My dog has a sore on his ear. Is it an infection and how to treat?

Hi and thank you for using PetCoach! I am so sorry to hear that Snoopy's ear is red. It is very possible Snoopy may have an ear infection. Ear infections are most commonly due to underlying allergies such as environmental or food allergies. It is possible Snoopy has mites in that ear but less likely since only one ear is very affected. I would recommend taking Snoopy in to see your veterinarian. They will likely take swabs from both ears and look at a cytology of them (under the microscope) to look for infections. If this is the case, your veterinarian will recommend ear cleaner/ medication. Good luck! Here is an article that describes ear infections in more detail: https://www.petcoach.co/article/middle-inner-ear-infections-in-dogs/

It sounds like Ruby had an injury or insect bite that caused the sore. A skin sore should be cleaned with antibacterial soap, rinsed and then apply a thin film of antibacterial ointment on it to prevent infection. If Ruby is scratching it that will slow the healing. Use a restraint collar if needed to prevent her from rubbing or scratching it. Most skin sores heal in about a week. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Ruby.

I am sorry to hear about your concern for Saki. It is a bit difficult to really see the lesion in these photos. If it looks like a whitehead pimple (has a whitish colored center) you can try cleaning it with an antibacterial soap such as Hibiclens (available at most drug stores) and applying a topical antibiotic ointment twice daily. If it is not resolving within a week or if it is increasing in size a vet visit is recommended. You can also try warm compresses for 15 minutes a few times a day if it looks like it might come to a head and drain. If it is more of a solid mass then it could be a small tumor. We can have benign (non harmful) tumors of the skin, but with any potential tumor it is safest to have your vet examine the area.

It looks as if your dog has a skin infection, most commonly caused by an allergy, a skin mite (Demodex) or fleas. 

The allergy could be a due to a protein in your dog’s food or an environmental allergy like to dust, pollens, grasses, etc. 

The allergy causes your dog to itch and chew at the skin which breaks down the skin barrier. This then leads to infection. Skin infections are typically characterized by large areas of hair loss, redness, crusting, flaking, and pustules. A thorough skin examination by your veterinarian should be able to determine the cause of the itch so it can be treated appropriately. Your dog will most likely need antibiotics to help clear up the infection and possibly an allergy/anti-itch medication like Apoquel, Atopica, or Cytopoint to give some relief while the infection clears up. A medicated shampoo may be beneficial as well. I would also recommend he be on a good flea control routinely too. Once the infection has resolved a long term allergy medication (like Apoquel or Cytopoint) can be given on a regular basis to prevent any future problems. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

It looks like your kid has a pretty severe ear infection there. The redness is inflammation and the gray area is thickening of the external ear canal from chronic inflammation. What would be best would be for your pup to be seen by your family vet for an ear exam and cytology. In order to treat this appropriately your vet will need to know if there are bacteria (and what type) or yeast or both in the ear canals and if the eardrum is intact. An anti inflammatory may also be needed because of the thickening. If ear infections are a chronic problem for your pup underlying allergy may also need to be explored. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

This appears to be some sort of topical dermatitis. It can be caused by an underlying allergy, a bacterial infection or a fungal infection. You will most likely need to put a topical medication on the sores to help them clear up. You can try some triple antibiotic ointment at home and see if that helps. If not, you will need to take Chico to see your veterinarian. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.

Unfortuantely this looks like an infection that is not going to respond to just an over the counter. Some possible causes of this are: allergies (ear margin dermatosis), an immune mediated disease, or even fly bites can cause lesions that look like this. You will have to take Ace in to your vet to get this treated. At the very least an antibiotic will be needed here and some discussion on possible underlying causes so that the source is also treated for as well. Until you can get Ace in, its best to clean these areas with Betadine diluted 50:50 with warm water to cut down on the bacterial load and help start the healing process. I hope that Ace's ear lesions resolve soon! Best of luck and take care.