Pets

Medications known to cause sudden deafness in dogs

First, before your dog is treated for an inner ear infection, it is important to determine if it is a bacterial, yeast, or fungal infection. Treating yeast and fungal infections with specific antibiotics is counterproductive. It could temporarily or even permanently damage your dog’s hearing!

Most of the time, this deafness involves older dogs … but that doesn’t eliminate younger dogs or even puppies from this situation.

To avoid this unexpected and unfortunate side effect of certain medications, you need to know if your dog is losing hearing naturally due to age, breed predisposition, trauma, or if there is a specific medical problem.

Certain breeds, and often white pigmented dogs, are inherently predisposed to deafness. The two most common breeds with genetic hearing loss are Dalmatians and English Setters – others include: Australian Cattle Dog, Australian Shepherd, Bulldog, Catahoula Leopard Dog, Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and English Cocker Spaniel.

Presbycusis, age-related hearing loss, is common in older dogs. It cannot be prevented or reversed. The disease is progressive. In some cases it progresses faster than others, which can lead the owner to believe that their dog’s hearing loss is sudden.

Typically, when an older dog’s hearing slowly declines, it learns to compensate for the change by sharpening other reflexes. Their hearing loss is not noticed until it becomes so obvious that they can no longer “hide” the loss of that sense.

Hearing loss caused by medications or ototoxicity is a completely different situation.

The nerves in the cochlea carry electrochemical signals to your dog’s brain. Direct or indirect contact with the application of certain medications and chemicals destroys the cochlear hairs in the dog’s inner ear, thus disconnecting the signals. The results can be a temporary or even permanent hearing loss.

A group of medications known as aminoglycoside antibiotics have been documented as one of the leading causes of sudden-onset deafness in dogs. They should never be used unless your dog is in a life-threatening situation!

Another chemical commonly used in ear cleaning / washing solutions is chlorhexidine. This chemical is no longer available in ear wash solutions, due to the number of dogs that suffered temporary and permanent hearing loss!

It should be noted that there are lesser known chemicals that are also identified as causing sudden hearing loss, so be careful … check the ingredients … research the ingredients in your dog’s medications, BEFORE you use them!

Mometamax, is a drug that is generally used for inner ear infections. It contains gentamicin, which is toxic! There’s no question about it … it’s well documented. The scary fact is that many vets are not even aware of the toxicity of the drug.

Other medications to consider in the aminoglycoside group of antibiotics include: kanamycin, neomycin, and tobramycin.

Your dog’s reaction to these chemicals can be as early as 10-15 minutes after application! Watch for loss of balance, trouble standing, nausea, head tilt, and rapid eye movement. Other signs to watch out for: your dog does not respond to verbal commands, shakes his head, walks in circles, responds only when he sees you or if you touch him, seems depressed and sleeps more than usual. Stop using the medicine immediately! In several cases, but not all, stopping the use of the drug will allow hearing recovery in 2-6 weeks. In some cases, the loss is permanent.

Warning! You must also be vigilant; Another known side effect of this group of antibiotics is canine kidney failure!

Bottom line: stay informed … know the risks. Talk to your vet about alternatives, before starting any aminoglycoside antibiotic regimen.

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