Cat with ear wound

[Dr. Patrick JonesHomestead Instructor]

Just got this question. Thought we could discuss it here.

Hi Dr. Jones,

Can you give me some help? My 18 year-old cat got beat up the other day by “meany cat” of the neighborhood, and I just discovered that he seems to have a strange thing inside his ear that smells awful and has green around it — an abscess, perhaps? Could you tell me a good herbal formula for making a poultice for inside his ear. I’ve looked through all my notes from you, and I see that a lobelia leaf poultice should work on an abscess, and calendula is anti-microbial. He doesn’t feel feverish, oddly, but I notice that he was shaking his head a lot and I could tell his ear was bothering him and so I looked inside it — eek!

Thanks

Kisi

My response was:

I don’t know that a poultice is going to stay on very well on a cat ear. You’d probably do better with a wash made from a tea.

I would try making a tea with calendula, garlic and echinacea and cleaning it out with a cotton ball several times a day. Goldenseal or barberry would be good choices as well.

If he will eat a 1/8 of a teaspoon of echinacea several times a day with some canned food that would be good too.

Cats are tough because they are very resistant to eating the herbs.

Patrick

Don't use herbs or combine herbs with medications or use them during lactation or pregnancy without talking with your healthcare provider.

[nightingale1]

Would it be okay to use a spray bottle to apply the tea in the ears? My cat has bilateral ear infections, with an abrasion behind his right ear from scratching; and he is very resistant to any efforts to clean the ears or put any topical treatments. He is usually quite the cuddle-bug but he seems to grow extra claws and paws when it comes to anything like this, and I have nobody to help me.

[Michelle KochStudent]

I would: 1) determine if cat’s food has any grain in it, particularly corn. A lot of dogs are sensitive to corn; why wouldn’t a cat-the obligatory carnivore?

2) Have the cat seen by a veterinarian, to be sure the problem does not require surgery or a prescription.

3). I would definitely spritzer the cat’s ear with an infusion ( fancy word for tea) of either calendula or golden seal several times a day.

4) if the cat will allow it, dab the ear with hydrogen peroxide several times a day.

[IdahoHerbalist]

Fundog wrote: I would: 3). I would definitely spritzer the cat’s ear with an infusion ( fancy word for tea) of either calendula or golden seal several times a day.

I would avoid using goldenseal unless you already have it on hand. I would use barberry or Oregon Grape instead since goldenseal is in critical condition in the wild.

If possible, I would also try to get the herbs into the the cat. Yeah, I know what Doc says about that!

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