Oh, those magnificent ears!!!
How many times have you scratched behind your dog’s ears? They love it. To our pups its like a mini massage. I can remember doing it to our first dog Ziggy. When you stopped, if he hadn’t had enough, he would turn his head and nudge your hand with his snout as if to say….please don’t stop!!! Our dogs ears are ultra sensitive. They can hear much better than we can. Unfortunately, a dog’s ears can also be a source of pain and discomfort because of the the various ailments those wonderful ears are subject to.
This entry was brought to mind because a friend and coworker who has a weimraner has had some extremely difficult times with her dog because his ears seem to be his weak point and they are consistently prone to infection. After many months of ear cleanings and vet visits, ear drops and daily cleansings, poor Gracie (that’s the dog) had to go under full anesthesia, because her ears were so badly infected. She had to have her ears cleaned thoroughly deep into the ear canal. Unfortunately, because of the type of dog she is, with long floppy ears, Gracie is prone to this type of malady. Her owners are dedicated to her care and work constantly to minimize the chance of this happening.
According to a site, workingdogs.com you should contact your vet if you notice any of the following in your dog:
* shakes its head or scratches its ears
* lives with other pets with parasitic infestations
* exudes a pungent odor from it ears
* has long pendulous ears
* lives in a humid environment
* has a history of ear infections or other ear ailments
These infections can cause vertigo in the dog if severe enough, which will throw off the dog’s sense of balance, and can cause nausea and vomiting.
For your dog’s health, well being and for being the watch dog that you want him/her to be…pay attention to their ears as you always want them to be able to hear more than you!!!
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October 3rd, 2007 at 8:02 pm
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