topic Re: Yorkie with leather ear in Community Chat

Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 04:48:07 GMT

I have an 8 year old Yorkie that is a puppy mill rescue. She seems to have something called leather ear on the tips of her ears. It causes a dark hard gunky substance on the skin. This is a new experience for me and I have had dogs most of my life. Even the groomer doesn't know much about it. Anyone have experience in the treatment and removal of this gunk? Any ideas what causes it? Thanks in advance for any assistance you can provide.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

luvmyteddy4 — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 05:26:57 GMT

I looked it up on the internet. It is caused by a fungus usually found during the winter months. Look up the Dreaded Leather Ear Blog for Yorkies and it explains it and gives advice on what to use to get rid of it.

There is a whole page on Leather Ear to choose from.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 17:33:39 GMT

Luvmyteddy:

Thanks so much for taking the time to look it up and respond, I really appreciate it. I had read the information on that site and have tried the 1% clotrimazole cream, which has helped some over several weeks. I am afraid to try the Tee Tree Oil mentioned on the site, as I have read it is toxic to pets and we have another dog and a cat and they all lick/groom each other. I don't want any of them to get sick in the process of trying to help solve the ear problem. This QVC forum has so many wonderful people with experience in all kinds of things, so I thought I would turn to this wise group and see if anyone here had experience with this problem and what advice/information they might be able to offer. Thanks again for your help!

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

NickNack — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 18:14:35 GMT

Have you discussed this with your Vet? It sounds like something that might need an antibiotic.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 23:13:16 GMT

NickNack: I am so sorry about the loss of your beloved furbaby, Nick. I read your post with great interest as my little toy poodle (rescued from a puppy mill at age 5 – now age 7) had serious genetic heart issues which were discovered by the shelter that rescued her. A very generous guardian angel came forward to pay for her heart surgery at the University and it has helped her feel so much better. However, because the surgery was not performed within the first year of life they were not able to totally repair her heart. She is doing well now, but does have a murmur and will develop further problems as she ages. She is not on medicine now, but they said that would come later. I am committed to giving her the best life ever, for however long she may have. She is such a sweet, loving little soul who suffered in many ways throughout her first five years of life and I am determined to make all the rest of her days spectacular! As, I read your post about Nick, I saw my future and my heart broke for both of us.

Thanks for the advice about seeing the vet for antibiotics; I may have to do that. Before we adopted the yorkie and the poodle we have now, we had a sweet miniature poodle, rescued from being a show dog and then a breeder – poor baby had even been debarked, which apparently is normal for show dogs. Anyway, I foolishly got her a booster rabies and distemper shot all at once and she had a horrible reaction. They put her on antibiotics, steroids, and a stream of other drugs that never seem to end, as she deteriorated before our eyes. It was horrible to watch. I have been gun-shy about shots and drugs ever since.

Thanks again for your help and know that my heart hurts for you.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

lolakimono — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 23:51:55 GMT

How about using coconut oil or almond oil on the affected parts of the ear?

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 00:35:32 GMT

On 3/6/2015 lolakimono said:
How about using coconut oil or almond oil on the affected parts of the ear?

That is a great idea! I have coconut oil on hand, so I think I will try that today. Thanks!

Everyone has been very helpful and I sincerely appreciate any and all ideas.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

NickNack — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 01:28:46 GMT

On 3/6/2015 Havarti said:

NickNack: I am so sorry about the loss of your beloved furbaby, Nick. I read your post with great interest as my little toy poodle (rescued from a puppy mill at age 5 – now age 7) had serious genetic heart issues which were discovered by the shelter that rescued her. A very generous guardian angel came forward to pay for her heart surgery at the University and it has helped her feel so much better. However, because the surgery was not performed within the first year of life they were not able to totally repair her heart. She is doing well now, but does have a murmur and will develop further problems as she ages. She is not on medicine now, but they said that would come later. I am committed to giving her the best life ever, for however long she may have. She is such a sweet, loving little soul who suffered in many ways throughout her first five years of life and I am determined to make all the rest of her days spectacular! As, I read your post about Nick, I saw my future and my heart broke for both of us.

