My dog's ears are itchy with gunk. Is it allergies or an infection?

Ouch, poor Remington! You are correct - most ear infections in dogs stem from underlying allergies. Allergy issues in dogs mostly cause skin problems and ears are skin, after all. The allergies could be associated with environmental issues (atopy), food allergies or flea allergies. I can certainly see the discharge and swelling in Remington's ear. Her excessive scratching obviously indicates that she's quite uncomfortable. Allergy issues cause dogs to itch, which damages the skin barrier and then leads to ear infections from an overgrowth of yeast and/or bacteria in the ear canal. There are no effective over the counter treatments for ear infections. At this point, I recommend taking Remington to her vet for an exam and ear cytology. Your vet will be able to look at her ear discharge under a microscope to determine the type of infection present, and will then prescribe an appropriate medication based on those results. Until you get to the vet, consider putting an e-collar (cone) on Remington to prevent her from causing further damage to hear ears. I hope this helps and that she's feeling better soon!

Poor Mocha sounds very uncomfortable. Yes it is possible she has ear mites, but ear problems such as hers can also be caused by bacteria or yeast. The only way to cure her ear problems is to have her seen by a vet. The vet can diagnose the cause of her symptoms and can prescribe medication to treat it. I would take her into the vet today, as leaving ear problems can lead to hearing loss if left untreated. I hope this helps!

Hello. Molly has an ear infection, but you will need to see your veterinarian to diagnose what the causative agent is & whether there is an allergic component to this. Ear infections can include the presence of a foreign body like a grass awn, or it can consist primarily of bacterial or yeast organisms. Using the wrong medications may delay healing, & if the eardrum has ruptured ( which can occur in severe infections ) even more care is needed during treatment. Hopefully, you can have Molly's ears examined soon. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hi. Your pet most likely has an ear infection or ear mites. You can purchase ear cleaner from pet stores and clean with a cotton ball soaked with the cleaner. But an ear cleaner alone would cure an infection or ear mites.

It sounds like Scarlett may have an ear infection. You will need to take her into the vet first thing Monday. The vet can diagnose the ear infection, what's causing it (ear mites, yeast, or bacteria), and can prescribe the correct medication to treat it. Best of luck.

Signs of an ear infection are often a discharge in the ear, redness to the ear, sensitivity to the ear, scratching, head shaking or an odor. There are three types of ear infections and treatment is different for each one. They need to be treated by a veterinarian who can provide appropriate medication. Ear infections can be painful so I recommend to have Tazzy seen within the next day for so by the veterinarian. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi and thank you for using PetCoach! I am so sorry to hear that Snoopy's ear is red. It is very possible Snoopy may have an ear infection. Ear infections are most commonly due to underlying allergies such as environmental or food allergies. It is possible Snoopy has mites in that ear but less likely since only one ear is very affected. I would recommend taking Snoopy in to see your veterinarian. They will likely take swabs from both ears and look at a cytology of them (under the microscope) to look for infections. If this is the case, your veterinarian will recommend ear cleaner/ medication. Good luck! Here is an article that describes ear infections in more detail: https://www.petcoach.co/article/middle-inner-ear-infections-in-dogs/