This condition is extremely painful, so you will want to quickly determine the best course of treatment. Any breed of dog can develop ear hematomas, but those with larger ear flaps are more susceptible, because the ear flaps slap against the skull when the head is shaking. But what triggered the head-shaking and scratching, which in turn caused the hematoma to form?
There are a number of underlying conditions that could be the culprit:. Yeast infection or another type of bacterial infection.
Ear mites very rare in dogs. The vast majority of aural hematomas are caused by infection or allergies. The hematoma itself is easily identifiable and not difficult for a veterinarian to diagnose by visual examination. The initial evaluation may include, but is not limited to, the following tests:.
Needle aspiration, which will confirm that the fluid in the pocket is blood. This exam will include taking a swab from the ear canal and looking under a microscope for bacteria and yeast which is referred to as cytology. This can be a bit trickier than simply examining samples under a microscope; some trial and error may be required to identify the allergen. Additional allergy testing may need to be conducted. But hematomas should still be checked out.
Even a small hematoma can be painful, and while the swelling will eventually subside, the ear may permanently appear thicker and take on a cauliflower appearance where the hematoma was located.
In order to treat the hematoma, your vet will most likely try to treat the underlying cause first, to prevent the possibility of another hematoma forming on the same or opposite ear. But other possible treatments include the following:. Needle aspiration: A simple and relatively inexpensive treatment that involves the insertion of a thin needle into the hematoma to drain the fluid. A steroid may be injected into the ear to reduce inflammation, swelling, and itchiness, along with medicine to combat any infection.
The process will be repeated a week later. Placing a drain inside the ear: In larger breeds, placing a drain inside the ear flap may be an option if the ear is large enough to accommodate the drain and the dog is willing to tolerate it. This method allows the fluid to drain continuously for a week or more, rather than fill up again rapidly as often occurs with aspiration.
However, drains are very rarely used to treat hematomas. Surgery: Surgery requires general anesthesia. A small incision is made in the affected ear to drain out the fluid and any blood clots that are present. Next, the veterinarian will suture two cartilage layers together in the ear flap, with a small incision remaining open for drainage purposes. This incision will eventually heal on its own. For larger-eared dogs, the ear may need to be secured to the head with a bandage to protect the blood vessels in the event of any head-shaking during the recovery period.
Too bad Carl, the article is very informative. The author presents the discussion in a very well rounded manner. The treatments are described much more and thoroughly than most articles I have read, some articles. I am a researcher and medical device provider for a non-surgical treatment for aural hematoma, the Auralsplint. The one common among the articles is the lack of a treatment to heal all the problems associated with surgery. The hematoma in itself is bad, but surgery is invasive and outright gruesome.
To agree with you, this surgery is barbaric. This is precisely why I invented the Auralsplint, patented it in , and now offer it as a medical device to the industry, and to the animal owners at large. It is a must to provide to the public an alternative, especially one that works to solve the problems spoken of here. I hope you fully read the article after reading this response, and find I am correct and you are correct, and the author is correct in her attempt to inform the public.
The Chinese medicine is Younan Baiyou. It was recommended by my dogs oncologist for stopping a bleeding tumor. I believe it is saving his life Very wide used be vets. Proper relief for draining the hematoma is a hypodermic needle aspiration. The hematoma will refill due to the broken blood vessels are still broken. Instead of continued aspirations, you should use an auralsplint to secure the ear flap while healing occurs. Details at Auralsplint.
We experienced this with our then 9-year-old Ridgeback. We had always been careful to avoid ear-scratching, head-shaking, etc… knowing full well hematomas were a thing with our breed. My husband was a wrestler throughout his life, and had lots of experience with understanding ear hematomas, cauliflower ear, etc… we just could not find a vet who would listen. Our dog never scratched and rarely shook his head.
