Treating Ear Infection

An ear infection occurs when germs such as bacteria get into the middle ear. It’s a common childhood problem, but it may be one that’s hard to diagnose, especially if your child is under two and can’t talk to tell you where it hurts. It’s essential to understand the causes and symptoms of ear infections for your pet as you would look for in your children. Like humans, cat and dog ear infections can be very painful and a major cause for irritability in our pets, if neglected.

Some of the symptoms of an ear infection include fullness and pressure in the ear, earache and there may be fever even higher than 103 degree F. To get relief from the pain and pressure, the children may even pull up their ear. When treating ear infections, make a short list of the symptoms, using the above list as a guide. Then get out the instructions and see which remedies seem to fit your symptoms. Jot down the remedies beside each symptom. Do that with all the symptoms.

The cause of infection mostly determines the treatment to be given for ear infections in dogs. If the infection is due to yeast then medications like ketoconazole or itraconazole might be prescribed by the veterinarian. This type of infection is diagnosed by examining swabs of the ear under a microscope for bacteria, yeast or any other infection. Normally, there is discharge and bad odor. The ear must always be cleaned before applying medications.

Bacterial related infections are treated with antibiotics. If infection is diagnosed immediately or you go in to see your doctor at the first sign of symptoms, antibiotics could be delayed. This is because in adults, improvement can occur without the use of medication. All these symptoms of the infection of ear make it hard to diagnose in children as they cannot express their feelings. Having smaller canals could also be one of the reasons. Children often have cough and cold. This bacteria or virus may also cause the ear infection in children. Others feel tired and like something is ‘coming on’ and the idea that a fever is mandatory is a myth.

When taking the remedy, there should be some improvement after about four doses. If there is, keep going, but now only as the symptoms come back or get worse. If no improvement occurs, it’s time to go back to the drawing board and try your luck again.