Expert: Dr. Louis N. Gotthelf - 11/7/2009

Question
We are at our witts end. We have been to the vet twice now and have treated the cat for what we believe is some kind of ear infection, possibly mites. she shakes her heada lot and is scratching at her left ear mostly. there is a small scab at the base of the ear but that is all. she will sometimes eject a small black globuel from that ear. When I pet her and flatten her ears against her head she does not like this, and I often hear a kind of squishing sound from that ear. this causes her to break away from me and shake her head and scratch at the ear. What do you suggest?

Answer
Cats are very prone to getting middle ear disease, which makes mucus in the ear canal and can be very painful.  Diagnosing this is a problem for most vets because they don't look into the middle ear.  There are infections and there are even polyps that can occur in the middle ear.  Find a vet that does a lot of ears or one that has a Video Otoscope in the practice.