Veterinary question: Antibiotics versus FUNGUS???

Factual Questions
1

Last month Valor, kaylasmom’s guide dog, began displaying the head-shaking and ear stench that heralds an ear infection. The problem was limited to his right ear. After treating it with the remains of the Alocetic ear rinse and Otomax ointment that had successfully treated a similar problem last May when he was graduating from guide dog training, we realized that the problem was not going away.

Valor (a 3-yo black Lab, neutered male, 95#) was going in for some vaccination boosters last weekend, anyway, so we asked his vet to give the ear a look. Unable to give a confident diagnosis on the spot, he took a culture of the discharge (dark brownish-red earwax), and prescribed twice-daily applications of Panalog, along with 375mg Cipro, given orally.

The good news is that the ear has responded beautifully to the treatment. He still shakes his head when I apply the ointment, but that’s to be expected. The inflammation has gone down, as well, and kaylasmom reports that his right ear no longer feels warm to the touch.

The weird news is that yesterday, the vet’s clinic (finally) had the lab results for us. “Critical yeast” was the finding.

It seems counterintuitive to me that a yeast infection would respond to treatment with antibiotics. Is there some special strain of yeast that is susceptible to Panalog and ciprofloxacin? Or is his improvement possibly more likely related to the extra attention his ear has been getting? I haven’t yet had an opportunity to speak with the vet or his staff, although that is on our agenda.

Thanks in advance for any responses.

2

I’m double checking my class notes (sorry, companion pets aren’t my strong suit), but I’m thinking that the panalog and ciprofloxacin are to prevent a secondary bacterial infection while the cleanings and the body’s immune system get the yeast back to the level it’s supposed to be at.

Maybe VetBridge will be along in a bit

3

Panalog contains nystatin and triamcinolone as well as antibiotics, and is quite effective against fungal infections and associated inflammation. I expect that the cipro was given as a precaution; if there had been a bacterial infection, it would be necessary to knock it down fast, and cipro will kill anything that the Panalog leaves behind.

4

Seems to me that a lab with a yeast infection would almost always get a secondary infection. (Darn floppy ears!)

5

Thanks, all. That clears up the confusion quite nicely.

Hmm, maybe this strategy could be discussed with kaylasmom’s gynecologist, the next time a need arises. But I guess that’s both a hijack and TMI.

6

Dark brownish red earwax is usually an indicator of two types of infection, one fungal and one bacterial. The ointment was given to address those, as said before Panalog is a combination ointment that includes an antifungal.