Grungy kitty ears

[WNT]

Has anyone else experienced chronically itchy, grungy kitty ears due to food sensitivity with no other evidence of mites or other irritation?

Our middle kitty, Figaro, has had chronically grungy ears since late last summer/early fall. He is 100% indoor with two other cats in the house. He has been on Hill’s Prescription c/d dry (chicken) and canned (chicken and fish) since blocking summer of 2023 (which incidentally did not prevent bladder stones and blocking badly enough a second time to need PU surgery in spring of 2024).

After PU surgery (second in the house, Fawkes got it six weeks prior), they all were on Hill’s c/d. Many things have been addressed since, including moving to distilled water since even filtered our tap water was extremely hard. Various things happened after the surgery was performed that made finances a stretch over the summer so I asked the vet about swapping half the canned food to a less expensive OTC urinary food.

The vet ok’d the decision, since any post-PU crystals should be eliminated more easily so late summer we switched the c/d canned fish pate for the fish blend Purina ProPlan urinary care mix. Knock on wood, we have not had any urinary issues.

By the end of October, Figaro started scratching his ears enough to draw blood. He went to the vet where they cultured the crud and cleaned his ears. There were no mites, and minimal bacterial presence. They advised me to clean his ears weekly and keep a close eye on them. Coming into the holidays, I lapsed in his upkeep and they got grody enough to warrant going back in by early December. Same story, no mites no infection, just itchy excess wax and crud.

He and his housemate Twig are very close and groom each other constantly, including lots of face and ear licking. I broke down and got them insured (a day late and a lot of dollars short). Even with regular cleaning, his ears got bad enough within a couple of days to warrant another trip to the vet for culturing and a deeper cleaning (they have multiple hands and better comfort level with deep cleaning than I do).

Anyway, here we are in June. Even with the recommended Epiotic ear cleaner and weekly cleaning, his poor ears are junked up within a couple of days. We’re both at our wit’s end, and thankfully he’s never tried to bite though I wouldn’t blame him.

I am switching back to the Hill’s c/d fish blend from the Purina ProPlan as going back through the last nine months or so, that is the only thing that has really changed in Figaro’s routine.

Any other experiences or thoughts?

[WNT]

Figaro, for the picture tax.

[Cammie]

One of mine had a lot of allergies, including various proteins (chicken, fish, beef), and if she ate anything she was sensitive to she would get a yeast infection in her ears. If she had light exposure to something it would be one ear, usually the right one, and she would be shaking her head and scratching at the ear. If I cleaned her ears daily with otc ear meds and stopped with the offending food it would clear up quickly.

She was extremely allergic to chicken- if she got into any of that both ears would get really gross and she would scratch at her throat until it was bloody. When I first found her as a kitten both ears were filled with black crud and she was very itchy around her head and neck. Vet cleaned her ears out, but I had to take her back a few days later to have it done again. I found her in the parking lot of an El Pollo Loco where she was surviving on chicken scraps. I discovered a few weeks later about her chicken allergy and once I figured that out her ears cleared up.

I would say your kitty has an issue with an ingredient in the new food. Take him off it and back on the old food for a few weeks to let his system calm down and his ears to go back to normal. If you try again with something new go with a single novel protein and add in gradually. Mine could only eat rabbit. You’ll have to be diligent about reading labels- so many cat foods have chicken fat in them it was very hard to find anything for mine to eat. She could not eat kibble of any kind- if it didn’t have chicken in it there was fish in it instead. I refused to try her on the hydrolyzed proteins since the rest of the ingredients are so terrible on the prescription brands.

[OzarksRider]

I wonder if the persistent grunge could be a yeast infection. If it’s yeast, it won’t clear up unless you treat specifically for yeast no matter how diligently you clean her ears. Try treating with Tresaderm ear drops for a week. Tresaderm has an anti fungal (to treat yeast), a steroid (to control itching and inflammation) and an antibiotic (to treat bacterial infection), so it will cover all the bases. Tresaderm requires a prescription, so you’ll have to ask your vet.

[WNT]

Thank you for reminding me, they did give us a bottle each time he’s gone in. Applied 4-6 drops twice a day for two weeks. I still have the remainder of his last bottle (from February) so once his ears have calmed down a bit I’ll get back on that. I should have the old food he never had a problem with next week and switch them back over and see if that helps.

It’s $250 for cleaning and culturing to be told the same thing without any investigation into WHY he keeps getting it when neither of our other cats have issues.

[JB]

You might need an Rx novel protein diet to see if this is chicken or fish related. I say Rx, because they’re the only ones guaranteed (as well as you can guarantee anything) to not be cross-contaminated with another protein. OTC “rabbit only” (for example) might have chicken contamination, not enough for the animal who’s just mildly allergic, but enough for one who’s wildly sensitive. I understand the ingredient issue, but this would at least help determine if it’s the protein source.

you might also (separate from the above, and maybe first) try a good gut supplement, like FortiFlora or another similar one. I know some people think FF is crap, but I’ve personally used it and seen it help with some GI issues. I know it’s not the only one that can, but it’s the one I know.

[WNT]

Wow, I thought the Prescription c/d pricing was highway robbery.

[OzarksRider]

@WNT

It’s $250 for cleaning and culturing to be told the same thing without any investigation into WHY he keeps getting it when neither of our other cats have issues.

I once had a cat with recurring yeast infections in the ears. Like poor Figaro, my cat’s ears persistently became re-infected and I never knew why. I think it’s possible that there was some residual infection deep down where the Tresaderm couldn’t reach that would flare up after a while. It’s possible that Figaro’s grunge isn’t related to food sensitivity, but it sure doesn’t hurt to switch back to what he was eating before this started to see if that helps.

[Aussie_2020]

I fostered a small dog that had nasty ear grunge. The vet cleaned them twice and told the rescue that he needed an ear drain. I called the holistic vet I used and after a week on the supplement she sent plus the new diet his ears cleared and were good while I had him. I hope whoever adopted him stayed with the same feeding regime.

I think your kitty’s issue is one of the foods he’s eating.

[chestnutmarebeware]

I have a 17-y-o indoor cat with permanently grungy ears since kittenhood that isn’t related to food allergies. It’s not an infection or mites (been checked out several times), they just naturally get dirty and gross. But no itching.

If she’s at the vet for an appointment, they’ll clean them well. Otherwise, I sit on her at home and swab them out with feline ear cleaner and gauze pads every month or so.

[WNT]

The plan for now is this: he’ll go to the vet for a deep clean and refill on the Tresaderm. We get the food back tomorrow that he ate for over a year with no issues and will drop the ProPlan.

We’ll keep a close eye on how he does and hope he’s not like me, who had a couple dozen of environmental allergies crop up in maturity.