Mike, I know what you're going through. Bernie has been getting those on and off. He gets a combination of yeast and bacteria in his ears.
My vet has done something different lately, he gave us medicated towelettes to clean the ears vs. going the antibiotic route.
We also get a rinse to use for the deeper part of the dog's ear canal.
The wet wipes are called MalAcetic, and come in the same type of dispenser as other handi-wipe products.
The active ingredients are 2% Acetic Acid, and 2% Boric Acid.
For deeper cleaning, we have what's called VET Solution, which is an ear-cleaning solution for cats and dogs. You squirt it into the deeper part of the ear and work it in with your hands over the dog's ear canal (which goes quite far down the base of the dog's skull)
You clean the excess off with a cotton ball, especially after he shakes it out. (Boy, do they shake it out!)
For treatment, we've used Animax Ointment, which is prescription nystatin-neomycin sulfate-thiostreptron-triamcinolone acetonide witches' brew to kill stubborn ear infections.
This latest bout of ear infections was a surprise to us, until the vet calmly asked if the dog was also chewing at his legs. He was, and right there he knew we were dealing with a food allergy. We had bought some Beneful stew prepackaged meals for his breakfast a few weeks ago, and had forgotten to look at whether the darned things had corn meal in them. They did, and sure enough, our dogs were not having a good time of it. So the Beneful got sent to the local Humane Society while we kept feeding them their normal Lamaderm. It takes about 4 weeks for the allergies to subside, from what I was told.
Evidently food allergies will manifest themselves with ear infections, too. You'll definitely smell the infections as you're working with the dog.
If the ear infections are painful enough, you'll have a fun time getting the big dogs to sit still while you work on their ears. So far, we're doing good with the MalAcetic wet wipes, though. He's not digging in his ears like he was prior to the treatment, too.
Good luck, hopefully Mason will be feeling better soon.
