Read About Cat Ear Mites

ImageThe most common cat ear mites are Otodectes Cynotis. In fact, 90% of all cats will be infested with ear mites at sometime. Fifty percent of cat ear infections are due to ear mites. Ear mites usually live in the ears and on the head of affected cats, but they can sometimes live on the body of the cat, too. Cat ear mites live on the surface of the skin in the ear ear canal, where they feed on tissue debris and tissue fluids. Ear mites are contagious and often affect most of the cats in a household. Cat ear mites can also affect other household pets, including dogs.

The presence of mites can cause severe inflammation in a cat's ears. Signs of an ear mite infection are head shaking, scratching or rubbing the ears. Untreated ear mites can also lead to bacterial and yeast infections due to the inflammation and lack of air in the ear canal. Mites stimulate the wax producing glands in the ear canal, leading to wax buildup. This wax buildup mixed with ear mite feces and fluids is dark in color and looks like coffee grounds. Sometimes, cat ear mites will also cause your cat's ears to have an unpleasant odor. If the head shaking and scratching are severe, the ears can be further damaged by broken blood vessels leading to swelling (hematomas).

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You should take your cat or kitten to a veterinarian for treatment. The vet will begin the cat ear mite treatment with cleaning of the ear canal. Ear wax and debris will be flushed out of the ear during an office visit. Veterinarians typically treat mites with medication, usually in the form of drops that not only kill the mites but also prevent secondary infections and reduce inflammation. Both ears should be treated even if only one ear appears infested. Depending on the medication prescribed, drops will most {mosimage}likely have to be given to the cat or kitten twice a day over a period of time. Stopping treatment too soon will allow mite larvae to reach adulthood and begin the infestation again. The life cycle of cat ear mites is 3 weeks, so the veterinarian may want to reexamine your cat or kitten after 4 weeks to make sure all mites are gone. An asymptomatic cat with mites could repeatedly re-infect recently treated cats. All cats and dogs in a household would need to be treated at the same time.

One of the causes of chronic ear mites infections is treating only the ears. In order to eliminate ear mites in your cat or kitten, it is important to treat not only your cat's ears, but its fur and its environment. There are a number of approved medications for ear mites available from your veterinarian. Cat flea control products that kill adult fleas will kill cat ear mites. These may be used to treat the cat’s fur and the house. (Use according to the directions on the label.)