My 9month cocker is sick

Question
QUESTION: andI took my purebred cocker spaniel (Desert) to the vet today because she had an ear infection, she also has watery eyes and nose and she's in heat for the first time. The vet said that he's never seen anything like her condition before in a puppy and that I should either give her back to whoever I got her from or I may have to put her down. He asked me how attached I was to her! Seriously! That's my baby. I'm not putting her down. He said that he recommends her to get a distemper PCR and a blood sample which will be 300+ dollars that I don't have. Even after which...may not even be the problem. I spent 200 dollars today just to treat her ear and eyes. They also noticed she had little bumps near her shoulder blades and chest.

I don't know what to do and am freaking out just a little. I got her from a guy who breeds cockers in the high desert in California and saw her mom %26 dad %26 some of her brothers and sisters. They all looked fine granted that was 8 months ago. She still plays and eats fine and the only thing that bothers her is her ears. Please help

Desert's mamma

ANSWER: First of all - this vet is a jerk.

I have questions.  Why hasn't she been spayed?  Has she had all her puppy vaccines?

What EXACTLY did the vet do to diagnose the ear problem?  He should have taken a swab - gone away for 5 minutes to analyze it.  Is it bacterial or yeast?  Did he offer a prescription?

What I'd do "this minute" is go online to EntirelyPets.com and order the Zymox cleaner and both their ear meds.  One med has hydrocortisone and you'd only need that if her ears are red and/or swollen.  one is hydrocortisone-free and that's what you'd use for gunky-yeasty ears.

This stuff is genius.  My own vet uses nothing else.  What you do is fill the canal with the appropriate med - massage ear -let her shake head and that's it.  Do NOT clean out the ear canal as you do with a cleaner.  Once a day for a week (or two if it's a stubborn infection).

I don't like the watery eyes and nose.  The skin bumps can be dealt with topically.

But I want to know how this vet diagnosed anything?  What exactly did he do and prescribe?
Delores

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: She has had all of her shots and since she is purebred we were thinking of maybe mating her...but not sure.

Yes he took a swab of her ears, left and came back and said that he has never seen anything like this before but he thinks that everything going on with her was all related. He left again for a good while and that's when he said that it could be distemper but he wasn't sure until he ran the test. He said that I could treat her ears and eyes, but it could come back if we don't know the cause of it. End the end I just said I would get the medication for her ears and eyes. He prescribed Derma Pet MalAcetic Otic ear wash, followed by Baytril Otic 15ml(both 1x a day). For her eyes he prescribed BNP Ophthalmic ointment (3x a day) and she also takes an antibiotic pill Baytril 68mg (1x a day).

Since I've been using it she is looking a lot better. She's still herself though...she has never lost that. I did a follow up on the clinic and they had a few bad reviews go figure, I should have done that before I took my pup and gave them my money. Thanks again in advance for your help.

Answer
Hopefully he prescribed the Baytril for a month?  A lot of vets do too short a course and everything ends up coming back.  If he didn't - insist on it!  Especially since she has skin bumps.

I'm glad to hear she's looking better but when you can, order the Zymox cleaner and both meds.
It's not expensive and will save you money in vet bills.  If you do - check back with me on how & when to use it.

If you can tell me more about the skin I may be able to help control that.
And what are you feeding her?   And, above all, get a new vet!
Delores