I have an ear related question- I just noticed today that the skin around the outer edges of his ear, like the part that sticks up, not at all any part of the inner ear, the skin is sort of thick and flaky. It's almost like he needs to exfoliate them or something. I don't think there's anything wrong, it seems purely cosmetic, but I'm wondering if I could/should do something about it.
I was sort of picking at it tonight and little bits were coming off, with a little fur, too. No bleeding or rawness. It's almost like the skin is damaged or at least a lot of dead skin.
The flaky ear thing happens to a lot of Bs. It seems to be related to cold winter temps. And it seems to be an inhertited thing, to some extent. I wouldn't call it frostbite….but it looks kinda like it.
Most of my dogs have that happen during the winter, and I start picking it off around now. By summer their ears are totally back to normal. Some people put stuff on it, like A&D ointment, or oil of any sort...it seems to resolve itself on it's own though.
C3PO recently started scratching the back of his ears incessantly. It started when the weather started getting warmer. All I can tell is that it's a little dry in that area but that's all. He's scratched so much it will develop redness. I tried wiping his ears with a damp cloth and I've cleaned the inside as well as out.
Not sure if I should use some of the A&D ointment or take him to the vet.
I was told it's referred to "winter ear" and no one seems to have an answer for it. Jazz gets it every year, and I hate it.
She also loses much of the hair on her ears during that time, but it always comes back in the late Spring.
People tell me it's not uncommon, but it seemed to me that every show we went to she was the only one with ugly ears. LOL Oh well, it's not a fault, so it didn't affect the judging.
WHEW 
what a relief!!
I have found that Colloidial Silver spray seems to help, though. The crusty stuff seems to clear up faster, and although she still lost hair the skin was not dry at all.
{An aside – this product is safe for humans; many homeopathic type folks use colloidial silver for a variety of purposes. Knowing that, my 15 yo daughter used this spray on her acne-ridden face and after just a few days her skin is clear and beautiful! I was ready to take her to a dermatologist, but don't need to now. She swears by it now. LOL}
http://www.3cdog.com/product_info.php?manufacturers_id=11&products_id=1573&osCsid=bbf
PEACE AND KINDNESS 4 OZ $13.00
Natural alternative to antibiotics and steroids. There is no disease causing bacteria that can live in the presence of PEACE & KINDNESS ingredients. Many strains of pathogenic microbes-viruses, fungi, bacteria or any other single-celled pathogen-resistant to other antibiotics are killed on contact and are unable to mutate without harming tissue-cell enzymes or friendly bacteria. Non-toxic to dogs, cats, horses, as well as humans, can virtually even be used on viral warts around the mouth. Completely tasteless, odorless, non-stinging and non-burning to sensitive tissues including the eyes. A safe all around germ-fighter. PEACE & KINDNESS stimulates healing in skin and other soft tissues in a way unlike any known other natural process, and it promotes new cell growth. PEACE & KINDNESS has a pH of approximately 6.5 and will not discolor coat or leave behind a residue.
My B has also been scratching his ear. My husband wiped them with a wet cloth but he is still scratching. He has allergies so I'm thinking that's what's causing it since I'm a mess too with all this pollen and stuff. I might put some vaseline on his paws just so it dosen't get irritated form the nails. He's also taken his cortizon pills but I guess right now the allergy season is bad.
He could also have a yeast infection. Steroids suppress the immune system which can allow the over growth of yeast.
oh no..what are other symptoms of a yeast infection?
Itchy ears, redness, dirty looking ears. Mostly itching and redness.
I guess it must only be allergies. Besides the scratching, his ears are good. Might be dry though, I'll start rubbing some olive oil on his ears and see if that helps. Thanks for the info though, I will definetly keep an eye out for redness.
If he has only just started itching you may have caught it early. It would be better to have it checked out before starting to put things in his ears that could make the situation worse. Yeast loves damp dark environments.