He woke up that morning with the hematoma after going to bed just fine the night before. We had been playing Frisbee, as we often did, and he bounced around, shaking the disc, also usual. He was 6 weeks short of his 10th birthday when he passed. We avoided the surgery as long as we could, but after a couple of months, with no change, he was scheduled to undergo removal of a mole on his eyelid that had begun to interfere with his vision and eye health, so the vet went ahead while he was under and did the ear, too.
I had, until then, been using arnica, researching many alternative medicines and options, and doing my best. Poor guy was definitely in pain no matter what, and being the one who had to keep maintaining the drain and opening up the wound to allow it to continue to flow instead of filling back up… it was not easy on either one of us. If I had it to do all over again, I would have just left it alone.
Maybe he would have lived a little longer. Finding a vet who is willing to listen to the humans, consider all options, etc… is not an easy thing. We were new in town, besides, and had no idea what vet to choose, after moving away from a decades-long relationship with our former vet clinic.
I have followed her writing for many years! I would love to read more about correlations re: Ridgebacks, hematomas, and the relationship to possible genetic blood disorders. She has had 2 others on her other ear the blue one which was relieved with surgery and a cannula. Did great!!!! Thanks to all and any comments. If you have been aspirating by hypodermic needle to keep the bubble deflated, then you may be a candidate for the Auralsplint. It reduced a large hematoma on my dogs ear by percent in less than a week.
This might be a dumb question, but did you have your dog ingest this mixture or did you topically apply it to the ear?
Thanks in advance! Thanks Eric! Thanks again! He shows no pain from the area. He does not shake or scratch his head any more than he has ever done. If I had to guess, I believe he may have received it from laying on the wood floors for hours on end. His ears are not the same. One ear is upright German Shepard and the other droops Rottweiler. Too much info, I know. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Sign in. They can be frustrating to treat and will sometimes This sounds quite uncomfortable for Maybelline!
Ear cleaners can help get rid of the bigger pieces of It's possible that it will go away on its own in the next weeks, but there will be some scar tissue that builds-up under the skin - maybe like the other ear appears. It's also possible that it It will eventually resolve, bit may leave the ear flap deformed. The underlying cause is typically an ear infection bacterial or fungal.
This usually requires prescription medication to resolve Ideally it should be drained by your vet. Often the initial draining doesn't work and it may require surgery.
If funds are tight, it isn't bothering the dog and it is only small it can be monitored Part of the reason that we put so many sutures in an ear after an ear hematoma is to create scar tissue to prevent the ear flap from filling with blood again. The sutures create scar tissue to These can be so frustrating for pet parents and veterinarians alike. Eventually it will resolve and scar down on its own leaving the ear looking more crumpled than the other one. The only problem The standard treatment requires surgery to drain the hematoma, stop bleeding and suture the ear flaps together.
The hematoma can be drained but chances are high it will refill. Left untreated, the Please do not drain it yourself, as it can become infected. She needs to be seen by the vet for proper treatment. This is a tough problem. Pain relief will not address the underlying problem, which is likely to be an ear infection.
All of the signs you've described point to it - the discharge, the shaking and Please do not put any more olive oil in Lady's ear, it will not cure the ear infection and will make it worse. Do not use vinegar either. You need to take Lady into a vet right away for treatment. It can be tricky to treat for a vet as well! Aural haematoma are normally secondary to an ear infection or foreign body or anything bothering your dog that can make him shake his ears.
Therefore it' If surgery is done, the chances of the hematoma recurring are less, as the space will be closed up and sutured to heal back together. The ear may still crinkle, but it will probably be less likely to Poor Bodie! Your vet is correct, typically aural hematomas do fill up again, and your vet would have drained it to provide comfort to him. They are uncomfortable to the dog.
The surgery is Answered by Dr. Leigh, DVM Veterinarian. More than likely it will fill up with blood again without suturing the cartilage together.
Every time it is drained there is an increased risk of infection. I recommend you have your dog checked by a vet for treatment. Also, ear infections usually go along with a hematoma so that should be treated, as well. Was this answer helpful? Not really Yes, It was. Filed under: dogs ears. Ask a Vet for Online now! Related questions My dog had a hematoma in her left ear.
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