Dog's ear swollen, head tilted after vet. Wrong meds or new vet?

If this presentation is due to a trauma and secondary localized spot of skin infection (likely to be caused by bacteria), a check up, appropriate disinfection and antibiotics (oral, topical or in a shampoo formulation) are needed to solve the problem. Yes I would recommend to have them prescribed by your vet. Disinfection may be started at home with very diluted hibiscrub or betadine or salted water baths. Buster collar may be useful as well to avoid any scratching. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. Please find the time to give us a feedback about the consultation as that will be used to improve our service.

Hi and thank you for using PetCoach. I am sorry Miss Bell's ear is swollen. A swollen ear can be due to an ear infection/chronic irritation (like allergies or ear mites) but could also be because of an aural hematoma. An aural hemtoma is when blood collects in the ear pinna (between the skin and cartilage). Both infections and hematomas can be painful and uncomfortable. I would recommend seeing your veterinarian to do a full physical exam and treat Miss Bell's ears depending on the diagnosis. Here are some articles that may be helpful for you: 1. Aural Hematomas: https://www.petcoach.co/article/ear-hematomas-in-dogs/ 2. Aural Hematomas: https://www.vin.com/veterinarypartner/default.aspx?pid=19239&species=All&id=4951446 3. Ear Infections: https://www.petcoach.co/article/ear-infections-otitis-externa-ear-cleaning-in-dogs/ 3. Ear Infections: https://www.vin.com/veterinarypartner/default.aspx?pid=19239&id=4951994

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It does sound like possibly an ear infection. Usually, face swelling is not a commonly encountered sign of an ear infection so if his face continues to get swollen before tomorrow when you can have him evaluated by your veterinarian, consider having him evaluated tonight to make sure it is not something more concerning than an ear infection. In the meantime, try to limit his activity in case he has associated pain. Good luck! I will keep my fingers crossed that everything turns out well!

I'm so sorry to hear about Bruzo's problems. If Bruzo is improving with his medications, it may just take a little longer for his signs to resolve. However, if he is getting worse or is no longer improving, then I think it is time to talk to your vet again. They may need to adjust his medications if he is not healing as expected. Good luck! I hope that was helpful and that Bruzo feels better soon. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Unfortunately it sounds like your dog Kate shook her head so much that she burst a blood vessel in her ear pinna. This is called an aural (ear) hematoma. The only way to fix this is to go to your vet and get her on ear medication (to treat for an underlying ear infection, which is usually the cause), pet friendly pain meds, and treatment for the swelling. This can't be treated at home I'm afraid and there are no safe over the counter pain meds for pets. So I would advise getting Kate seen by a vet right away for treatment. Poor girl. Once she sees the vet they should be able to take care of this, because this is quite common in pets. I would ask your vet if steroids can be tried versus surgery on the ear, because I personally have had good luck with my patients when I treat this with medication. I wish your fur baby well in her recovery. Here is more information about this disorder to help you understand what is happening and how this is typically treated. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=566

Hello, thank you for using PetCoach. Oral medications (ie: antibiotics) do not work well for ear infections. Any medication to treat an ear infection should be used topically (inside the ear). Oral pain medication would probably be helpful but you would need to get those from your vet. In my opinion, if the ear is that painful you really should take him to your vet now for an examination so they can use the scope to look into the ear and also test the ear discharge to see what the infection is composed of (bacteria or yeast or both). They will also be able to see if the ear drum is intact. Some medications are contraindicated if the ear drum is ruptured. Cyclobenzaprine is NOT recommended for use in dogs. It has a very narrow margin of safety in dogs (and cats) and can cause significant central nervous system (CNS) and cardiovascular (CV) adverse effects. You should NOT use it. If you want to try to treat the ear at home, which I do not recommend, you can use this specific over the counter ear medication linked below. It is once a day and you do not have to clean the ear out first. It contains an anti-inflammatory (hydrocortisone) that should help with inflammation/pain. It is a small bottle so you will likely need at least 2 (if not 3) to do a full course of treatment. You must be sure to get the medication all the way down into the ear canal or it will not help much. If you chose to do this and there is no improvement in 4-5 days then you must take him to your vet for an exam. If he does seem to be improving then continue once daily for at least 14 days. ( https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/zymox-ear-solution-with-5-hydrocortisone-125-fl-oz-2399174 ) Hope this helps. Best wishes.

Ice the swelling area for 5 minutes three times per day for the next 2 days. You can apply a topical antibiotic ointment to the wound. If the dog is off balance, had a head tilt, won't eat, etc. then he needs to see a vet. The swelling could be a blood clot or an abscess that the vet needs to drain.