My dog keeps shaking his head. I dont smell anything rancid. I gently swab the dirt out when needed and have even gone as far as to use Debrox wax removal (which helped for a short time). What else could be causing this? And how can I remedy it. I feel bad for him.

Could be anything from an infection to ear mites...I'd run him to the vet to have a look see.

So there really isn't anything over-the-counter I could try first. I'm trying to save on vet costs. Secondly, I just moved to Houston from Seattle and only being here a week, I haven't established a vet for him.

I wouldn't take the chance. I don't know where you are located in Houston (I lived there years ago) but there's a low cost vet clinic at basically I-10 and Dairy Ashford. Here's a link to them: The Greater Good

Just google "low cost veterinary and houston" and you'll come up with a decent hit list.

Thank you very much! That will be a lot of help. I will be living in Katy and I see that it is on/off katy freeway. I'm still getting to know the area myself. I have only been here a week so recommendations are always helpful.

[wishbone]

It could be internally and you needed to let him see by experts, visit a vet.

[lil mutt]

If i were you i will follow CrestieRsq advice...

It's better to let the vet have a look on him.

ok thanks for the advice...I need to set Charlie up with a vet anyhow. thanks everyone

He may have the beginning of an ear ache or infection. That usually happens when water gets in the ears.

It turns out to be an ear infection (which it probably is), the actual ear med does cost that much.

My dog Jake had the same problem. Sometimes I thought he would break his neck he shook his head so hard. I took him to the vet several times and tried ear stuff for infection, all with no results. Finally I took him to a veterinary hospital to see a vet that specialized in allergies. It turns out that he does have allergies.
Now I give him an allergy pill everyday and he seems to be doing well. So maybe it's an allergy problem CATorres.

My dog Peanut kept shaking his head the last couple weeks. I carried him to the vet several times. They did a ear mite test twice and it was negative so we had to get the vet to do an ear flush with sedation. His left ear is somewhat sore but he is on antibiotics. The prognosis was that when the vet looked further into the ear she saw what was tick larva. A tick can embed itself on the dogs eardrum and when you try to flush out at home it can move and not come out. So thats why we had his ears flushed. She was pretty much on it about ticks. He is sore though and I feel in a week or so he will be better.

A word of thought on this when we did the home flush he had a mud like substance come out and was told it probably was the droppings from the tick. I never gave it thought about a tick doing that. It can cause the dog discomfort and head shaking.

Makes me want to scratch my ears!! LOL.....

OH MY GOODNESS!!!! You and me both! Just the thought of buggies burrowing in the ear canal...and feces building up enough that when you flushed it, dark stuff came out!? Ugh!! LOL

I still have not taken my puppy in. He isn't shaking his head as much anymore. I have flushed it out a couple of times with ear cleaner for dogs and that seems to have helped.

I think he might have sensitive ears, because he can't stand wind. When wind hits his ears outside he shakes them all crazy like. He has big (long) ears and I think that is breed specific.

Cattores, take the dog to the vet. Now. You need to be able to afford medical treament for the dog. Come up with the money, whatever it takes. Do NOT let the dog suffer. Ok?

yea i would definitely take your dog to the vet. even tough the problem seems to be going away it is the safe thing to do

I agree that a trip to the vet might be a wise thing to do. There are many causes of ear problems, and even though he seems to be getting better, it would be best to discover what, exactly is going on.

Sometimes there can be an allergy, usually food allergy, that's the root cause. Or it could be a foreign object like a grass seed that has worked its way into the ear. Until that is removed, the problem will just keep recurring.

It would also be a good idea to stop using whatever OTC products you've been using for at least a week before you take him to the vet. Cleaning his ears may not completely resolve the problem, but it will remove the evidence. If the vet needs to swab the ears and do tests to determine if there's a fungus or bacteria, using any sort of ear cleaning product will alter the results.

One last consideration. If the ear is infected, it's possible for the ear drum to ulcerate or rupture. If that happens, and you're using anything to flush/clean the ears, you could be forcing infected material into the middle ear, where it will cause a very serious condition that will be much more difficult to treat.

[lil mutt]

any update? did the vet found any infection or ear mites?

my dog did the same thing. It was yeast infection that can cause many problems if not treated by a vet. When the infection gets bad the start drooping the ear and tilting it to one side. the ear will be hot and painful. it can get bad fast an can cause serious injury and cause them to lose their sense of balance. (just like humans, when the crystals in your ears are not in place you become dizzy or unbalanced)

all in all if you go to the vet now to get it treated it will be less expensive if it is put off and turns into an emergency.. then it will be pricey.

Hope everything goes well.

It could be anything from ticks to fleas to infection! or maybe just new found way of annoying you