Update on my "Giardia" dog

[Nancy (Spuddie' s Mum)]

Well, I'm happy to say that on the follow up visit for my Pom Haley, her stool sample came up clean - no Giardia or anything else bad. The vet did explain that Giardia can be hard to detect and I should still be cautious with her and keep an eye on things, but, she was pleased and said she thought she was looking pretty darn good. Only one little problem we now have to deal with is a yeast infection in her ear (if it's not one end, it's the other). So we have some ointment for her ear and then she goes back again in two weeks for a follow up appointment to the follow up appointment (sigh) I think I must financially have shares in this vet's office by now.

[k9Karen]

Glad to hear the Giardia is apparently cleared up (that is, if she ever had it at all). There is an EIA test for Giardia that is much more sensitive than looking at the specimen under the microscope. If symptoms return, you might want to ask your vet about it.

I also wanted to let you know about a product I use for Allies chronic ear infections (also yeast - Malassezia). I use the OTC product Zymox, which works much better than anything the vet ever gave me (we tried at least 3 different approaches). I buy it at this site, but it is available elsewhere:

http://search.store.yahoo.com/cgi-bin/n ... earch.html

One other I had bookmarked:
https://petscriptions.com/public/index. ... imal_type=

[Kristin]

My lab mix, Maggie, gets yeast infections in her ear. I now clean her ears with a product called Malaseb, which is not only a cleaner, but also an antifungal for yeast. I clean them every other day and she has not had another yeast infection in several months. Your vet may have it or you can order it online.

[Nancy (Spuddie' s Mum)]

My vet gave me Otibiotic Ointment to use twice a day. I'm just not sure if I should be using the Epi-Otic before I use the ointment. After we discussed many things, once I left I was not sure if I should still be squirting that in her ears first and then the ointment?

Thanks for the bookmarks and I will be keeping a close eye on her in case of anymore bowel problems. We want to take good care of our old girl.

[k9Karen]

I now clean her ears with a product called Malaseb, which is not only a cleaner, but also an antifungal for yeast.

Are you aware that the chlorhexidine in Malaseb is ototoxic? It can damage the ear and cause deafness. There is a very strong warning on human products that contain this chemical about not using it in the ear. I searched on the web to see it the same applied to dogs, and found this article:

http://www.spinone.net/discussion/_health/000000ab.htm

The pertinent info from this article follows:

"One of the more ototoxic substances, though, appears to be chlorhexidine. Some dogs may have an abnormal susceptibility to this ingredient found in some ear cleansrs. Anecdotal accounts have shown that it may damage the cochlear and vestibular hair cells. Chlorhexidine also has been implicated in fibrosis and ossifiction of the middle and inner ear. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved it for otic solutions."

"Chlorhexidine should be avoided even in the presence of an intact eardrum because it can be absorbed across it. The so-called "bubbling" ear cleansers use the eardrum as a base to apply a bubbling effect to flush out healthy ears. This beneficial effect can turn tragic when the base--the eardrum--is diseased and ruptures causing the bubbles to be trapped in the middle ear where they can do significant harm."

[Julie B.]

you should only clean the ear with cleaning solution occasionally while treatment with an antibiotic ointment. Overcleaning may irritate the ears while an infection is present. I would recommend cleaning 1-2 times per week while medicating an infected ear. Hope this helps.

JB

[Nancy (Spuddie' s Mum)]

Julie B., I had not used the Epi-Otic because I was not sure if I should. But I will not, I will just stick with the ointment. But now I have to call the vet back on Tues. because the poor dog accidentally got into the bird bath and had a couple of licks of water from it before I could stop her. Now I'm worried she could get Giardia again. Although I had rinsed the water only an hour before with clean water. (Hubby decided to move it and had the top off sitting in the grass and he did not realise that the water could hurt her, luckly I stopped her before she had drank very much).

[momPaws]

K9K- so glad you are here! I had been using a bubbling ear cleaner (Earoxide) and will stop. Only used it every couple of weeks and it has Carbamide Peroxide as main ingred. Guess this is not good either??? What do you think?

Nancy- Hope Haley's ear probl. is healed soon...I know how terrible that can be for pup and owner.

[momPaws]

K9K- and now that I looked at the bottle..the blue stuff vet gave me to clean her ears is Chlorihexiderm Flush- so tha't not good either? (Can't read thru that medical stuff)
seriously- what is good to use? I also have something called PPP Ear-Dry Solution - this works really well, but has some tea tree oil in it.

[k9Karen]

The bubbling ear cleaners that contain peroxide should be safe if the eardrum is intact and not diseased - but how do you know that? I don't know what's in Chlorhexiderm - does it contain chlorhexidine (sounds like it does, but names can fool you)? I don't know if there is a limit at which it is safe, but I'd probably investigate if it were me. Allie is already deaf (born that way), so it wouldn't damage her ears any more than they already are. I'd be hesitant to use it in Angel - she's the only one I have that can hear.

I don't know about any toxic affects of tea tree oil, but I think it can be irritating (and I don't like the smell). I tried it on Mickey's nose problem (solar dermatitis) and it didn't help, but it also didn't hurt. That's why I like the Zymox for Allie's ears - it contains enzymes, which will not do any harm, in a glycerine base, which is neutral and makes it thick enough to coat the ear canal - so I know at least some of it stays in the ear. She started scratching at her left ear yesterday, so I've had to use it one her - boy does she ever hate it when I put something in her ear.