Cat Ear Mite Symptoms & Treatment: Effective Solutions

Ear mites can be a pesky problem for cats, often resulting in a significant amount of discharge within their ears.

Causes

Ear mites are highly contagious among cats, primarily spread through direct contact. They can infect cats of any age.

Symptoms to Watch For

Severe itching and local allergic reactions on the skin that comes into contact with the mites, usually concentrated in the ear canal, head, and neck. In severe cases, the itching can be allover. Cats may scratch their ears with their hind legs or shake their heads in response to the itching;

Production of reddishbrown or black ear discharge, which is a mixture of earwax, blood, inflammatory secretions, and the ear mites themselves;

Scratches on the skin, which can appear around the ears, neck, and even at the base of the tail;

Pain in the ears, leading to a reluctance to undergo ear canal examinations;

Excessive hair loss around the ear, which may lead to ear hematomas;

In severe cases, ear mites can cause middle or inner ear infections, potentially leading to hearing loss and balance issues.

Treatment Options

Topical medications are used to treat ear mites. Before applying these medications, it's essential to clean the ear canal with a petspecific ear cleaning solution to remove any discharge. Following this, a product like Aderm can be applied around the cat's neck or near the ears to effectively kill the ear mites.