Thanks for the advice about seeing the vet for antibiotics; I may have to do that.Before we adopted the yorkie and the poodle we have now, we had a sweet miniature poodle, rescued from being a show dog and then a breeder – poor baby had even been debarked, which apparently is normal for show dogs.Anyway, I foolishly got her a booster rabies and distemper shot all at once and she had a horrible reaction. They put her on antibiotics, steroids, and a stream of other drugs that never seem to end, as she deteriorated before our eyes. It was horrible to watch. I have been gun-shy about shots and drugs ever since.

Thanks again for your help and know that my heart hurts for you.

Havarti, thank you so much for your condolences on the loss of my dog Nick. Yesterday was really hard, but I'm feeling a lot better today.

I'm sorry about your little poodle with heart issues. When the time comes she may do really well on the meds. I've had five dogs with heart problems, including Nick. Only one of them died from heart failure. The others died from cancer. The heart meds now can really be miracle workers. Your little dog was certainly lucky to have been rescued by you.

I hate to hear of dogs that have been debarked. I thought that was really common for puppy mills to do, but not for breeders. I think it's actually against the rules when you're showing dogs. It seems very cruel to me.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

emmysmom — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 03:26:05 GMT

On 3/6/2015 Havarti said:

NickNack: I am so sorry about the loss of your beloved furbaby, Nick. I read your post with great interest as my little toy poodle (rescued from a puppy mill at age 5 – now age 7) had serious genetic heart issues which were discovered by the shelter that rescued her. A very generous guardian angel came forward to pay for her heart surgery at the University and it has helped her feel so much better. However, because the surgery was not performed within the first year of life they were not able to totally repair her heart. She is doing well now, but does have a murmur and will develop further problems as she ages. She is not on medicine now, but they said that would come later. I am committed to giving her the best life ever, for however long she may have. She is such a sweet, loving little soul who suffered in many ways throughout her first five years of life and I am determined to make all the rest of her days spectacular! As, I read your post about Nick, I saw my future and my heart broke for both of us.

Thanks for the advice about seeing the vet for antibiotics; I may have to do that.Before we adopted the yorkie and the poodle we have now, we had a sweet miniature poodle, rescued from being a show dog and then a breeder – poor baby had even been debarked, which apparently is normal for show dogs.Anyway, I foolishly got her a booster rabies and distemper shot all at once and she had a horrible reaction. They put her on antibiotics, steroids, and a stream of other drugs that never seem to end, as she deteriorated before our eyes. It was horrible to watch. I have been gun-shy about shots and drugs ever since.

Thanks again for your help and know that my heart hurts for you.

Havarti, I have to add what a wonderful mommy you are to your pets. I am hopeful the coconut oil helps as it is antifungal..and my little minpin loves a little taste. She had problems with Frontline, she wasn't able to walk. She is very sensitive and I quit vaccinating her too, because of reactions. She's so tiny. I'm also gun shy about drugs and shots too! Please keep us updated about your yorkie!!

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 19:14:04 GMT

On 3/6/2015 NickNack said:
On 3/6/2015 Havarti said:

NickNack: I am so sorry about the loss of your beloved furbaby, Nick. I read your post with great interest as my little toy poodle (rescued from a puppy mill at age 5 – now age 7) had serious genetic heart issues which were discovered by the shelter that rescued her. A very generous guardian angel came forward to pay for her heart surgery at the University and it has helped her feel so much better. However, because the surgery was not performed within the first year of life they were not able to totally repair her heart. She is doing well now, but does have a murmur and will develop further problems as she ages. She is not on medicine now, but they said that would come later. I am committed to giving her the best life ever, for however long she may have. She is such a sweet, loving little soul who suffered in many ways throughout her first five years of life and I am determined to make all the rest of her days spectacular! As, I read your post about Nick, I saw my future and my heart broke for both of us.
Thanks for the advice about seeing the vet for antibiotics; I may have to do that.Before we adopted the yorkie and the poodle we have now, we had a sweet miniature poodle, rescued from being a show dog and then a breeder – poor baby had even been debarked, which apparently is normal for show dogs.Anyway, I foolishly got her a booster rabies and distemper shot all at once and she had a horrible reaction. They put her on antibiotics, steroids, and a stream of other drugs that never seem to end, as she deteriorated before our eyes. It was horrible to watch. I have been gun-shy about shots and drugs ever since.
Thanks again for your help and know that my heart hurts for you.

