Outside ear infection

[dolomite100]

My cat has an infection on the outside of her ear. No inside ear infection. Inside ear is clean. Outside tip of left ear is filled with scabs and when I clean with hot water it starts to bleed and in a couple of days outside tip of ear is filled with scabs again. Any suggestions will be appreciated.
HELP !!

[TMT2]

My cat has an ear that heals and then scabs again.  This is driving me crazy because it bleeds when the scab drops off. Has your problem been solved?

[Savas]

Actually a flea bite allergy would only need one bite to activate, and all it takes is just a couple of the little suckers (which is VERY hard to catch!).
That's why I thought of the above allergy as usually there is internal wax/black build up from mites.

To be honest, it's a ***** to figure out what causes it. We have a spray (over the counter, called "Fungian" (antibacterial spray) which we use on one of ours that gets this. It clears it up for a while and then recurs. We think it's genetic (vet couldn't figure out) but don't want to spend tons of money figuring it out (cat health isn't at issue, and the treatment works, so...)

Hmmm...if you want, try the ear mite remedy first, see if it helps. But if it doesn't, our cats might want to do a support group together. :)

[dolomite100]

Thanks for your reply. She has had the scabs for at least a year, so I know it cant be a flea bite. My house would be filled with fleas too. I used ear drops for mites, and wouldnt she have junk in her ear??Her inside ear is clean.
My plan:
1) I will use the ear mite solution for at least 1 week
2) I will use vaseline or anti-bacterial ointment for 1 week

My problem might be that I dont use the ear mite solution everyday for 1 straight week.
THANK YOU!!

[Savas]

It's probably being caused by mites or a flea bite allergy (although there are more complicated possibilities). I'd suggest doing an ear mite remedy treatment and a good flea drop treatment. Then try keeping the scabbed area soft with Vaseline. If it doesn't heal up in a few weeks you may want to get kitty checked out.