Chronic ear infections and yeast on skin can be difficult to treat and usually recur frequently. Oftentimes, the two are connected because both can be caused by bacteria, yeast or allergies. To treat the symptoms, you first have to find the underlying cause.
-
Symptoms
-
Chronic ear infections often have a strange odor, coloration or inflammation of the ear tissues.Yeast infections on the skin cause extreme itchiness and occasionally may cause sores or lesions on your dog.
Yeast Infections
-
Yeast infections are usually a secondary illness resulting from an allergic reaction. When dogs scratch their ears or skin, these areas become infected with yeast, which makes the itching even more intense.
Bacterial Infections
-
Chronic ear infections can also be caused by a bacteria, usually staph, which infect the ear. This can be treated with antibiotics.
Allergies
-
Dogs who are allergic to fleas, food or environmental elements such as pollen often develop severe skin or ear infections. To treat these problems, the specific allergies must be pinpointed through a series of tests and then treated.
Diagnosis
-
Yeast infections may be diagnosed on the skin through a simple skin scrape. Causes of ear infections can be diagnosed with a smear of ear wax or yeast/bacteria culture. However, determining the cause is a little more difficult, often involving flea medication, allergy testing and food trials.
-