symptoms include fungal or bacterial ear infections.