Havarti, thank you so much for your condolences on the loss of my dog Nick. Yesterday was really hard, but I'm feeling a lot better today.

I'm sorry about your little poodle with heart issues. When the time comes she may do really well on the meds. I've had five dogs with heart problems, including Nick. Only one of them died from heart failure. The others died from cancer. The heart meds now can really be miracle workers. Your little dog was certainly lucky to have been rescued by you.

I hate to hear of dogs that have been debarked. I thought that was really common for puppy mills to do, but not for breeders. I think it's actually against the rules when you're showing dogs. It seems very cruel to me.

NickNack:

Thank you for sharing with me that the meds will likely prove very helpful for my poodle, when the time comes. I was relieved to hear that heart problems was not the cause of death in most of your dogs who had heart issues yet was so sorry to hear that cancer played such a major role. It seems that cancer is so much more common in animals these days (as well as for humans). It really makes you wonder what is causing this….is it something in their food, is it environmental, or just what is it?????

I was horrified to learn that the dog had been debarked. I had never heard of such a thing and it made me sick to think of it. She was always very protective of her throat – she never liked to be touched in that area or be scratched under her chin (like so many dogs do). She must have always carried memories of it.

By the time I adopted her (at nearly age 5) she had been a top prize winning show dog regionally, (according to the breeder she hated the show ring), she had been moved on to be a breeder dog, and then she had been adopted out and returned 4 times. She must have really hated the show ring because she even hated seeing dog shows on TV (there is that dog memory again)– and she normally loved to see animals on TV. The show/breeder was going to put her down because she was too hard to place. She came home with me that day and was the most loving, wonderful, devoted dog you could imagine. I usually pick the dog that is missing a leg, has a crooked tail, one ear up and one ear down, no teeth or teeth that jut out in a vicious toothy grin, etc. – show dogs are not my thing. Her sad and desperate situation (and perhaps that she really wasn’t a show dog at heart) caused me to pick her and she was always devotedly at my side for the rest of her life. It was one of the best decisions I ever made.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 19:31:33 GMT

On 3/6/2015 emmysmom said:
On 3/6/2015 Havarti said:

NickNack: I am so sorry about the loss of your beloved furbaby, Nick. I read your post with great interest as my little toy poodle (rescued from a puppy mill at age 5 – now age 7) had serious genetic heart issues which were discovered by the shelter that rescued her. A very generous guardian angel came forward to pay for her heart surgery at the University and it has helped her feel so much better. However, because the surgery was not performed within the first year of life they were not able to totally repair her heart. She is doing well now, but does have a murmur and will develop further problems as she ages. She is not on medicine now, but they said that would come later. I am committed to giving her the best life ever, for however long she may have. She is such a sweet, loving little soul who suffered in many ways throughout her first five years of life and I am determined to make all the rest of her days spectacular! As, I read your post about Nick, I saw my future and my heart broke for both of us.
Thanks for the advice about seeing the vet for antibiotics; I may have to do that.Before we adopted the yorkie and the poodle we have now, we had a sweet miniature poodle, rescued from being a show dog and then a breeder – poor baby had even been debarked, which apparently is normal for show dogs.Anyway, I foolishly got her a booster rabies and distemper shot all at once and she had a horrible reaction. They put her on antibiotics, steroids, and a stream of other drugs that never seem to end, as she deteriorated before our eyes. It was horrible to watch. I have been gun-shy about shots and drugs ever since.
Thanks again for your help and know that my heart hurts for you.

Havarti, I have to add what a wonderful mommy you are to your pets. I am hopeful the coconut oil helps as it is antifungal..and my little minpin loves a little taste. She had problems with Frontline, she wasn't able to walk. She is very sensitive and I quit vaccinating her too, because of reactions. She's so tiny. I'm also gun shy about drugs and shots too! Please keep us updated about your yorkie!!

emmysmon: Thanks for letting me know about the anti-fungal properties of coconut oil. That is the approach I will use for the next week or two and hopefully that will finish off the job that the 1% clotrimazole cream started. So many pets are sensitive to the shots and strong medicines these days, it really makes you wonder what is suddenly causing this to happen? The agony my dog went through was horrific and I suffered horrible mother’s guilt for my decisions having cause it. I will forever be overly cautious about shots and prescriptions (as well as being leery of much of the pet food). I don’t always follow the vet’s lead anymore.

