Ear Mites In Cats Symptoms and Treatments

Ear mites, known as ododectes cyanotis, cause a great deal of frustration and irritation to your cat, and you need to get him used to ear examinations from an early age so that should he ever contract mites you and your vet can treat him effectively.

Ear mites are can be seen as small white specks within your cat's ear, and they feed on the cerumen, or ear wax deep within the ear. Their presence sets up an irritation within the ear canal wall, and the surrounding tissue reacts by producing a serous or watery exudate to try and combat the invasion. The combination of the serous fluid and the waste products of the ear mites then form thick black crusting within the ear which becomes even more irritant and can almost block the ear canal, and can then lead to secondary bacterial infection because of the warm, moist, bacteria-rich conditions. As a consequence your cat can then develop ear infections to add to his miseries.

The signs and symptoms of feline ear mites are fairly obvious. You will see your cat continually shaking his head and scratching his ears in an effort to dislodge an irritant and to try and unblock his ear. If he will let you look inside his ear you will see the black crusting and may also see the small white specks that signal the presence of mites.

To treat the mites and to make sure that he has not developed any secondary bacterial infection he should have an appointment with the veterinary surgeon, who can then prescribe a course of treatment and future prevention. Antibiotics may be prescribed to treat any bacterial infection.

To treat the ear mites you will need to wash the ear out carefully and get rid of all the black crusting, otherwise you are simply leaving a prime environment for infection and will not eradicate the mites. Once the ear is clean and clear, you will then need to apply an insecticide in a little carrier oil. This is dropped right into the ear, and you will then need to massage it so that the walls of the ear canal are coated as well as the lower reaches of the canal. You will need to leave this for a week, and then repeat the cleaning out to remove any oil and debris. A second application of insecticide and carrier oil and massage is then carried out, and another week left. The third week should be the final time you need to wash the ear, apply the insecticide and massage the ear.

The reason the treatment is given over a period of three weeks is to address the problem of hatching eggs which can then mature into ear mites and start the process all over again. Unless you treat the mite at all stages of its development you will not eradicate them..

The condition is not at all serious, but it is very uncomfortable for the cat and treatment should be initiated as soon as you notice the signs and symptoms.

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