Ear Infection, Should I Give Him Steroids

Hi, :smt017 :smt017 :smt017 I took my dog to the vet today because he has a ear infection, the vet told me that because the ear was inflamed he would need to take Steroids (Prednicare) for three weeks to take down the swelling and put drops (Canaural) in his ear,
I don't know about giving him a drug that is going to supress his immune system I don't realy know whether to just use the ear drops and leave the Steroids and see how it goes, I don't realy know what to do.:smt017

I don't understand why he couldn't just have a course of anti-biotics? The ear drops are anti-biotic anyway, so if it were me I would use these to start off with, and I would also ask my vet why he wants to use steroids instead of anti-biotics. To me, steroids are a last resort! One of my dogs is on them permanently for his bad skin condition and I really hate this. He sometimes has anti-biotics too, but they wouldn't work on their own for his condition. Just try the ear drops first, they're very good and usually work imo. Hope that helps

Helena the vet said that the ear was inflamed and that the steroids would stop the ear from being enflamed

Yes, but don't anti-biotics take down inflammation and infection then? That's what they're for???

I once had a dog with a terrible skin condition, she was really itchy, scabby, red raw etc. I kept going to my local vet with her who would always prescribe steroids. This went on for 6 months until she was half bald with oozing sores and I was so upset, I went to another vet. He told me off for letting her get like this?????!!!!!! To which I showed him my pile of invoices from the previous vet!!! He immediately put her on a 3 month course of anti-biotics which cleared her up in no time! I know your vet knows what he's doing, but I think some vets actually like dishing out steroids, same as some doctors do. They know it will clear it up instantly, whereas maybe a course of anti-biotics may take longer or be less effective in some cases. Can't argue with a vet SBT, but I would certainly question it with him and ask why he doesn't want to prescribe anti-biotics in the first instance.

Hi SBT, if you have any questions about the treatment that has been prescribed for your dog, you should be speaking to the vet concerned., and if you don't trust the vet's professional ability, then you need to change vets.

It's not fair of any lay person on a message board, to suggest treatment options for a dog they have not seen. In fact that's very dangerous. You must direct all your queries to the vet, it's just not safe to accept advice on a message board that conflicts with what your vet has advised. Hope your dog is better soon.

Dawn R.

Dawn you took the words out of my mouth..
SBT the person to be asking is your vet, if he thought an anti-inflammatory was required to make your dog feel more comfortable and prescribed one, and you did not agree with this decision the best course of action was to question your vet. Having done this if you do not agree with him seek a second opinion from another vet.

Not taking the place of a vet and I agree with Nursey about following vets instructions etc.

However I can say this, sometimes there are valid reasons for giving steroids, sometimes the inflamation is so bad that it needs to come down before the antibiotics can get to where they need to go to work effectively. Antibiotics are not pain killers, ear infections can be, usually are, extremely painful, steroids are not pain killers either but in bringing down the inflamation will in turn reduce the pain. They also work in alleviating the irritation....which the antibiotics wont do until the infection subsides.

Steroids (staying with the prednisones) can be a really bad drug if they are long term or are given to an animal (or human) with underlying problems like liver damage, compromised immune system, which cover various illnesses, 'generally' given short term to an otherwise healthy dog should not cause any problems as long as the vets instructions are followed (as in they need to be tapered down). The typical side effects of pred are increased thirst, increased appetite and increased urination, they dont need to be fed any more than normal but should have access to water at all times (unless a vet instructs otherwise). If you notice any change in behaviou, rash, lethargy, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea etc....basically anything not the norm for your dog then your (a) vet should be informed immediately.

Like I said, not to take the place of a vet but as a tech (and I dont know the laws in UK) in US I am legally permitted to give this information to a client.

Call your vet if you have any concerns.

I would ring the vet up and ask why he has to have the steroids if you are not happy about giving them - I definitely would not not give the dog them without telling the vet first. My GSD was put on Rimadyl once and I read a lot of scary things on the internet about it and so I rang the vets up and explained my concerns to them and the receptionist managed to put my mind at ease after answering a few of my questions and telling me that her dog was also on Rimadyl. I wouldn't have thought a couple of weeks of steroids would do much harm in my opinion my dog has been on them numerous times in his two years and he seems fine.

Nursery, let me remind you this is Dog Health & Wellbeing sections for your questions and concerns about Health ect

Do you think that a lay person as you patronizingly put it is incapable of making a contribution that would help me make a informed choice, I am sorry but I find your comments condescending,
Thanks for your concern.