The Tao of Sam
Most of you know my dog Sam, some of you don’t. He’s part Rhodesian Ridgeback and part something else, possibly multiple else's. He is very much more than a dog to me, he is part of my life path and gives me so much pleasure and company that is just amazing.
Normal Sam
He’s hurting today, and that makes me hurt. He’s got an ear infection and it has affected his whole being. He can’t really shake his head, and he’s holding his head off level. It’s just killing me.
How do I know it’s an infection? It stinks like hell. Literally, the smell and taste of an infection is like hell to me. It’s evil when I have it, it’s possibly even worse with Sam having it. I can tell when I have a nasal infection by the taste. I’ve had a couple of teeth abscess that I had to treat myself because I was a long ways from noplace. It’s not good.
Sam on a happier day
Go to the vet, right? Well, we went to the vet at the end of March for his rabies and parvo shots. That may seriously be where his problems came from. As awful as that is to say.
He also has a problem with his butt. I’ve wormed him, and checked for open sores. Next step is to massage his anal glands to see if that is the problem. Not a pleasant task for either one of us.
There are a couple of possibilities. It could be food allergies, but he’s eaten exactly the same thing for the 16 months I’ve had him. Not impossible, but not too likely in my mind. My best guess right now is that he’s picked up a serious infection and we need to treat that. I KNOW his ear is infected.
Yesterday morning I noticed he had a tender ear. I looked at it and saw an (smallish) wound on the outer edge of his ear flap. I thought it most likely that it was self inflicted from scratching. I cleaned it, rubbed Aloe on it, and didn’t think much more about it until this morning. His whole ear is inflamed and tender.
Investigative Sam
So. Will I take him to the Vet? Not right away at least. You see, this is the Tao of Sam, being with me he walks my path, for better or worse. Antibiotics are expensive and have limited value at best for most infections. For me or Sam. Any Vet around here will prescribe them immediately.
In this case, I am currently treating his ear with a mixture of olive oil and vitamin E. I will probably buy some aloe based oil to use as the medium and to slow the topical pain. I have gel based Aloe and it’s not so good in his ear canal.
I’ll talk to Erv (Sam’s other Dad. It’s complicated) this morning and map out a treatment plan. Not only is he a PHD biologist and botanist but his eldest daughter is a Vet Technician and has been for over 25 years. Bethany will KNOW.
Sam today. It's the other ear!
Thus is the Tao of Sam. I hate to even tell Erv because his wife will go crazy. She loves Sam completely and is a (semi) retired RN who now works with Hospice, which should tell you everything you need to know. The Tao of Tom is that I feel like the shittiest dog owner in Yuma County today. I know I’m not (they still FIGHT dogs in certain places) but I certainly feel like the path is not straight and not right.
So Sam and I have some adjustment to the Tao. I’ll let you know.
All words and photographs in this post are mine. For better or worse
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what a beautiful buddy ... I suspect he knows you're trying to help him. Healing sometimes takes time.
Thank you. That's my buddy and it's way easier for me to take the hurt than it is to see him with it. You know what I mean...
Good luck with that! I hope he gets feeling better. Jovi gets cuts and stuff in her ears quite frequently. We used to take her in every time, then we got smart and just bought some of the meds and antiseptic wash. Much cheaper than taking her in and having them do the same thing. @mrsbozz also does a pretty good job of keeping her ears clean. They say that dogs have an L shaped canal so you can dig in there deep than you think without hurting them. It took us a couple of years to realize that Jovi had a grain allergy and now we buy the expensive food, but it has made a huge difference with her health...
He'll get better. I think he feels better right now after the oil treatment and when the dog food store opens we'll get some 'directed treatment' stuff.
I keep his ears clean. In fact that's why I first noticed yesterday, Sunday is ear clean day. I had a Springer that would get cheat grass spurs in his ears and they'd cause all kinds of problems. That was about 35 years ago and I've been keeping dogs ears cleaned ever since. :)
Thanks. And good to know that OTC stuff works. I'm on it!
Is that the same as foxtails?
foxtails
picture
My vets had a colleague who named his yacht "Foxtail" -- because he said that's how he could afford it.
(Looked up cheat grass ---> it's not the same but similar. We have a lot of foxtails and other stickery stuff here.)
It's not quite the same. But the stickers act about the same way. I would trim the hair between his toes because he'd get them stuck in and they'd infect. And the ears, of course.
