Ear canals almost completely closed

[Wigglesworth]

Hi,

My bully's (Woody) ear canals are almost completely closed. Took him to the vet the other day, and he wants to sedate him, clean the ears out (lots of yeasty badness) and do a smear, to the tune of over $500. The vet's reasoning is that the canals are too inflamed to effectively clean the yeast out.

After that he would like to put Woody on a high dose of prednisone to reduce inflammation of the ear.

I just adopted him about a week ago, and already love him to pieces. I lost my first bully last year (12 fantastic years) and never thought I would have another (the loss really took its toll on me).

I changed his food (think they had him on Pro Plan) to Nature's Variety Instinct (we have 3 different flavors: beef, lamb/duck and salmon) as soon as I got him.

My question is: Has your bully experienced the same malady, and how did you get it under control/remediate it? Did you proceed with medical treatment?

Somebody told me about a wax that is impregnated with steroids/antibiotics that is administered in the ear. It administers the medication over a lenghthy period of time.....interesting.

First post here. Thanks for having me.

Cheers,
Pete

[Bella'sMom]

Pete, welcome to the forum. I am sorry I can't help you on your question. However I may need the same answer later on, So thanks for asking.

We love new members and also new photos of your bullies. It will just be a matter of time someone will come up with the exact answer you need.

In the mean time, enjoy roaming around and getting to know us better, we are one big happy family.

[Gertie's Mom]

Welcome to our group. So glad you found us. I can't answer that one. I only have a couple pups, haven't had any ear issues with them. Is your vet a good "Bully vet?" Everyone on here always recommends you use a vet with lots of experience with Bullies. I think before spending $500. I would probably get a second opinion. Seems like there should be another option.

[bullmama]

Oh poor sweet bully baby. I am truly sorry for him. I agree, a second opinion would be a good idea.

[sheshistory]

You need to get a second opinion.

My bully Linus suffered from very bad ear infections where his ear canals were essentially swollen shut also. The course of treatment should be prednisone to get the infection under control and then cleaning it out and medicating it religiously until it clears up.

To my knowledge, there is not a legitimate need to sedate him if the ears can be cleaned out once the inflammation is under control.

That said, I think you've picked an excellent food if Woody is prone to ear infections but I strongly recommend you get a second opinion - medicated ear cleaner, an ear swab, Remicin and Prednisone shouldn't even come close to $500 and, in tandem with a diet change, will likely improve the condition of his ears fairly quickly and dramatically.

[gatorfan85]

You need to get a second opinion.

My bully Linus suffered from very bad ear infections where his ear canals were essentially swollen shut also. The course of treatment should be prednisone to get the infection under control and then cleaning it out and medicating it religiously until it clears up.

To my knowledge, there is not a legitimate need to sedate him if the ears can be cleaned out once the inflammation is under control.

That said, I think you've picked an excellent food if Woody is prone to ear infections but I strongly recommend you get a second opinion - medicated ear cleaner, an ear swab, Remicin and Prednisone shouldn't even come close to $500 and, in tandem with a diet change, will likely improve the condition of his ears fairly quickly and dramatically.

I completely agree!! Beefy's ears were terrible when we got him and remicin, prednisone really did the trick plus we had to clean them daily a few times a day when the swelling went down. Another thing is a pro biotic enzyte after all the meds are done . Hope this helps

[bulldog family]

Yes, my last bully had that same issue when I rescued him. Actually when we got him, we thought he was deaf. But it was just his ears swollen shut. I had to have him on prednisone and had to clean out his eaars religiously. It's an on-going process for the rest of his life. But when it gets under cintrol it's much easier to handle. Good food also helps with the yeasty-ness.

Good luck...

[Wigglesworth]

Thanks all!

2nd opinion it is...just need to find a bully vet.

[kazzy220]

@Wigglesworth We have a thread on here where the members have listed the vets that they use so there may be a good bully vet in your area. If not, you can go to the www.thebca.org (bulldog club of america) website and on the left hand side there is a link to recommended veterinarians and you can hopefully find one on there.

[sheshistory]

Bumping this one @Wigglesworth - how are the ears?

[Wigglesworth]

Woody's right ear really hasn't relaxed. The Tresoderm hasn't done anything, accept cloud his hearing. I took him to a bully vet and he provided a brand new otic suspension called Posatex, along with K-O-T drops (whatever they are). The vet has a lot of faith in the Posatex, so hopefully it will work.

He's huffing and puffing a lot with all of the ear treatments. Poor guy also has giardia. Just finished the 5th treatment of Panacur.

Here's a pic I took today of the calcified ear:

[Luvin My Bullie]

poor Woody! Hope he feels better soon!!