Ear mites in cats: symptoms and home treatment

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Very soon warm days will come, fresh grass will appear, and ticks dangerous to the he alth of pets will appear in it. Interestingly, no animal is immune from infection with parasites. Ear mites in domestic cats are, of course, rarely diagnosed, but they can also be found even if the animal does not go outside at all.

Disease types

Ear scabies is actually a very common condition, so there is nothing special about finding it. Naturally, if the problem is ignored, the animal may even die or lose its hearing, so the owners of furry predators should examine their pets more often and observe their behavior in order to detect the problem in time.

Ear mites in cats can be of two varieties. Most often, pets become infected with otodectosis - an internal form, but sometimes parasites can live on the outer surface of the ear, the disease is called notoedrosis. These varieties of the disease are caused by various parasites, are diagnosed according to different signs and are also treated differently.

Tick varieties

These parasites are tiny arthropods and cannot be seen with the naked eye.

Ototdectes cynotus is a tick that lives in the very ear of an animal. Its body is oval, slightly elongated, the color is light yellow. The length of the mature parasite is only 0.2-0.6 mm. The ear mite in cats feeds on scales of the epidermis in the ear canal and causes a terrible itch in pets. Its waste products in the ear cause inflammation and excessive production of sulfur. The life cycle of the parasite is 28 days in an ideal environment, while the tick is able to wait for "their" animal for more than two months in the grass, on human clothing or other places.

Notoedres cati is a parasite that lives on the outer surface of the ear. His vital activity causes the disease notoedrosis, which most often affects small kittens. Their length is even less - 0.14-0.45 mm, and the body itself is colorless and rounded. The lifespan of these mites is a maximum of 8 weeks, but if the problem is ignored, they spread throughout the cat's face.

Infection variants

Pet owners should be aware that ticks are not able to fly or jump, which means that they can get on the animal's body only through direct contact. In the wild, many animals are susceptible to infection with these parasites, and therefore the ticks themselves often live in the grass in anticipation of “their new home”. Based on this, ear mites in cats appear most often if the pet periodically goes outside. This happens when in contact withinfected animals, walking on the grass, attics or basements where there are accumulations of parasites. Arthropods can also be carried by flies and even the person himself on his shoes or clothes. For us, these pests are not dangerous, but without knowing it, stroking a dirty cat on the street, we can bring its parasites to our pet.

Why are ticks active in spring and summer? Yes, because at temperatures below -7 ˚С they simply die. Under favorable conditions, they are able to live even without an animal for up to 1 month indoors and up to 2 months outdoors.

It is important to know that outdoor mites can cause skin inflammation in humans as well.

Ear Mite Symptoms in Cats

The main symptom of parasite infection is intense itching in the ears of the animal. The pet will be restless, often shaking his head and scratching the infected ear. At the initial stage, the cat may simply try to shake out the parasite, after which its head will almost always be turned to the side so that the infected area will be below. Regular scratching leads to the formation of wounds and scratches, which become inflamed and disturb the pet even more. The ears look dirty, swollen and brown in color.

Ear mite waste in cats accumulates and, together with sulfur, forms plugs that reduce the hearing of the animal.

In the last stages, purulent and bloody discharge with a terrible smell appears from the ears, the parasites get toinner ear, infecting the meninges. The cat is tormented by nervous attacks, and she dies.

Diagnosis

In order to start treatment for ear mites in cats, it is necessary to correctly diagnose it. You can do it yourself as follows:

1. Use a Q-tip to take as much secretion from the pet's ear as possible.
2. Lightly tap the particles off of it, be sure to onto a dark surface (parasites will not be visible on a white one).
3. Use a bright light and a magnifying glass to look at the wand and cloth. If movements are noticed, then the pet is infected.

After that, you should immediately go to the veterinarian, because only he can determine the type of parasite and prescribe the appropriate treatment. Ear mite in cats in a hospital setting is diagnosed using a microscope and tissue scraping from the inner surface of the ear or around the perimeter of the infected area if the disease develops on the outer surface.

Treatment rules

First of all, it should be remembered that the result of treating ear mites in cats at home will be noticeable only if the duration of therapy is observed. The fact is that drugs, like folk remedies, only affect adults and do not affect their eggs. To completely get rid of parasites, you will need to treat for at least a month until new parasites hatch.

You will also need to protect the infected animal from contact with other pets, if any, in the house. They can be temporarilyrelocate to relatives or at least to another room.

