New to forum and a ? about ear problems

I have a three year old tri- color Cavalier. He is taller and weighs 26 pounds. I know that far exceeds the standards, but he is not overweight, just a bigger Cavalier. He has been having some ear issues and wanted to know if there is anything a groomer should do to help him not be susceptible to yeast/ear infections.

Hi and welcome! Hey, 26lbs isn't much over breed standard and breed standard is only really a guideline for show dogs in particular. And, it is I think far healthier for an individual dog to come in at the higher end than be way below the breed standard -- smaller dogs are the ones with more potential health issues related to small size (health problems can cause smaller size). Also if you talk to breeders, many have male stud dogs a bit above the breed standard -- many feel the breed weight standard might be due a review.

Anyway: regarding ears, there are a couple of things to consider. Dogs with hanging ears can be more prone to infections and your vet or a groomer can gently shave away the hair around the opening of the ear and trim back hair on the inside of the ear flap, to let more air circulate. You can also get a gentle antiseptic vet standard ear rinse and clean ears regularly and gently (have your vet show you how to do this effectively and safely -- never put cotton swabs in, for example ).

Vets should also be sure the issue is infections and not, say, ear mites, which can be terribly itchy.

Also, your vet and you should be aware of syringomyelia, a neurological condition that unfortunately, affects a large number of this breed. Often the discomfort causes dogs to scratch at their ears and vets can misdiagnose this as ear infections for years. The same goes for PSOM, also common in the breed, a form of glue ear.

You can get more info on these conditions at:

www.cavaliermatters.org
www.cavalierhealth.org
www.smcavaliers.com

and in the Library section in the health division here on the board. Hope that all helps! Others I am sure might have some suggestions too

Thank you SO much! Never knew that about the Cavalier size....About the grooming of the ears, thought I read once where shaving or cutting the hair inside of the ears was irritating to the dog. Great links too...thanks!

My vets regularly will trim out hair if it seems to be bothering a dog so don't think there's any issues (groomers will do this too). Often the hair grows down into the ear canal which, is probably potentially more irritating.

Is your cavalier having problems with yeast in the ear or just general scratching head on carpet or shaking his head? My Cavalier Lucky has had his share of normal outer ear infections, but he also has PSOM, so I"d second what Karlin mentioned about PSOM (and syringomyelia aka SM). My vet knew nothing about PSOM. My neurologist even diagnosed Lucky's PSOM as a probably middle ear infection and gave us antibiotics - shocking to me given how many Cavaliers I have known with PSOM and never one with a genuine middle ear infection. I had to diagnose it myself and bring my dog to a dermatologist who I knew was familiar with PSOM for a second opinion and ultimately correct diagnosis.

In any case, hopefully your ear issues are just caused by moisture due to the floppy nature of our cute Cavalier ears and I think you are wise to try to prevent infections. My Lucky's 24 pounds and he agrees - 26 pounds is not too big.

Another thing you could look into is Zymox and cleaning with it once a week or probably even once every 2 weeks. The basic zymox is often recommended by vets for general use and prevention of infections. It's not really greasy or messy either compared to some of the treatments we used to be prescribed for ear infections. It also doesn't require washing the ears as the enzymes in Zymox takes care of that for you. Note there are three kinds of zymox. You just want the basic one. There is also one with a steroid (I think hydrocortisone) and a newer one in a red label, which is what Lucky is given and that one is specific for resistant biofilm forming microbes).

Some people swear that feeding raw eliminates and/or prevents ear infection & yeast troubles. But I will also mention that on a raw-feeding forum I visit often, there are dogs with ear problems, so raw feeding is NO guarantee.
Our Cavalier is fed raw due to extreme food allergies and she has never had an ear problem. I don't even clean them out between visits to the groomer and they always look good.

Our Shih Tzu, who was fed dry kibble, always had ear problems. What finally worked for me was after his weekly bath, I cleaned them out with R-7 ear cleaner (bought at big box chain pet stores) and then dusted the inside lightly with Mexana powder . I think it has some eucalyptus and its medicinal quality made the difference.
http://www.amazon.com/Mexsana-Medicated-Powder-11-Ounce-Bottle/dp/B001EJONSG