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my pekingese is walking with a limp and very slow but does not make any painful noises when picking him up or massaging his legs three of them look wobbly while walking? what could it be? he wont let me cut his nails but they are not overly long and his ear has been acting up but i have been cleaning it every other day with prescription ear cleaner.
Optional Information: Type of Animal: Pekingese Pet's Gender: Male Pet's Age: 6 Name of Dog: Suenock Already Tried: massaging
Does he have a head tilt to one side or the other? Is he falling over at all?
a very slight head tilt to the left which is the same as the infected ear, not falling over just clumsy like missing a step on our stairs
he is very slow and his walking is so wobbly its scary. he holds Weight on his back legs just fine when i stand him up on the hind legs it almost looks bowed out when he walks
Okay, so the most likely thing going on here is vestibular disease (loss of balance, head tilt, etc) due to the ear infection. This can potentially take several days to resolve (if it is from the infection, the inflammation needs to resolve before this balance loss will be corrected)
should i forget about the ear cleaner and go for something more invasive? like go to another vet for better medicine?
Yes, you are going to need medicine for the specific infection he has to help it resolve
C1/0 is what i am using now
Cleaner in itself will not accomplish this. If this is due to an infection, it means the infection is behind the ear drum (inner ear infection) so he may also need a deep ear flush under anesthesia to get the infection out
it has water, propylene glycol,lactic acid, docusate sodium, salicylic acid, dimethicone
okay, so when i call a vet what should i say he needs? like what is the appointment for?
Okay so I just want to make sure we are on the same page here as far as what is going on with him...
He has an ear infection as far as you can tell, he has a head tilt to that side, and he is having trouble walking like he doesn't have good balance, correct?
Is he showing any symptoms of back pain or any other concerning issues?
correct. he has a real strong stench coming from that ear and he has been itching it really bad a brown waxy residue comes out
Just want to make sure we are talking about the same thing and that this isn't an emergency type situation
no when i put pressure on his paws and back and hips he doesnt show any discomfort
Okay good
So this does sound like vestibular disease then. So basically when you call the vet, tell them he has a bad ear infection, head tilt, and loss of balance and they will know what needs to be done
Are his eyes going back and forth (called nystagmus) that you can tell?
thank you so much i will make an appointment. :) no he looks at me just fine no dissyness
Okay great. If he starts vomiting or anything (he can get nauseous due to the dizziness) you may need to take him to an ER clinic for IV fluids (so he doesn't get dehydrated) and for an injectable drug that can reduce nausea
Here is a link on vestibular disease in general that you can read up on further --
http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=564
Those are really the extreme cases that typically need hospitalization though, so it is unlikely he will need that (the dogs that are so dizzy they won't drink any water and keep vomiting due to nausea)
Thank you again I'm glad i found this.
You are very welcome!
Experience: significant surgical and medicine background, currently working as emergency clinic veterinarian