I hope your little minpin is now walking & running and happy & healthy!

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Sat, 07 Mar 2015 19:32:46 GMT

Thank you all for your kind words. I assure you, I am the lucky one to have these sweet little blessings in my life. They came along at just the right time, when my heart was broken and had a hole in it I thought could never be filled. They needed a new beginning at the very same time I needed a new beginning and together, we are sharing a wonderful new life.

I am always grateful for the wonderful work that the rescue people do that I could never do myself. They are so strong in spirit to be able to go to those puppy mill auctions and see so many sweet souls that have lead a horrible life and now are terrified to be thrust into the auction environment. From this, they must choose which lives to save with the limited purchasing budget available (I would need to take them all and run off to become an animal hoarder). Then they need to transport all those scared furballs back to the home state, cover the cost of medical care for all and then find foster homes until a permanent home can be found. I could never be a foster mom because I would never be able to give up a homeless animal I took in and cared for. Those foster parents are so strong and giving to be able to do that over and over. Thank goodness all the people involved in the process are willing to do this over and over again so the animals and people like me can benefit from their generosity. They have my sincerest gratitude and admiration! I was fortunate to reap the benefits of their strength, determination and commitment to save many sweet deserving animals that have never known love, have learned not to trust humans, and think touch will result in pain/punishment. Somehow these gentle little creatures eventually wipe that slate clean and are willing to trust again, accept & give love, and evolve into a whole new being. Humans could learn from their example of forgiveness.

Many thanks to all who answered and offered ideas to help my sweet leather-eared furbaby.

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Mon, 09 Mar 2015 15:19:43 GMT

Update:

Well, I tried the coconut oil and all three of them loved it! Too soon to see what it does for the leather ear. I am massaging some onto the ear and I let them all lick some up so the Yorkie is getting treated from the outside in and the inside out, while the others are just ingesting it. She looks very greasy, but that is a small price to pay if it works. Oooops….poops, I found out what unpleasantness happens for all if they eat too much (which isn’t a lot, since they are all so small). So, after a round of diarrhea and several butt washings we are back on course to reap the potential benefits of coconut oil. I read that it is excellent for their coats and should also help with yeast, The little poodle is cream colored, so she gets red tear stains which I have read is often caused by yeast. I have been giving them both 3 drops of Braggs apple cider vinegar in their food at AM & PM and that helped some with the tear stains on her fur, so hopefully the coconut oil will help even more. I refuse to use Angel Eyes because it contains antibiotics and I do not want to build a resistance to antibiotics in case she really needs them for a serious medical issue later in life.

Thanks again for all your help!

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

NickNack — Mon, 09 Mar 2015 15:38:03 GMT

Havarti, I was researching coconut oil for dogs recently. I read that you start off giving them 1/8 tsp. You've probably read this by now, too. That will prevent diarrhea. I also read that it needs to be virgin coconut oil.

I hope it works for your dog's ears!

Re: Yorkie with leather ear

Havarti — Mon, 09 Mar 2015 23:59:47 GMT

On 3/9/2015 NickNack said:
Havarti, I was researching coconut oil for dogs recently. I read that you start off giving them 1/8 tsp. You've probably read this by now, too. That will prevent diarrhea. I also read that it needs to be virgin coconut oil.

I hope it works for your dog's ears!

NickNack: Thanks for sharing your added knowledge with me. I gave them Spectrum refined organic expeller pressed coconut oil. The jar had never been opened before, does that qualify as virgin? Unfortunately I gave them each about 1 tsp. of it. Let’s just say they have had a thorough cleansing detox at this point. I am surprised they don’t suggest this for people prepping for a colonoscopy….it certainly cleans things out quickly! I must remember in the future that too much of a good thing… is not a good thing.

Upon further exploration on the internet I gather virgin means “unrefined”. I wonder what the difference is to their systems. Guess I'll make a trip to the store before we use anymore coconut oil. It will give their little systems a chance to rest. Thank for letting me know.