[JanC]

Hello!

Spencer is a black lab, almost 14 months and has had sores on the tips of his ears - we now think they actually came from hedgerow shuffling but were exacerbated by a a rough eyelet on a collar, which has now been changed. The vet has looked at them a couple of times and the insides of his ears are fine.

The Vet suggested a liquid plaster which we used and one ear healed successfully. He hates the spray however and won’t let us near him if he thinks we’re going to spray or look at it, so we get one chance once in a blue moon. Does anybody know of a safe alternative to the spray plaster that is totally safe? Or any other ideas? His wound is not healing because he shakes his head as part of his whole body often - possibly slight nervous dog. We get all the classic blood up the wall etc. It’s been like this for weeks And we are desperate to get it sorted.

Thanks in advance.

 

[JohnW]

How long does it stay liquid for? Is it possible to spray it on a finger and dab it on the ear? Because of dogs shaking their head ear flaps can be the very devil to heal.

 

[Tarimoor]

I was going to suggest the same as John, see if you can spray it on to something to quickly dab onto the ear. Other than that, google well horse, they do a liquid/gel that I've used on happy tail injuries previously to good effect, might be worth having some in just in case.

 

[JanC]

Thanks for your help and suggestions. The spray plaster solidifies almost instantly, which I suppose is why it's useful but it's not going to let me move it from my finger to his ear. He's not letting us near him to spray it EVEN when enticed with a picky spoon of peanut butter .... will keep trying to catch him when he's sleeping, poor thing. I'll look at Wellhorse, thanks for that.

 

[JohnW]

There are times when you need to say, "Your getting it, like it or no!" Take charge, be firm and accept no nonsense. It's about getting the relationship right. And this applies to most circumstances. It's a bit like him running towards the road and a number 9 bus coming. It's a bit late to think "I should have worked harder on the recall." He's dead! Being able to touch your dog anywhere you want at any time is so important. Ear infections occur and need to be treated. Conjunctivitis strikes and need eye drops, and without him allowing you to treat it then it will only get worse. I start with my pups from day one, getting them use to being touched as below. (Remember I wrote this about starting examining a very young puppy, hence mentioning teething) I also start my pups on training for both ear and eye drops, using plain boiled and cooled water. I'm gentle but firm, "I'm going to do it so get use to it!"

Nose:- Look for scratches or signs of dry flaking skin. (Possible sign of Hereditary nasal parakeratosis )

Teeth:- VERY gently open the mouth, (Remembering that at the moment he is teething so his mouth is likely to be tender!) Look for broken teeth, decay, excessive tarter, any swelling or lumps. (In your case unlikely yet.)

Ears:- Should be clean, normal light pink, have a good sniff in both. (should smell nice! A nasty smell can often give advanced warning of impending problems!)

Fore legs:- Lift each paw in turn off the floor. Inspect the claws including the fore claw. (Contra to what you so often hear, these are NOT dew claws, they are the ones on hind legs only!) Gently double the paw back at the wrist and check pads. Gently flex both elbows and shoulders. (Both should move easily and smoothly.)

Body:- Look at coat. Should not look dry and flaky. (Yellows never have quite the shine of blacks, or even chocolates.) Run your hands along the flanks feeling for any lumps. (Also you can often find burrs and thorns when doing this.) Particularly with bitches gently run your hand over the mammary glands checking for any swelling. (Be vey gentle, the last thing you want is to stimulate milk production!)

Hind legs:- basically the same as the fore's (Labradors dont normally have dew claws on the hind legs, but some breeds do.)

Check the coat. A thin coat on the back of the hinds can indicate several problems from fox mange through to hormonal problems including Diabetes and Cushing's

Tail:- Run your hand down it. A wagging Labrador tail is a magnet to thorns, and Blackthorn thorns can cause big problems. Also look for a thinning coat on each side, two to three inches back. This can be a sign of hormonal problems.

 

[JanC]

There are times when you need to say, "Your getting it, like it or no!" Take charge, be firm and accept no nonsense. It's about getting the relationship right. And this applies to most circumstances. It's a bit like him running towards the road and a number 9 bus coming. It's a bit late to think "I should have worked harder on the recall." He's dead! Being able to touch your dog anywhere you want at any time is so important. Ear infections occur and need to be treated. Conjunctivitis strikes and need eye drops, and without him allowing you to treat it then it will only get worse. I start with my pups from day one, getting them use to being touched as below. (Remember I wrote this about starting examining a very young puppy, hence mentioning teething) I also start my pups on training for both ear and eye drops, using plain boiled and cooled water. I'm gentle but firm, "I'm going to do it so get use to it!"

Thank you so much for this and yes, of course you are right. We have done it now. It was good to hear the reminder to be decisive and take charge. Hopefully we will be better at it now and his ear will heal.

 

[JohnW]

It's also good to practise both ear and eye drops. You will be very lucky to get through his life without ant problems to either one or the other. So another of my little pieces. When I have a canine eye testing clinic I have anything up to 60 dogs to put eye drops in in an evening, and you can soon tell who has practised! My Anna was a great one for demonstrating with

Eye and ear drops.

Dont wait for your dog to have a problem before starting to familiarise your puppy with the procedure. I boil some water, then allow it to cool to body temperature and use that for training. And for a dropper I use a small screw of kitchen roll. Dip the piece in the water and by squeezing you have a very effective dropper!

Sit your puppy and resting your hand on it’s head squeeze a spot into the pup’s eye or ear, as in the photo below. (You will need to tilt the head slightly to put a spot in the ear.) By resting your “Dropper hand” on the head you are avoiding the possibility of poking the pup in the eye if it jerks it’s head.

Be gentle but firm. Just do one ear or eye at a session. It does not matter if you miss at this stage because it’s only water and practise makes perfect. Dont faff around, in, do it and finish. 10 seconds max and it’s over and you are telling your dog what a good boy he is before he even realises that you were doing anything. Thats the secret. You can even go through the motions without actually putting a spot in his eye or ear to start with to familiarise him with the procedure.

 

[LilyWai]

Really tricky area to deal with with the re-injuring. If spray application is the issue have you tried the product 3M Vetbond Tiisue Adhesive? As the name implies it is used to close & seal minor wounds eliminating the use of sutures or bandages and upon topical application - using drops from the bottle - it bonds within seconds and forms a strong bond sealing the wound.
All the best

 

[JohnW]

That looks like the medical grade super glue. Super glue was originally designed for treating soldiers wounds in the Vietnam war. If you decide to go down that route be very careful not to trap and hair in the wound. This is why vets shave dogs when operating on them.

 

[LabradorLover8]

We have this issue with two of our six - getting their ears done for anything is a chore. The others "stand" beautifully, but not those two.

With one, we found that if Dad sits in a chair with her between his legs and brings her up to a full sit (only her bottom on the ground), she will cooperate - after a lot of this with a double ear infection that took ages to conquer, she now voluntarily goes between his legs to have a treatment/flush.

With the other, we literally have to have him against a wall, with one person using their lower body to keep him there and the other moving as rapidly as possible to get both ears done.

I agree with John, this is like giving pills to a reluctant dog - it must be done and whatever it takes to get it done is what is going to happen. I resisted the "put the pill on the tongue and hold their muzzle closed while rubbing the neck gently" method for years and went through the frustration of spat out pills for years. The first time I successfully had a girl take that pill in a few seconds, I gave up that reluctance. We don't have to do it with all of them or even with all medications, but when a dog resists, they get that treatment because it must be done!