My dog has ear infections and won't eat his new food. Why?

Hi there. Recurring ear infections, or persistently itchy, irritated ears, are indeed a common sign of allergies in dogs. This can be due to environmental allergies, a food allergy, or both. Apoquel is usually effective at treating environmental allergy problems - so if it didn't help much, I agree that a food trial with a prescription hypoallergenic diet would be the next logical step. If she responds well to the prescription diet, you may be able to cautiously switch her back to an over-the-counter limited ingredient food for long-term maintenance.

I am sorry to hear of Princeton's ongoing war issues. If you are concerned about possible medication side effects I would recommend discussing this with your regular veterinarian. I would also discuss with them the possibility of food allergies. Chronic/recurrent ear infections like you are dealing with for Princeton can often be secondary for a food allergy, a diet change may be what is needed for him. When considering a new food remember that the protein source is typically the thing that causes the allergy-look at Princeton's current dry food to see what the protein source is. You will need to look for a food with a protein source he has not been exposed to (remember that the chicken you feed mixed with his food is a potential allergen as well). Your vet can discuss any particular brands or products they recommend, and be aware that a food trial for allergies can take 6-8 weeks before any effect is seen. Also talk to your vet about culturing the material in Princeton's ears, if you haven't already. Sometimes the yeast or bacteria that is present becomes resistant. A culture will show what type of organism is present, and what medication is going to be most effective. Your vet can then help you tailor a new treatment plan to try and resolve the issue. I also recommend routine ear cleaning at home using a cleaning solution recommended by your vet. Keeping the ears clean of debris can help reduce the number of infections. Good luck-I hope you are able to get Princeton feeling better soon!

I am sorry to hear about Bear. Unfortunately most bad ear infections do require prescription strength medications to treat. There is an over the counter product that can be found at some pet stores called Zymox Otic HC that you can try, but if he is continuing to not eat, we don’t often see this with ear infection and I would be worried he has something else going on as well and he should be seen as soon as possible.

Hi there and thanks for posting on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! If your veterinarian has suspected a chicken allergy, the best thing to do is to avoid chicken and chicken byproducts in all foods and treats. You can try a different flavor of food (one without chicken or chicken byproducts). If he is a fussy eater, the best thing you can do is not immediately change the food (unless there is a medical reason to do so) if he doesn't eat right away. Offer the food you purchased and he will eventually get hungry enough to eat what is in front of him. He wont starve! I hope this helps and best of luck to you and Ishwar!

Allergies can cause dogs to have chronic ear problems. You could ask your vet about trying medications for allergies and see if that helps. I would also recommend an ear culture to make sure that he is doesn't have a resistant infection. You could also switch him to a hypoallergenic diet and see if that helps.

No, it’s not really common unless the rear infection has ruptured the ear drum and is really down in the middle ear, which is very very rare. I would be concerned that another problem is going on. I would recommend a follow up appointment with your veterinarian. They may want to perform some blood work for more information. Good luck, I hope he improves soon.

It could potentially be an ear infection. I would recommend taking Diesel to the veterinarian to have them evaluate his whole ear canal to make sure an infection isn't deep in the ear canal. If you wanted to switch dog foods I would go to a salmon based formula to get some omega 3s in his diet. It is not a hypoallergenic food but it may help a little. Make sure you get the puppy version of the food and do a gradual transition to the new diet. I hope Diesel feels better and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.