Ruby seems to be scratching at her ears so Im not sure if she's got mites or just got an itch? I've looked in them but cant really see anything (her ears are quite fluffy though!)

How do cats actually get ear mites, do they have to catch them from other cats because she doesn't go out much.

Any thoughts will be appreciated.

loads of information here http://www.catclub.net/index.cfm/area/information/page/Ear%20Mites%20(Otodectes%20Cynotis)

Ear mites can be carried from one cat to another, but it is estimated that over 50% of all dogs, cats and foxes are carriers, so if your cat has been close to another cat, dog or fox at any time in the last year she could have caught them at that stage. Infections can be very slow to grow and in some cases can be subclinical for quite some time before becoming obvious. Ear mites are a sort of mange mite (which thankfully cannot be spread to humans) but which are shared between a lot of other species.

If you're in any doubt you need a vet with an otoscope to get a look down her ears- she may have an infection which is not mites, or a relatively mild mite infection which you can't see round the fluff.

If she has got ear mites and is already at the stage of feeling uncomfortable and itchy then you really need to get her checked out and treated before she has the chance of damaging her outer ears by scratching and raking the fur off.

Good luck- it's likely to be at least 3 weeks of treating if she has got them.

Does anybody know if there's anything I can buy for ear mites either from a pet shop or from the vets but without taking ruby as I've said before she gets so stressed when in the car!

I took her last time I posted on here and she had got them and they gave me some stuff but I think she's got them again!

It certainly sounds like it might be earmites - if her ears seem particularly waxy then it almost certainly is. Whatever the case, I'd say take her to the vets - they'll probably prescribe some canaural. Anything you can get from a pet shop will be pretty weak and unlikely to sort the problem out (they aren't allowed by law to sell anything that is particularly powerful - just like with human medicines, Boots can't sell you strong medicines without a prescription).

Hi,

You need to get stronghold from the vets. Its a spot on flea treatment like frontline, but also kills ears mites. I don't think you need an appointment to buy it but i think its around £20 for 3 vials-but its still a flea treatment too. Google it. When i got 1 of my cats at 8 months he had terrible ears mites-everytime he scratched black flakes came out. I took him to the vets and all they gave me was a stronghold, plus i had to pay for the consultations (£35 in total)! It also kills some worms too.

HTH

Rach

Thanks cuddlycats Im going to try and but her some of that it sounds good!

We also needed to use an earwash on our kitty to get all the wax build-up out - it was called epi-otic and you can get it from the vets. Basically we squirted it into his ear and smushed it around, which loosened up the wax and he then shook it out.
Obviously, he loved it and it wasn't messy at all...