Oh wow, that is awesome. We just kind of learned as we were going because it was getting ridiculous taking her in every time she had an ear infection. We just took her in for all of her shots and her flea/tick meds the other day. It's a good thing she is cute because $270 was a bit more than I had been planning to spend at the Vet. I didn't even spend that much to rescue her from the shelter!
I've also found it ironic how we spend gobs of $$$ on vets, toys, food etc., when there is no way on earth we'd spend a fraction of that to get a pet in the first place. Such are the ways of love.
If it's a yeast infection (I've had that in Golden Retrievers before ... sometimes called "Swimmers' Ear" -- because the ear doesn't drain out properly ... and retrievers, you know!!) ---> anyway ... a mixture of 50% water / 50% vinegar -- several times a day -- seemed to help a lot. (Stand back, because he'll shake it all over once you let go of him.) I offer that FWIW. It's the first thing I'd try. YMMV. <-- Fair warning.
Apple cider vinegar would be my first choice, and it will be after his ear heals. He now has open sores in there and I won't put him through that pain.
In his case, it is not water in the ear for sure. He is a desert dog through and through. He'll go in the river most of the time, but not without me going first....
I thought it was odd, too ---> because as you know, we also live in the desert. But one of our adoptees had a "problem ear" that would get swollen, heavy -- and give off a very distinctive smell. The water / vinegar route seemed harmless enough -- and at least a possibility, so I gave that a go before doing anything more exotic -- and although she hated the "treatment" (even though I'd warm the solution a little before dropping it in), she was cooperative -- as if she knew it would help. And it did. (Except for the shaking after, it was a good solution -- no pun intended -- all around.) Your ACV may also work as soon as his ear is healed enough to use it.
I agree with @enchanted spirit. My Mom worked for an ear, nose, and throat Dr for over 30 years and our dog would get an ear infection and that is what we did too. Also like she said our dog really seemed to love it when we did it. soothing to their ear.
sending lots of love and healing and everyone gets ill. It's no one's fault. HUGS
Sam's ear has improved, it's not so inflamed or hot. I promised him that I'll put vinegar to it on Wednesday. I really hate to put it in his ear with the sores.
Thanks for the love and the good advice. Sam appreciates it all.
Oh no, not sweet Sam!!! There is nothing worse than your little friend being sick and looking up at you for help, so sad. Sounds like you have a serious plan of action @bigtom13. Love on him, keep the wound clean and make sure he doesn't irritate it more. Keep us posted!
Yeah. Sweet Sam. It seems the oil and Vitamin E is helping now, it isn't so swollen or inflamed as it was a few hours ago. I'm off to the dog food store in just a few minutes (when they open) to see if I can get some sort of topical antibiotic (Erv's recomendation before he talks to his daughter).
Ohh No poor Sam I hope and pray that your treatment does the trick and he is feeling better soon, when our loved pets are sick its so hard isnt it,
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Oh no, Tom! 😭😭😭 poor Sam. I’m sorry to say that I agree with you about the source of the infections. I’ve been reading a lot about the Parvo vaccine for doggos and what has happened to some other doggos of the Internet.
Have you tried colloidal silver? It is incredible, and a natural antibiotic. I think you can drop it, diluted, straight into the ear. Have a dig and see what you can see online, but I gave it to my kitty when he was sick, and while he did die in the end (😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭) he always perked up after a dose and ate a little after he’d had some.
I hope he gets better soon. Lots of hugs for Sam
I am currently out of colloidal silver but I have used it on me, and I didn't die. Yet. I think that's a great idea, and it just can't hurt.
I hate to think that is where it came from, but it's like a doctor's office. A perfect place to get really sick.
I'd seriously bet that was Sam's last Parvo vaccine. He should be old enough now that it won't be so much of a factor. And, well, this.
Oh no @bigtom13, an ear infection is so painful, poor Sam won't understand what's happening. Colloidal silver does do wonders with all kinds of infections, one gets it in a spray bottle which makes it easy to use, it's quite inexpensive over here. Hope it gets better very soon!
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I know. He's hurting so I'm in misery. Colloidal silver is on the list, I know it works.
Thanks Lizelle!
Hello @bigtom13!
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Hoping that Sam gets better soon. I feel so helpless and sad when my dog is feeling unwell.
Sam is much better, thank you! Today, one week later, I'm not so sure it was a classic ear infection. I'm starting to think he got a sticker or a bite on his 'hound dog ear' flap. Either way he was down for a week and I was just about frantic.
We went for a 'little walk' yesterday and will get close to our normal today. Thank you for the support AND encouragement. It is really appreciated!
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