My dog has ear pain and a swollen face. What could be causing this?

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Blu. Poor boy. It could be an allergic reaction that he is suffering from, and my main concern is that his face looks swollen. If his face swells too much, it could cut off his trachea, leading to respiratory distress. I would take him into a vet immediately to get checked out. Best of luck.

If Zamboni is in a lot of pain and not resting I recommend a veterinarian tonight. If he is comfortable and the swelling is not getting worse, interfering with breathing or getting better than it is ok to call your regular veterinarian in the morning. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Have him examined by your veterinarian. There may be serious infection and possibly an aural hematoma if she has been shaking her head. A hematoma develops when a blood vessel is broken in the ear flap due to shaking. This results in an ear that looks like a small pillow. Treatment is typically surgical. An ear infection can be diagnosed by examining a swab of the ear under a microscope. This can be done in the clinic. Infection can be caused by bacteria, yeast or a combination of both. The treatment will depend on the cause. "Simple" ear infections can be treated topically and usually resolve within 10-14 days. Place an e-collar (cone) on Nicki to prevent rubbing or pawing until she sees the vet.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Lucky seems to have developed an aural hematoma, which occurs when the ear is traumatized and a blood vessel is broken open inside the ear flap leading to a balloon of blood essentially. This typically needs to be drained to be treated. The cause is likely due to a severe ear infection. I cannot even tell where the opening of the ear is due to the severe swelling. In addition to the ear problem, I can see that poor Lucky is dealing with a severe skin allergy / skin disease as he is missing a lot of skin on his neck and the skin also appears to be lichenificated (thickened like elephant skin). I would strongly recommend having a veterinarian take a look at Lucky for the ear problems and also the severe allergies he suffers from. There are many options to help treat allergies in dogs such as Apoquel, Cytopoint, Atopica, etc. 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.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Based on the swelling's location, this is possibly due to a tooth root abscess. This is something your veterinarian could check for on an examination and treat if confirmed. This is something that is treated with local therapy including drainage, debridement and antibiotics. Good luck and have a great day!

I am sorry to hear about Dido. A photo of his ear may help us to better answer your question, to understand where the swelling of the ear is located. If it is swollen down inside he ear canal, this could be an ear infection. If the pinnae, or floppy part of the ear is swollen, this could be due to a hematoma https://veterinarypartner.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951446 or pocket of blood the result of a ruptured blood vessel in the ear, due to trauma or scratching which can be secondary to an ear infection. I would recommend having your vet examine the ear to determine what treatment is needed.

Hi and thanks for posting on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There are a lot of things redness and swelling could indicate. Sometimes it means there is an infection present such as a bacterial infection. It could indicate an underlying allergy of some sort (environmental, contact allergy, or to food). Redness around the ears especially could mean an ear infection is present. My advice would be to take her into see her veterinarian so this can be evaluated. Your veterinarian may check her ears for an infection and may recommend antibiotics or certain topical medications depending on what your vet suspects.