Ear Mites

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Ear mites may be the best known of all the mites. They are extremely common in cats, especially stray or predominantly outdoor cats. Typically symptoms will consist of very itchy ears! Sometimes the itching is so intense the ears may become bloody and painful. Many times black debris can be seen in the ears of affected pets.  Just because black debris is present in the ear does not mean that it is ear mites. Typically a swab can be taken and assessed under the microscope. Here we can visualize the mites or determine if staining is needed to rule out other causes of itching ears such as yeast or bacterial infections.

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Ear mites are very easily transmitted between animals in the same household. If infections are allowed to go untreated or get out of control it may become necessary to treat all animals in the household. Animals that spend a lot of time outside and that are more likely to have contact with other animals are at most risk for developing ear mites. Although they are easily transmitted between animals, ear mites do not seem to pose a huge risk to humans. Some people with sensitive skin may become itchy if they have contact with mite but it seems difficult for the mite to set up home on us. Even though they are named ear mites, in severe situations they can rarely cause issues elsewhere on the body.  

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There are many different forms of treatment for the ear mites. These include products that go directly in the ear, topical products on the back of the neck, oral medications, or injectable medications.

The life cycle of these particular mites is actually quite interesting. The male mites actually mate with an immature mite. However once she sheds into full maturity she will already have eggs present. For the full life cycle visit this website.