Red Heeler

[TeamCasey]

Hi! We're still battling ear mites with littled success.

What do you think of these products? Revolution, Milbemite or Acarexx?

We're been using Eradimite and Otomite for months. :thumbdown

They will be going to the vet when their owners get back from spring training.

[Red Heeler]

Any of those products will work nicely. All three are macrocyclic lactome drugs which are the treatment of choice for earmites now. I really like Revolution because it is one stop shopping. You can take care of heartworm prevention, mites, and fleas with one product. Plus, it is easy to use.

A word of caution, you will need to have your cats tested for heartworms if they are not on preventative before using any of these products.

Also, get a high quality ear cleaning solution. The cleaner the ear, the better any of the drugs will work.

I'll get back to you later about the treatment regimen our derm department recommends. My notebook is at school, and I don't remember it exactly off the top of my head.

[TeamCasey]

I can clean one's cat's ears by myself. It's become a routine for us.

I'll have to wait for the crew to get home for the other cat.

[Red Heeler]

Originally Posted by TeamCasey

I can clean one's cat's ears by myself. It's become a routine for us.

I'll have to wait for the crew to get home for the other cat.

TC,
You may already know this, but just to cover all the bases, don't clean the ears with a Q-tip. You end up with a big plug in the ear canal from trying to swab the stuff out. Using an ear cleaning solution, flood the ear then massage the stuff around for a little while. Let the cat shake its head. Repeat until they are clean. Kitty buritos with a towel will save your skin.

Systemic treatment with Revolution is your best bet for eradicating the mites. With only treating the ear, the mites sometimes escape onto the cat's body. Like I said before, if you do not have your cats on heartworm preventative (shame on you if you don't), they will need to be tested first.

[TeamCasey]

Not sure if they're on preventative. Cats belong to TM and TB respectively. The cats just adopt me, because I'm irresistable. The cats and I are all tenants.

I use a cotton ball, but I do use a Q-tip just for the outer ear (creases).

Tia is O.K., I work on hers at night while we're calm and watching TV. She's used to it, and looks forward to a treat afterwards. Weird thing is that it only bothers her in one ear.

I'll use a towel with city cat, but I really do need a second person. She'd probably let me do it for a moment, but she grew up with a toddler and won't put up with much for long.

I think Revolution is the key, if I can talk both parents into putting the cats onto it at the same time.

Pointless to treat one and not the other, because the mites are so contagious.

What I should do is take a swab to work and take a picture of the mite under the microscope. That should convince the mommies.

[Red Heeler]

Q-tips are fine for the outer ear. The cleaning solutions do a really nice job on the canal, though. If the cleaning is bothering Tia in only one ear, she probably has more inflammation in it, so it hurts.

Taking some pictures for the other Teamsters is a good idea. Another test that might convince them: Take a gob of ear goo and put it on a piece of black construction paper. Hold the paper over a light bulb. You can see the little buggers crawling out of the wax.

Revolution is a bit costly. However, if you are using Frontline or Advantage plus heartworm preventative, the cost is similar. It is not quite as good at flea control as the other two, but it does a pretty good job. I like it because it kills a whole lot of birds with just one stone.