If you discover swelling on your dog's ear, it might be an ear haematoma. In the following we explain how such a bruise on the ear develops, how it is treated and whether ear haematoma in dogs can be prevented.
An ear haematoma is a bruise that forms on the ear of a dog. It occurs when blood collects inside the ear cartilage or between the skin and the cartilage. This is usually the case on the inside of the auricles.
The medical term for ear haematoma is aural haematoma or othaematoma. It is not always clear why this happens in dogs. Irrespective of this, dog breeds with large lop ears are particularly prone to the formation of ear haematomas.
An ear haematoma often forms in dogs that suffer from an ear disease. If your four-legged friend has e.g. itchy ears or an ear infection, this will inevitably lead to them scratching their ears more and shaking their head frequently from side to side.
This can easily lead to tiny injuries to the blood vessels in their auricle. This in turn causes blood to pool in the ear, resulting in swelling.
An ear haematoma can occasionally also be caused in dogs by an injury. For example, it is not unusual for two animals to treat each other a little roughly when playing and one dog may bite the other in the ear.
In some cases, autoimmune diseases, in which the dog's immune system attacks their own organism, are also considered as a possible cause for the development of ear haematomas. However, science has not yet been able to clearly confirm whether this is actually the case.
Diagnosing a haematoma on a dog’s ear is usually not particularly complicated. An external examination of the swelling on the auricle is often sufficient for the veterinarian. If necessary, a puncture can also be carried out and the removed tissue fluid can be examined in order to make an unequivocal diagnosis.
The veterinarian will also check whether your dog's ears have become infected or whether there is another trigger for the ear haematoma, such as an infestation with ear mites or a blood clotting disorder.
In order to eliminate the ear haematoma, the accumulated blood must be removed. If you are lucky it is sufficient to draw out the blood in the dog's ear with an ordinary syringe.
Since it usually does not take long for the dog's haematoma to fill up again, this process often has to be repeated several times. The vet can try to prevent this by injecting cortisone into the previously emptied haematoma on the ear.
Sometimes a dog's ear haematoma cannot be permanently removed by mere suctioning with a syringe. In this case, an operation is required in which the haematoma is opened and emptied. Your dog will need to wear an Elizabethan collar until the wound has healed and the stitches are removed. Otherwise there is a high risk that they will scratch themselves and thus remove the bandage and rupture the stitching on their ear.
In addition to the ear haematoma itself, the underlying cause that was responsible for the formation of the haematoma must often be treated as well.
Which measures are necessary for this purpose obviously depends on the type of ear disease. If your four-legged friend suffers e.g. from an ear infection, the veterinarian will probably prescribe an anti-inflammatory drug and antibiotics. In the case of an infestation with ear mites, on the other hand, treatment is usually carried out with a mite-killing preparation and a preparation that alleviates the dog's itching.
Generally the chances are quite good that the haematoma on the dog’s ear can be successfully removed. However, it is not uncommon for permanent deformations or scars to remain on the animal's ear, which at least represents a cosmetic impairment.
If surgery was required to remove an ear haematoma, it is crucial that the wound can heal without being disturbed. In the first 10 days to two weeks after surgery, it is therefore important to prevent your four-legged friend from scratching their ears or shaking their head too much. Otherwise, there is a high risk that bruising will occur again or that your dog will rupture the stitches.
Of course, not all possible causes of a haematoma on the dog’s ear can be completely prevented. Nevertheless, as the owner, you can do a number of things to significantly reduce the likelihood of your four-legged friend developing them.
Ear care and the timely treatment of problems such as ear infections or ear mites play a special role in this context.
Against this background, it is advisable to regularly look into the ear canals in particular of dogs with long ears in order to detect inflammation or parasites at an early stage and to treat them with the right measures.
You should also clean your dog's ears regularly. In this way, you make a valuable contribution to avoiding ear infections and, last but not least, reduce the likelihood of your dog developing an ear haematoma.
In addition to high-quality dog food, the Bellfor range also includes natural drops that you can use to gently clean and care for your dog's ears. Our ear care drops are free from artificial additives and are also characterised by their easy application.
Get to know Bellfor Ear Care Drops.
If your dog suffers from an infestation with ear mites, we also have a solution on offer with Bellfor Ear Mite Drops. In contrast to many other preparations against ear mites, our drops do not contain any chemicals, so that your dog's organism is not unnecessarily burdened.
Get to know Bellfor Ear Mite Drops.
Some owners don't want to visit the vet right away because of an ear haematoma, trying instead to treat their dog's ear themselves.
In some cases a small haematoma can disappear again with home remedies such as ointments and regular cooling. However, this is by no means always the case. Also, keep in mind that a larger, clearly visible haematoma is very likely to cause pain in your dog and, if left untreated, can permanently deform and scar the four-legged friend's ears.
If in doubt, it is therefore always advisable to make an appointment with the veterinarian and ask them for advice. You should generally refrain from puncturing your dog's bloody ear yourself because of the potential risk of infection, among other things.
As you can see, you should not ignore the signs of a haematoma on your dog’s ear and take your four-legged friend to a vet as soon as possible. The veterinarian can not only drain the bruise, but also treat a possible ear disease, such as an infection.
