Does your dog have ‘BAD EARS'? Are they getting infected, itchy and sore every few months? Bonnie's were, and it had got to the point where medications weren't helping anymore. Bonnie's owner said that she was unhappy when the ears flared up and she was interacting less. It was time to do something more drastic for Bonnie.
What we proposed for Bonnie is a surgical procedure called a Total Ear Canal Ablation (TECA) and lateral bullae osteotomy (LBO). It involves removing the entire ear canal, including the ear drum - with all this gone there is nothing left to get infected. For aesthetics, the ear pinna itself is left in place.
Following some skull xrays, Bonnie was assessed to be suitable for the procedure. She was placed on antibiotics for 2-3 weeks prior to the surgery date, so as to decrease the amount of infection as much as possible. Bonnie's surgery and recovery went smoothly; she was on a high level of pain relief throughout and her head was bandaged post-surgery so as to decrease swelling. She went home the following day once we were happy with her progress. The bandages had to stay on for a week, and the ‘Elizabethan collar' for 2 weeks, to stop her scratching and damaging her ears.
This photo was taken several months after Bonnie's operation. Bonnie's owner reports that she is a much happier and more interactive dog, that she can still hear some noises, and everyone is happier that there are no more ear medications required!
