Rescue Chihuahua--smelly and itchy ears, stuffy nose.

CHIHUAHUA has smelly, itchy ears and stuffy nose- could this be YEAST???.

hi,
I just got a new Chi from a rescue. He was found roaming the streets of NYC. That's all I know about him. Vet thinks he is 10 years old.
He has a few problem:
His ears are really smelly and have thick brown discharge. They also must be really itchy because he scratches and shakes them a lot.
His nose is really stuffy- it sounds like a real bad sinus infection, except it's not. Vet had me give him antibiotics (Clovamox) thinking it was upper raspiratory infection, but it didn't help at all. He was also on Clovamox before that for kennel cough. so, that's 2 times on antibiotics in the past month- can't be good.
And his eyes have thicker than usual tears. Not too bad though on the eyes.
He claws and rubs his nose and ears a lot.
He also has a wart on his nose. It was really big and bloody when I first got him and he scratched it and it was bleeding. Vet gave me some ointment to put on it with cortisone in it. It healed it and now it's just flesh colored small bump that just wouldn;t go away.
He also smells bad but mostly from his ears.
He licks his front paws quite a bit and his balls (he is not fixed yet).
I don't know if I should fix him at this point - he is so old!
I think the simptoms mihgt be yeast related. I read a few threads and it seems it's the case. I'm not sure though.
Vet thinks it's allergies and gave me some chinese herbal pills to give to Beasley but it doesn't seem to help so far (it's been about a week on the pills). I'm feeding him natural canned food( Paul Numan's organic chicken/brown rice and Solid Gold brand in few different flavors). he loves to eat and is getting almost as fast at consuming his food as my other Chihuahua Xena who is an old time speed-eating champion.
I don't know what he is used to eating (probably rats and trash if he was living on the streets of NYC) so it would be difficult to do the whole food elimination diet to determine if he is allergic to anything.
Any suggestions?
thank you

Yeast was my first thought too. Have you been to www.greatdanelady.com and read her info on yeast? You'll learn a lot.

Mordy can help you figure out a diet and supplements that should help you get him cleared up.

Definetely yeast. Poor little thing. He is not too old to get fixed. Neuters take a LOT less time than a spay. He won't be under anesthetic for long, so nothing to worry about there. He may have a skin problem in addition to to the yeasty ears.

If he's got systemic yeast it is probably causing at least part of those skin problems. It's nasty stuff!

Poor little guy. I'm glad he found you! It's never too old to neuter. Their health will be better without the ballies...

Bless you for taking on this older guy !!

if the cough is because of a viral infection, antibiotics won't do anything and it will just have to run its course. you can do some things to boost the immune system, but that's about it.

the symptoms you listed do sound like he has a problem with yeast, which may have thrown his system off balance so much that he is now overreacting to a number of other things.

if the itching is really bad, you can give 1-2 mg of benadryl per pound of body weight 3-4 times a day. since he's a small dog, your best option would be using the liquid benadryl for kids, 8 drops equal about 1 mg.

feeding canned food is a better option than kibble if the dog has yeast issues, due to the lower amount of carbs. if you need some more ideas for treatment, do feel free to email me. as for the neutering - i'd put off surgery until you have all these health issues under control, otherwise the stress might aggravate the problems.

thank you all!
he is really doing much better since I got him. When I first got him about a month ago he couldn't even stand strait. He is bowlegged in the front and his patellas are luxating in the back. He wobbles when he tries to lift his leg to go and it goes all over him-- fun for me!
He has no worms now, is walking better and only irrigates himself ocasionally.
The itching and the smell are here and full force. He doesn't sctratch all the time but mostly before bed time and in the morning when he wakes up and he start sneezing and diving around and rubbing his ears and his shnouse on everything, and shakes his head a lot. A couple of times I woke up in the middle of the night to loud licking noise- he was licking his paws and making loud slurping noises. He is also almost completely deaf... Could it be due to fangus in his ears?

Could very well be because of his ear gook! Good thinking!

I hope you'll take advantage of Mordy's offer and e-mail her. Also check out her site - lots of excellent info that will help you.

I am wondering if he may have a nasal growth? I knew a dog and a cat with nasal tumors that made them sound congested all the time...like they had a cold etc. It could also be related to an abcess tooth. If I were you, I would want an x-ray taken of the head and teeth to rule out a mass obstructing the airway on this little guy.

Hopefully it is just yeast. In the mean time (this is not a "cure all") I would purchase Malaseb shampoo and ear flush made by DVM. You can find in on line. It works works wonders on yeast. I would also get him on an Innova food or California Natural.

Good luck to you...it's great that you rescued him

Good thoughts, Pugs. The Innova EVO formula would probably be the best foundation for an anti-yeast diet because of the grain issue.

A trip to a vet who specializes in holistic treatments can be a good choice for issues like this dog has as well. I met a woman once who does ear-candling treatments on animals. It amazed me to see how effective it was.

http://colonhealth.net/ear_candling/candle.htm# will tell you about ear candling/coning.

I just found this article about detoxing and thought the information could be of some benefit to you. I haven't had time to go through the site thoroughly yet though. http://www.critterchat.net/barf.htm

Thank you Showpug.
Is it this stuff? That's the only one I found for DVM Ear Flush.

