# dog with allergies, inflamed an really swollen ears



## kitley2001 (Aug 11, 2010)

Hi all..had my Ginny to the vet this morning. I thought she had a terrible ear infection...both ears. Vet gave her shots of steroids and Benadryl. She also said the swollen ears...talking a half inch thick...could be the results of her shaking her head and causing the cartiledge and tissue to separate...or some such thing. If that is the case, the benedryle I now have to give her for the next 3 days will not fix this. Has anyone ever had a dog with this...and what was the end result...just leave it, or surgery??? I forgot to ask. Ginny has now had her second dose, and before I gave it....9 hours since previous dose, she was shaking her head and swelling of ears had increased again. So worried. She did eat today...before the shaking and swelling came back. Thinking tomorrow I will go and buy a new brand of food...though she has been on this one for the last two months. Any other ideas? If she is not better by the third day, I need to take her back to the vet.


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## Fade (Feb 24, 2012)

If it is a ear hematoma...the best way to fix it is surgery...they lance it to drain all the fluid..then suture the ear flap back closed...it takes a lot of sutures and time. Usually a very costly surgery. We have in the past done a light sedative..drained the ear the best we could...then put a bandage on to hold it closed. and treated with very strong antibiotics. We have had very little success treating with just antibiotics. Don't worry your dogs ear won't explode. its highly fixable. We get quite a few in a month. The shaking the head is what breaks the blood vessels and causes the tissues to separate. 

Standard ear Hematoma









After Surgery.









once it heals and sutures are removed it is perfectly fine,


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## hamandeggs (Aug 11, 2011)

Yeah, it sounds like an ear hematoma. This can be brought on by anything. It could be a food allergy, causing him to itch and shake, or it could have been something else. 

My parents' 10 year-old bird dog just had one a couple of months ago. The vet actually advised against the surgery in his case. She said the surgery often fails and advised waiting to see if it fixed itself. So they took a "wait and see" approach and it did eventually go away on its own, after about 2 months. Just a thought. 

What are you feeding your dog?


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## kitley2001 (Aug 11, 2010)

Thank you both for your quick replies. I was feeding my dog Kirkland...Costco, and decided the bag is too big for the summer months...worried about it going rancid. So I switched to Health Diet. Seemed to be somewhat the same percentage of ingredients as the Kirkland, which on the links I found is a four star food. I have noticed in the last 6 months though, that she is also really itchy after a bath...even using medicated shampoos. So, maybe these allergies have been building up, and just spilled over. She also once was treated by the vet for a bad reaction to a bee sting. That cleared up quickly...this not so quick so far. The second dose this evening has taken away the redness and the swelling is minimizing as well. I do get the feeling though, that by the time the next dose is due, she will be red and swollen again. Poor girl. Lousy timing as I leave on Sunday for a week, and she will be in Hubbys hands. He is not good with this sort of thing, and as well she will likely be stressed, as I have never left her alone with Hubby before. She has always been attached to my hip...lol. We have left her before, but always in someone elses house, with both of us gone. She is a very sensitive dog, having been in 2 homes and previously abused, before we got her. I guess I will try whatever food they advise at the pet food store..which you can be sure will be really expensive..ugh, and hope this all settles before I leave. Previously had a dog with allergies, and sure was hoping not to have another one, it is always hard to find the cause. Could the hematomas arise from shaking her head due to an allergic reaction? BTW her ears are not so bad as the pictures you included, and the vet felt they were not squishy enough to be hematomas...she was hoping. Thanks for any thoughts, and I will update with her progress.


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## Willowy (Dec 10, 2007)

My first dog got swollen ears all the time. I don't know if they ever were actually hematomas but we only took her to the vet once and she said "allergies. Give her Benedryl" :/. The rest of the time we just dealt with it ourselves. One thing we usually had to do to keep them from getting worse was to wrap her ears to her head with an ACE bandage. Otherwise she'd just keep shaking them.


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## kitley2001 (Aug 11, 2010)

Willow...thanks for the reply. I actually had been thinking of wrapping her ears, if needed. Good to know it helped your dog. 
UPDATE...well at 4 am dose this morning Ginnys ears were still cool with no swelling...so heres hoping. I think if they were hematomas, they would not shrink down this quickly. I'll get some new food today, and hopefully she is on her way to recovery. Thanks all.


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