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-   -   How much yogurt to give? (http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=53951)

szelynn July 2nd, 2008 02:19 PM

How much yogurt to give?
 
Kali recently had some surgery, and was on 2 bouts of antibiotics...now I think she might be getting a yeast infection in her ear.

Can I just give her yogurt and she if it improves (she's shaking her head a bit, and it's little red in one ear - i know she has had them before from her previous owner) or does that warrant a visit to the vet?

Also, either way how much should I give her? I'm in the middle of transitioning her from Wysong Senior to Orijen Senior, and she's a 78lb Lab.

hazelrunpack July 2nd, 2008 03:55 PM

Not sure if it will help an infection that's already taken hold, but for our 45 - 65 pound dogs, we usually would give them a tablespoon in each of their two daily meals. We've since moved to a probiotic in both meals and 1 TBSP of yogurt in the morning meal just because after a hard winter of antibiotics, we found we needed something a little stronger than just the yogurt.

Meanwhile, about the infection. If you have any ear cleaner (Epiotic, OtiFoam, Nolvasen, etc.) clean the ear twice daily with that. A drying cleanser is the best because you don't want to leave the ear wet if you're fighting yeast. I think I remember reading a post on the board saying that they use red cider vinegar to clean their dog's ears...but my connection is too slow to be able to do a search :frustrated: You can try it though by using the Search function up in the blue menu line :thumbs up

If it doesn't clear up in a few days, best to have it checked by a vet and get some meds. Infections can become chronic and actually result in permanent damage.

szelynn July 2nd, 2008 04:07 PM

Thanks for your fast reply!
I love that there are so many people on here, and I don't have to wait days for a response!

Yes, I've read about regular vinegar and red cider vinegar working against yeast as it doesn't like vinegar. I've never done that before, I'm not sure if I feel comfortable doing that to her without any direction...I'm also not 100% sure that's what it is and I mostly believe so because her previous owner said that's what it probably is and she just got off antibiotics last week...would it hurt her if I were to try a vinegar solution?

I'm also thinking of getting some green tripe for her to try, as I've read this can also give her some probiotics?

All this started last night, all I could hear all night was the flopping of her ears because she kept shaking her head...

hazelrunpack July 2nd, 2008 04:18 PM

Can you see anything in her ear canal? You might need a flashlight to see deep enough. Dark brown waxy material deep in the canal where it disappears from view could indicate an infection of some type. White lumpy stuff in there would most likely be yeast. Red, hot ear canals would indicate an infection, as well.

If you see white lumpy stuff or if the ears are red and hot, the infection is pretty extensive and you should probably take her in to see the vet.

If it's just the waxy brown stuff, cleaning is worth a try. I've never used vinegar, just saw the post here. But I don't recall if there were instructions or just a general comment that vinegar was used. Usually, what I do with the cleaning solutions is soak a cotton ball or even a piece of kleenex with the solution, then gently clean out the canal. If there's a lot of stuff in the bottom of the canal, I'll squirt a little of the liquid in there, massage the ear (keep them from shaking if possible for 30 - 60 seconds), then let them shake and dry the ear with more tissue.

I suspect that's how you'd approach it with vinegar, too. But vinegar would sting a sore ear and I'm not sure you should use it full strength. Maybe another member will chime in soon with a suggestion for how strong a solution of vinegar to use :shrug:

hazelrunpack July 2nd, 2008 04:21 PM

WoooHooooo! Just managed to run a search (praise the phone line gods!) and found some info:

[URL="http://www.thedachshundnetwork.com/earcare.htm"]http://www.thedachshundnetwork.com/earcare.htm[/URL]

A little way down the page it talks about swimmer's ear...they used a 1 part isopropyl alcohol, 2 part vinegar mix...

I've never used it so try at your own risk. :o It'll sting and you'll need to be careful to keep it away from your dog's eyes.

rainbow July 2nd, 2008 04:56 PM

I would take her to the vet. Chronic/recurrent ear infections are one of the symptoms of hypothyroidism which is common for middle aged dogs so I would have her checked for that. Good luck and keep us posted. :fingerscr :goodvibes:

dmc123 July 2nd, 2008 05:57 PM

I also agree to take her to the vet. Delaney used to have ear infections often - the yogurt daily has helped prevent them - but if she gets one, I will take her in to get meds.

Diane

szelynn July 2nd, 2008 07:03 PM

Just came back from bringing her in, I swear we need a frequent visitors card there or something - we were just there on Sat.
The vet gave me Avena Sativa Ear Cleaner, and Surolan and said since she's had them before to just use it if it pops up again...

I'm going to get her to try some green tripe tonight or tomorrow morning

Thanks for all your replies! :pawprint:


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