How to treat a dog's ear sore that won't heal and scab keeps falling off?

Question

How do I treat an open sore on my dog's ear? She has had this for almost 2 weeks, not sure how it happened, maybe a brush burn or during play time at day care. It had scabbed over but the scab came off. I have been putting antibiotic ointment on it but it does not seem to be healing. Thank you for your kind attention. Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Female | spayed | 57 lbs

Lauren Jones VMD · Accepted Answer

Annie is adorable! This lesion certainly could be irritation from an injury, but could also be related to ringworm or mange. You can try cleaning the area with an antiseptic solution (diluted chlorhexidine or betadine) 1-2 times per day, taking care to rinse and dry thoroughly. Also keep an e-collar (cone) on Annie until the lesion heals, because it will not heal if she is scratching or rubbing at the lesion. That said, if this does not start to improve in another week, Annie will need to go to her vet for further evaluation. The vet may need to perform skin scrapes (to check for the mites that cause mange) or a fungal culture (to look for ringworm). I hope that all goes well!

How to treat a dog's ear sore that won't heal and scab keeps falling off?

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