My dog has ear infection. What can I do at home before the vet?

Poor Luna! Yes, it definitely looks like she has an infection in her ear - yellow crusty debris like this is not normal. She will need prescription ear drops from your vet to treat this effectively, so I would recommend taking her in for an exam tomorrow morning. In the meantime, you can use an over-the-counter ear flush such as Epi-Otic to gently clean the affected ear and remove the crusty discharge. This will not treat the underlying infection, but may help to make her a bit more comfortable until you are able to see the vet.

The best solution would be to have Luna examined by your veterinarian. A swab of the ear can be looked at in the clinic to determine if there is a bacterial or fungal infection. The type of infection will determine what medication will be dispensed. The vet can also make sure the eardrum is intact. It is never recommended to medicate the ear without knowing if the eardrum is intact. If not, medication may enter the middle ear causing further complications. You can place an e-collar (cone) on her to prevent more scratching until she sees the vet m

Hello! Luna could have a couple things going on. When dogs have red ears, it could be due to an infection in the ear from bacteria or yeast, or they can have something stuck in their ear like hair or a grass seed. You can try flushing her ear out with a 50:50 mix of white vinegar and water and use a cotton ball to clean the ear once the flush is done. Here is helpful video on ear cleaning: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cC0l1rlYi5Y&sns=em If this doesn’t resolve the issue, have your vet examine the ears. They can test for infection and also see if there is something stuck. They can then also prescribe medications to clear things up. Best to you and Luna and thanks for using Pet Coach.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. You could try Zymox, which you can find online quite easily. However, the concern with just starting an ear medication without examining the ear canals is that you may be administering ear medications in an ear with a ruptured ear drum. I would recommend having a veterinarian examine Luna so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

I would put an Ecollar on Luna for now. If she keeps pawing at her eye, she will scratch the cornea and cause damage to it. I can put a link below on how to make one at home. She will need to see a vet first thing in the morning. I hope this helps! http://dogsaholic.com/care/homemade-dog-cone.html

I would recommend waiting until Monday before starting any antibiotics so your vet can see what it looks like and start appropriate treatment. In the mean time, you can keep the area clean and place an e-collar on Luna if she's trying to chew at the area. If she's severely distressed, I would recommend an emergency clinic visit to get started on treatment sooner.

You can use an over the counter dog ear cleaner to clean the discharge from Cujo's ears. Apple some to,a cotton ball and squeeze it into the ear. Squish it around and then wipe outward to remove the discharge. Then take a dry cotton ball to remove the excess fluid. To determine the cause of the infection I recommend and exam and they can look at the ear discharge under the microscope to determine if he has a yeast or bacterial infection or if there are ear mites. Once they have a diagnosis they can prescribe the correct medication. Often ear infections are painful so they may prescribe an anti inflammatory or pain medication also. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Cujo.