Daily, before using medicines, thoroughly clean the ears of the animal with disinfectant solutions. Suitable "Chlorhexidine" and hydrogen peroxide. You need to process the ears inside and out with the help of cotton buds, completely freeing the organs from secretions and crusts.

To relieve itching, the cat should be given an antihistamine, and a special collar should be put on the head to prevent scratching. After hygiene procedures, be sure to wash your hands thoroughly, and it is better to carry out cleaning and treatment with gloves.

It is equally important to strengthen the immunity of the animal, because the speed of recovery and the chance to pick up parasites again depend on it. The pet should be fully fed, given vitamins and immunostimulants.

Treatment prescribed by a doctor must be strictly followed. With an average and severe stage of infection, only medicines can help the animal.

Ear cleaning

Ear mites in cats (a photo of the parasite can be seen above in the article) causes many negative consequences, and in the early stages of development it can be completely invisible. As a preventive measure for its occurrence or for regular washing of the ear, not only medicinal antiseptics, but also green tea can be used already during treatment. To do this, it must be steeped and cooled, and then put into a pipette or syringe without a needle a little tea leaves. Before instillation, the ear must be slightly pulled up so that the channels open and the solution gets in aspossible deeper. A few drops are enough for each ear, after which the ear needs to be pressed a little. It will be much easier to remove dirt after that.

Drops from ear mites for cats are applied in the same way, only after they enter the auricle, the ear should be folded in half and massaged a little so that the medicine gets as deep as possible. If this is not done, the cat will immediately shake out the medicine.

It is very important to treat both ears during treatment, even if the infection has occurred in only one.

Drugs

All veterinary medicines for ticks are divided into several groups:

• sprays;
• ointments;
• drops;
• injections.

The first ones are made on the basis of Dermatozol, Acrodex and Cyodrin. They are convenient to use because they are sprayed a short distance from the ear, but at the same time uneconomical and expensive.

Ointments are used in the initial stages of the disease, and drops - already with damage to the eardrum. The latter can be narrow-profile or broad-spectrum. Most often, drops are used in combination with antimycotic agents or antifungal ointments. In a complex form, the disease is treated with injections of "Gamavit" or "Tetravit". Most often, veterinarians prescribe these drops for cats:

• "Amitrazine".
• Bars.
• Aurican.
• Tzipam.

If the parasite provoked the development of otitis media, drops of "Genodex" or "Sofradex" are additionally prescribed. Also canyou need the antibiotic Cefazolin or Cefuroxime.

Treatment of the external form of the disease

If a cat has developed notoedrosis, the affected areas of the skin should be treated with petroleum jelly or sedimentary sulfur for a week, 2-3 times a day. Also, while bathing the animal, you can add "Hexachloran emulsion" to the water. In the last stages of the development of the disease, a solution of 15-20% benzyl benzoate is excellent.

Folk methods

In the initial stages of treating ear mites in cats at home, many use proven folk remedies. Some experts also recommend using them, but only as an addition to complex drug therapy.

So, the natural antiseptic properties of garlic can be used to treat ear parasites. To do this, his cloves need to be infused in any vegetable oil, and then use the prepared liquid as drops. Use this remedy once a day, using only 2 drops for each ear.

You can also bury the ears of a cat with celandine juice, in the summer it is easy to find it. To obtain it, you need to carefully grind or twist the stems and leaves of the plant in a meat grinder. The resulting juice drip into each ear of the cat 2 drops twice a day.

To disinfect the inner surface of the animal's ears, you can prepare the following solution: combine 1 part alcohol iodine and 4 parts glycerin.

Scratched areas around the ears also need to be treated regularly. Great for thisointment Konkova, which can be bought at a pharmacy or prepared at home.

Prevention

So that the symptoms and treatment of ear mites in cats are not a topical problem in the warm season, you should carefully monitor the condition of the animal. Prevention of the appearance of parasites will be regular processing of the pet's resting place and cleanliness in the house. Also, the cat must be fully fed so that the pet's immunity can resist the infection itself. As a supplement, you can periodically solder your pet with vitamins.

Well, and, of course, the main method of prevention is regular cleaning of the pet's ears and their examination. To maintain cleanliness, you can use Otodepin drops, special products and lotions, or simply treat the auricles with disinfectant solutions, removing contaminants. The main rule for the prevention of any disease is strong immunity, cleanliness of the animal and order in the house.

It should also be remembered that it is small kittens that are most susceptible to infection. Most of the medicines are designed for their age, but not all folk remedies can be applied to them, special attention should be paid to this. Also, not every method can be used in the treatment of pregnant or lactating animals.