My dog's ear is swollen, discolored, with a fluid pocket. What is it?

Hi there. I can't say for sure without being able to examine him, but what you're describing sounds like an aural hematoma - this is basically a pocket of blood in the ear flap. It's usually caused by the dog shaking his head or scratching at the ear due to an underlying ear infection or other problem, which can cause a blood vessel in the ear flap to tear. If he does have an aural hematoma, this can either be surgically drained by your veterinarian, or managed with anti-inflammatory medication and time until it eventually resolves on its own. I would recommend taking Herbie to the vet when you're able to, to confirm the diagnosis and see what your veterinarian suggests as the best course of action.

This looks like an aural hematoma, which is when blood and fluid builds up between the outer layer of the ear. Unfortunately this cannot be treated at home, Buddy needs to see a vet to have it treated. I'd take him into one today.

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. This is not an emergency, I would suggest scheduling an appointment with your veterinarian to have this looked at. This will need to be drained and treated to prevent it from refilling. The technique I use is draining the ear and injecting a steroid medication into the ear flap where the swelling is. Sometimes this takes two or three times to resolve the problem. This is what we call an aural hematoma. And happens when the ear flap is hit against something hard and the blood vessels on the inside of the ear flap burst and leak blood into the ear flap filling it like a balloon. If draining the ear flap and using the steroid injection for treatment does not work after 3 times then I typically resort to a more surgical approach by placing a drain into the earflap itself. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please feel free to contact me with any other additional questions you may have. I am also available for consultation if needed.

This is actually filled with blood. This is a hematoma between the skin layers in the ear flap. They develop when dogs scratch or shake their heads excessively, usually from an ear infection or some type of allergy. Generally this requires a veterinary exam and surgical drainage. They will also check Dozer's ears to see if they are infected or try to find the cause of the hematoma. He will need to wear a cone probably until the ear heals. Without treatment the ear swelling will go down but it may take a month or more and the ear will scar up and become deformed. This can be uncomfortable and there is a risk of infection so I recommend veterinary treatment soon. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Dozer.

Unfortunately this may be a so-called othematoma, ie a severe bruise of the ear flap. This will need to be drained or possibly fixed surgically by your veterinarian. It is very important that your dog does not shake the ear and make the swelling worse. You can get an e-collar which sort of keeps the ear near the head and does not allow it to flop until you can take Ozzy to 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.

If the ear looks like a small pillow, it could be a hematoma. Blood filling the ear will make it look puffy. The odor can be due to a severe ear infection. Excessive head shaking can cause a hematoma. Treatment is twofold. First, drain the ear or correctly via surgery then treat the underlying ear infection. Daisy will need to be examined by your veterinarian for confirmation and treatment. If it is not a hematoma, your veterinarian should be able to determine what is causing the condition after an exam and diagnostics.