You've Googled the symptoms and you're simply positive your cat has ear mites-now what? You are in the best place if you are wondering how to treat eat mites in cats. The initial step is to understand what are ear mites and then learn what to do about the pesky critters.
Ear Mites in Cats
Ear mites are tiny (as with microscopic) parasites that live on and in the ears of cats. If you look closely at your cat's ears, you may even discover their whereabouts as tiny white specks, smaller than a pinpoint, moving around in your cat's ears.
The Latin name of these critters is Otodectes, and they're highly contagious to other cats. Even dogs can contract mites from cats. Fortunately, humans seem to be immune from ear mites.
Even brief physical contact between cats is enough to spread ear mites in one cat to another. These prolific pests live around three weeks and continually reproduce, laying eggs that perpetuate the infestation.
Common The signs of Ear Mites in Cats
Ear mites in cats cause predictable symptoms. These symptoms include:
- Red, itchy ears
- Black ear discharge that appears like coffee grounds
- Incessant head shaking
- Incessant ear scratching
A cat infected with ear mites is miserable; some cats will scratch their ears with enough contentration to result in bleeding and scabbing. If not treated, ear mite infestations can seriously damage the ear canal and lead to secondary bacterial and yeast infections.
Even if Dr. Google says your cat has ear mites, take her to some veterinarian for confirmation. The vet she will take a swab from the debris inside your cat's ear, use it a slide and check out it under the microscope. Ear mites and their eggs are easily detectable under a microscope.
How to deal with Ear Mites in Cats
Even though ear mites really are a pain in the ear, they're relatively easy to deal with. Ear mites in cats can be killed using over-the-counter (OTC) medicines, but read the label carefully to make sure it can be used on cats. The active ingredient in many OTC ear mite medications is pyrethrin, which is toxic to a cat's nervous system, and cannot be utilized in cats.
Another choice is to use a topical, vet-recommended ear mite strategy to cats that lists ivermectin as the primary ingredient. It's a wise decision to completely clean your cat's ears-or have them cleaned with a veterinary care team-before applying medication towards the ears. Any ear cleaner is adequate.
Newer tick and flea medicine for cats, including Bravecto, and Nexgard, aren't labeled for mites, nonetheless they do kill ear mites. These offer an alternative, oral treatment which protects your cat against fleas, ticks and any future ear mites infestations.
It is important to not only kill living mites, but also the mites that hatch from eggs that have been laid in the ear. This means the medication must last 2-3 weeks in the ear, or it requires continual reapplication. Follow all instructions carefully or even the infestation will reoccur.
Sometimes, cats with ear mite infestations will have a bacterial and infection in their ear too. Ear mite treatment for cats won't clear up the problem as well. This requires prescription pet medication to clear both the mites and the infection.
NOTE: Until all of the adult mites and newly hatched mites are dead, your cat is recognized as very contagious with other cats and dogs. Keep any cat with ear mites isolated from other pets in the household.
Wash all pet bedding, and wash both hands among handling the infested cat and also the healthy pets. Check your other pets daily for just about any signs of ear mite infestation, and if you see any changes, call your veterinarian.
Take your cat to the veterinarian 2-3 weeks after treatment for a recheck exam and ear swab. At this point, if treatment was successful, then all eggs may have hatched and all mites, if there are any, will be dead. Congratulations.
