Have a horse with a semi-sore ear??? Not mites, or ticks just doesn't like me to mess with it.?

Question

If I rub it--that feels good to him!! Could this be a seasonal allergy thing?? Seems like he had this years ago, but can't remeber what I did? Can you help??

Answer 1

My cousin has a mustang and when she addopted him he had fleas in his ears. Maybe that could be the problem. I don't remember what they did for him, but I will ask her.

Answer 2

Sounds like some allergies. The alllergy level for horses in my area is very high right now and i would suggest calling the vet or maybe putting a warm cloth on it to make it feel better. I'm not sure what else to tell you but the vet may have some painkiller. My vet told me to give my horse benedryl when her allergies are bad. I would call the vet and ask if you could try giving him some benedryl too. Best wishes and i hope he feels better!

Answer 3

I don't believe that seasonal allergies would cause your horse's ear to be sore.  But it certainly could have some physical problem.

Where I live here in Canada we have alot of problem with "black flies" or "gnats".  They are really small flies which bury in the horse's chest and inside their ears.  Their bite leaves an awful itch, which can last for days (much worse than the itch from a mosquito)  So I would have to wonder if your horse has bites from some sort of flying insect.

If possible, stand on a stool and try to look inside the horse's ear without bugging her.  Can you see any red raised areas?  Is there any crusty debris?  Does the horse shake its head quite a bit, or try to rub her ears on things?  What is the other ear like?  It's very unlikely that only one ear would be bit, so if the other seems totally fine you may have something else going on.

It is possible the horse sustained a minor injury such as being poked by a twig.  Or it is possible, but unlikely, that he has an infection, if you see discharge or alot of problems you may need to have it checked by your vet.

Or perhaps he just has issues with being handled around his face/ears.  Some horses have been restrained by having their ears grabbed, but others have issues even without this sort of thing.  The solution to this is - treat it exactly the same way you would sack out a horse.  Wave your hand above the ar and don't take away the pressure until the horse stands still and slightly lowers his head.  Then move away.  Give it a second and then try again.  You want the horse to learn that the way to release pressure is to stand still and cooperate, and if you give him a release as soon as he does right he'll learn.  Slowly start to rub the outside of the ear, stopping when the horse is behaving well and continuing when he raises his head and protests.  Hopefully you can improve things with some time and work.