Ear Mites in one ear?

[Debbie Haman]

My 4 year old was treated by the vet for black gunk in his right ear. It cleared up briefly but now is back. Does anyone know if ear mites could be present in only one ear. My other dog shows no signs in either ear. I switched from Sensible Choice to Nutro about three months ago. There has never been a problem before the switch. Could the food change affect one ear? My vet doesn't seem to know any answers? I would greatly appreciate any advice.
Thanks

[Atauwoduhi]

If there is ear mites, you can check for this at home.....use a flashlight an look into your dogs ear........they will be lil' white specks and if you watch for a bit they do move.......then if they move its ear mites.
But if it is just black earwax use a cotton ball to swipe out the ear, DON"T use a q-tip. Or your Vet. should have a liquid ear cleaner you could use at home.......just squeeze the liquid into the dogs ear, massage it for a few and use a cotton ball to clean it out.
I hope this helps, I use the ear cleaning liquid at work all the time when cleaning out patients ears either after surgery or a bath, incase your wondering I work as a Vet. Assist.:)

[Carina43]

Are you sure it's not a yeast infection...? I think mites are relatively rare in adult dogs, and yeast infections are common. I used to have a spaniel mix who was plagued with persistent yeasty ears. They cleared up quickly with meds, but got bad again within a month or two. Usually it was just one ear.

Your vet should be able to tell pretty easily by swabbing the ear and looking at the gunk under a microscope...if s/he hasn't done that maybe you should try a different vet? It should be properly treated, ear infections can set in and be extremely painful and potentially dangerous for the dog, I think.

You can use 50/50 vinegar & water as a weekly ear wash, or get the stuff from the vet, it's inexpensive. That's good ear maintenance, especially if you have a dog prone to gunky ears.

[Anne]

I would have the vet swab the ear to find out exactly what the problem is. It is usually a yeast infection in adult dogs but bacteria can breed in a yeast infection, safer to have a swab done.

[Debbie Haman]

Thanks for all your assistance. I don't know why he hasn't checked the gunk under a scope. I did ask him to do that. He says "ears and rears" are food or airborne allergies and gave me "Xymox" to use once a day.....As many vets in my area won't treat Rotts, ortherwise I might consider switching, I guess I'll try it and hopefully it will work. I do give my boy acidophollis (sp) capsule (from the health food store) daily to keep the yeast down.