Deer Park Animal Medical Center
Veterinary Hospital in North Spokane County · Care for Dogs & Cats · Pet Boarding
Advanced Ear Care
Is it really mites? Really?
Advanced Ear Diagnostics using a Video Otoscope is an exciting way to view the deeper recesses of the ear canals on a video monitor with crystal clear images. So often dogs & cats come to us with evidence of ear "distress". Using an old-fashioned hand-held "flashlight" otoscope gives some information. But let's face facts. With the Vet, the Owner, the dog or cat, the Assistant all trying to restrain an anxious pet with a painful ear... much is left to the imagination...and is missed. Even with the pet sedated- looking through a hand-held Otoscope is like looking down a darkened soda straw.
In a cat
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Inflamed Infected Ear
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Improperly treated ear problems are common and can be very devastating to the wellness of your pet. Pouring Peroxide or Mineral Oil down a pet's ear does not make a bad problem better!
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Grass seed deep in ear canal
Video Otoscopic View
Because of their shape, ears tend to "catch" seeds and other objects, or acumulate hair and debris, leading to problems.
Seen here- a fresh grass seed in the lower ear canal adjacent to a transparent, intact ear drum. One of the middle ear ossicles can be seen just to the left of and partially obscurred by the seed's blunt end.
Seeds not removed in a timely manner tend to penetrate the ear drum, inflaming the middle ear, otitis media.
In the dog & cat
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Normal Ear Anatomy
Unlike the human ear, a dog's or cat's ear has a long "L"-shaped tube terminating at a remote, inaccessible ear drum. This membrane separates the external ear from the middle ear. The middle ear contains bony "ossicles" which transmit sound wave vibrations to the "inner ear" chambers responsible for hearing and balance. The eustachian tube (auditory tube) connects the middle ear to the back of the throat.
Bulging eardrum from middle ear infection
Otitis Media in a Labrador
Recurring vague pain and despondent behavior led to investigation of the ears. This video shows the result. The opaque center is the bulging ear drum which needs to be opened (myringotomy) to release painful pressure within the infected middle ear.
Microscopic view
Ear Mites: Adults, Nymphs & Egg
Improperly treated ear problems are common and can be very devastating to the wellness of your pet. Pouring Peroxide or Mineral Oil down a pet's ear does not make a bad problem better!
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