<<Product Name: ChlorhexiDerm Flush, 4 oz.
Product ID#: 10565
Category: Ear / Skin Care
OTC Item
Manufacturer: DVM Pharmaceuticals
Description:
Topical, Antimicrobial Cleansing/Drying Solution for Use on Dogs, Cats and Horses.
INGREDIENTS: Water, glycerin, isopropyl alcohol, nonoxynol-12, PPG-12-PEG-50 lanolin, PEG-40 castor oil, chlorhexidine gluconate, fragrance, FD&C blue #1. May contain citric acid to ensure optimal pH.>>

And here is the describtion for the Malaseb Shampoo:

<<Clinical studies have shown Malaseb Shampoo, a formulation combining Miconazole Nitrate and Chlorhexidine Gluconate, to be an effective treatment and control of seborrheic dermatitis associated with Malassezia pachydermatis and Staphylococcus intermedius. In combination with systemic therapy, Malaseb Shampoo was shown to accelerate the resolution of Microsporum Canis clinical signs, thus reducing the risk of transmission of the disease to other animals and to humans in contact with them. Malaseb Shampoo surfactants remove damaged lipids without stripping the coat. Malaseb Shampoo is free from dyes and perfumes to reduce possible exacerbation of skin problems that could cause skin reactions or irritations.

Active Ingredient(s): Chlorhexidine Gluconate 2%, Miconazole Nitrate 2%
Species: For dogs, cats, and horses
Product Packaging: 12oz>>

It says it reduses the risk of transmission of the disease to humans or other animals. I DIDN'T KNOW YEAST WAS CONTAGIOUS!!!!!! IS IT????? DO I NEED TO SEPARATE MY ANIMALS FROM THE NEW GUY???????It's been a month since I got him and my other Chi is ok, os are my 2 cats.
Do I really need that shampoo if he doesn't really have any skin eruptions (just a tiny one on his belly but that could be a dry spot because I rinse his belly when he pees on himself) and he is not scratching his body, just his ears and nose? I use Cloud Nine by HALO natural stuff to bathe him with now.

Dont worry...the shampoo also treats ringworm which is contagious, but don't worry, that is not what you are dealing with (sigh of relief!) Here's the deal-I used to work in a vet clinic for 5 years and this was the best shampoo on the market because it kills yeast, fungus, and bacteria. It has many uses and works very well. It is non-irritating and non-stripping. I have used it for general cleansing before as well. I would buy it even if there are no "eruptions" and bathe your pooch twice a week for 2 weeks and then use it once a week to keep the yeast under control. When you bathe your dog with this shampoo, the lather has to stay on for about 15-20 minutes, so get the treats out and get ready to entertain the little feller The ear flush is great as well because it kills all the same things. I would use it daily...and no, he probably won't like it. Squirt it in his ears and gently massage the base of his ears and then let him shake his head. After that I would squirt some on a cotton ball and wipe out any wax/debris that you see and then let the ears dry on their own. Here is a link to the products. Good luck. http://www.petrx.com/browseproducts/Malaseb-Flush-4fl.oz.-Bottle-(118ml).html AND HERE IS THE SHAMPOO http://www.petrx.com/browseproducts/Malaseb-Shampoo-(8-oz).HTML

Oh, and yes, I would still use the shampoo, because yeast can really be present all over him and this will help reduce it on his body. If he licks his paws, that is usually a sign of yeast/allergies of the skin. Keep in mind that yeast infections can come secondary to food allergy. I would give the shampoo about 3 weeks to start really working, but his ears may improve in just a few days. I really hope this helps him

thank you Renee,
I read the article. It's a good article. I always try to use natural products first. I just need to sort everything I know now and decide on the course of action. My head is spinning from the amount of information and possible ways of treating the little dude. There is so much I could do!!!! Where do I begin???

Thank you Showpug,
I'm on my way to the vet's to pick up the Shampoo and the Flush. They have it there.

Here is an update on Beasly, the smelly Chihuahua.
After collecting all the info from all the nice people who replied to my original post, bombarding Mordy with questions and doing some research on my own, I put Beasley on lamb only canned dog food by Neura Meats. I added probiotics, fish oil and garlic to his diet and cut out all treats. He was especially disappointed when he didn't get his daily Greeny... He has been on this new diet for a few days now. I also gave him a bath with Malaseb shampoo and flush his ears with Malaseb flush once or twice a day.
I noticed an improvement in his ears almost rihgt away. They smell much less and there is definitely less gunk in them. He still scratches them though. Should I continue? And for how long?
After just one bath with Malaseb shampoo, I don't see any irritation on his belly anymore. And he doesn't smell as bad anymore.
His nose is still suffy though and he still dives and rubs his nose and ears on the floor.
And one more thing... His breath became sooooo stinky, I cant' stand it!!!! It's like the stench had travelled from his ears to his mouth now and got so much worse... I don't understand why. I just noticed it today after I gave him his garlic this morning. But his breath doesn't smell like garlic it smells more like something died in there. Any thoughts why? Sure, I stopped brushing his teath because the toothpaste has all kind of stuff in it and I'm trying to do the whole elimination diet thing, and he doesn't get his Greeny anymore, but still... It's just so much worse now.. Could he be detoxing through his mouth???
And also, I got a tick of him yesterday, but he seems ok today and he is on Fronline, so he should be ok, right?