If you have a cat, no doubt you're a responsible owner and want to keep your cat healthy? Ear mites can cause your cat discomfort making them unhappy so lets take a look at what cat ear mites are, how they affect your cat and how they can be treated.
What exactly are they and what do they do?
The ear mites that affect cats are tiny spider or crab like parasites. They consume the blood, skin and ear wax of your cat. There correct name is Otodectes Cynotis and they borrow deep into the ears of your cat. The saliva from them can cause an allergic reaction in some cats, causing your cat to scratch, often breaking the skin. This scratching can tear the sensitive skin of your cats ears and allow an infection to occur. Also continual scratching can cause the skin to thicken leading to disfigurement. This parasite also increases the wax production in your cats ear, giving the parasites more food to feed off and creating a great deal of discomfort for your cat.
How do I know if my cat has mites?
If you notice your cat shaking their head from side to side and constantly scratching their ears, there is a chance they may have them but you will need a closer look. Get your cat to sit on your lap and when they are relaxed take a look in their ears. You will need to do this fairly quickly as your cat isn't likely to stay sat on your lap for long once you start fiddling with their ears. If you can see dark flecks inside your cats ears there is a high probability that they will be these parasites and it would be best to have this confirmed with the vet.
How should you treat ear mites in cats?
These are extremely easy to deal with, however you do need to be aware that they can live in material and hard surfaces for a while so you need to clean these too to stop the cycle.
No comments:
Post a Comment