Need a Home Remedy..

Dear G., I think with any infection....your dog is going to need the antibiotic. Usually thats the only thing that gets rid of the infection. I wouldn't mess around with anything else as the infection could get worse and your dog could lose his hearing. Also, you can really tell if it is an infection, because it will smell really bad. The antibiotic shouldn't cost much, at least my vet is pretty reasonable. Best wishes....CK

1 mom found this helpful

This is practically free and works:

Slice an onion into a nice big slice (1/2 inch thick). Lay the dog down and hold the onion on the open ear (you can use a paper towel for your half of it).

In just 5-10 minutes the onion will draw the infection out and it will disappear. It's pain-free too. I have used this on my children for years. Amazing!

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not really a "home" remedy, but go 1-800-petmeds web sight- it would at least save you an office call.

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I would reccomend having your dog examined by a vet. I know there is cost involved in seeing a vet but treating without proper diagnosis and with incorrect medication can lead to higher bills in the future. There are a variety of conditions that could be causing the ear infection: yeast and bacterial are the most common. There could be other underlying conditions that predispose your dog to ear infections such as allergies or hypothyroidism. Before putting anything in the dogs ear to clean or treat the infection it needs to be determined if the ear drum is still intact. Never, never never put straight rubbing alcohol in your dogs ear, it may cause sever irritation and pain/discomfort. After the infection is undercontrol regular cleaning will help keep it from reaccuring.
If your dog has reaccuring ear infections of the same oringination call your vets office and ask if you can get the meds without an examination this time.

Good Luck and best to Tucker,
M., wife of a veterinarian at UW

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Hi G. - I have two beagles and do we ever know about ear infections. Anything besides medication has never worked for us. We've also spent oooodles of money on our pet so I hesitate to spend a lot as well. We've been able to call our vet and he's been willing to write a perscription over the phone. Perhaps he's willing to do that as he knows our history but nevertheless I appreciate it. We use Mometemax, which is a stonger version of some of the meds as our dog gets horrible ifections. (I know I didn't spell it right). I believe you can buy a similar medication named Otomax online through Dr.s Foster and Smith website and it's a good product. Good luck to your pooch and hope he/she feels better soon.
-K.

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I don't have a home remedy but try calling the vet and see if you can just pick up the medicine Otomax. That's what we do when one of our dogs gets an ear infection. The medicine isn't too expensive and saving the cost of a vet visit really helps if you know it's just an ear infection.

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Hi G.,
You should be able to just buy a cleaner without having to see the vet. Unfortuately, if your dog does have an infection, it's most likely a yeast infection which needs medication to clear up. There is also a possibility that he could have a bacterial infection which would need antibiotics and the only way that can be determined is by having a vet check them. If your dog has had yeast infections before sometimes vets will let you get the medication without seeing them. I would say to get rid of the infection and then clean your dog's ears 1-2 times a week to ward off another infection! I was a vet assistant for 6 years so I have dealt with pleanty of ear infections!

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You should NEVER use alcohol, peroxide or both, I use all environmentally friendly products for my home and family including my pets. Melaleuca oil along with olive oil is goods for any ear infections, including dogs. Great outcome, pet friendly and SAFE!!!

check out these site, you might be surprised!
Good luck!

www.melaleuca.com
www.yourfamilyfirst.com/centralwisc

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I have a great solution for cleaning a non-infected ear.....mix 50% rubbing alcohol and 50% white vinegar in a squeeze bottle and swish in dogs ear. Let them shake it out and then clean it up by blotting with a cotton ball (dont stick the cotton ball down in the ear) Do NOT do this with an infected ear as it would probably really sting.
As far as the infection goes, I would call your vet and just say he gets them frequently, can you get a RX for the drops he needs to heal the infection.
If you do the 50/50 mix once the infection is cleared up, on a regular basis, that should prevent it from coming back. The vinegar cleans out the ear and the alcohol dries it up.
Hope that helps a little. I did that for my nasty eared dog and it seemed to keep her ear infection free. I was also a vet tech and the vet recommended the solution quite a bit.

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Unfortunately, if infact it has become an infection, there isn't anything you can do to cure the infection. You can make it comfortable with basic care, but the infection won't go away without medication.

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Something that we did when I was little was use peroxide. not only for the dog, but for me when I would get ear infections. it didn't sting much and it actually produces a bit of heat so when it foams up and it's kind of soothing. The only thing is that a dog might not want to hold still very long for it. I know my dad used peroxide for our dog too. he wasn't terribly crazy about it, but then no dog is going to be real keen on someone putting anything in their ears.
just pour a bit in the ear and try to keep his head still for a little bit. If you do go this route you will have to do it a couple times a day for a few days so you'll have to be dedicated to it, but in terms of inexpensive you can't get much cheaper than hydrogen peroxide.

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I don't know if I have a quick and easy and cheap solution, but this is what we have done. Our dog had recurring ear infections and we finally determined that he was alergic to the dog food we were giving him. We switched to a chicken brand, happened to be the Sam's club brand that he had when we were gone for a month. He had no problem with is ears when we were gone. we used to treat him almost daily with ear cleaning solution. the infections came back when we came home and he went back to his regular dogfood. So he is on the chicken formula, the sam's membership is cheaper than the vet bills. He still gets infections in the spring and fall. he must have other allergies too. then we check his ear for the black stuff and clean it with the OtiCalm Solution from the vet and if we don't catch it in time with that we have to add the MalOtic oinment. I don't know if there is a solution you can make on your own to clean their ears. this one has ingredients of water, proylene glycol, poloxamer 407, salicylic acid, eucalyptus oil. Good Luck.

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OK, this sounds DISGUSTING and it's not a fun process ... but it works! My grandpa had a dog who got chronic ear infections as well - after several vet visits, the vet pulled him aside and suggested he use Vagisil (or something similar) in the dog's ears, as it will stick in there better than the drops do. It worked! And Gramps never had to take his dog to the vet for an ear infection ever again. We had a black lab growing up too, who had lots of ear infections - same remedy did the trick! (our vet wasn't thrilled about it, but didn't think it posed the dog any harm - we did bring her in for a recheck and the vet was amazed at how nice & clear the ears were a week later). I applied it with a q-tip (very carefully) and coated the inside of her ears. I always squeeze a little extra in & "massaged" it into her ear canal. The ears are a little goopy for a few days, but it never seemed to bother our dogs after application.

Good luck!

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I once had a springer spaniel with ear problems. Vet told me to gently clean her inner ears...of course, carefully and not too deep... with hydrogen peroxide and q-tips. It did the trick.

Tim P

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Hi G.

I would check the pet store and see what they have over the counter .
Also if you go to Petco they have a vet that goes there during the week that does check ups and it is cheaper then going to the vet not sure how much it costs you would have to check in to it .
When our one cat was having ear problems I used witch hazel to clean out his ears and it seems to help him .
I have also used homiopathic ear drops that you can get over the counter . It is for people but have found a little drop in the ear helps my cats also .
I hope I have helped a little .
I hear you about the school supplies and clothes .I have a 8 year old and a soon to be 10 year old in 3 days .

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Some dogs just have a lot of junk in their ears so you can just clean them out with a cleaner, but if he's scratching or shaking his head a lot or if his ears smell bad and pussy he has an ear infection. If he's had ear infections in the past and you just recently brought him to the vet, you could probably just give them a call and they can give you some cleaner and meds, it depends on what his visit was and when. The cleaner is spendy, but it lasts a long time. I've been a vet tech for a few years and people who have used over the counter meds don't seem to have any luck with them, they end up coming to the vet anyways. Well I hope I helped a little. Good luck in what you find or do.