dog ear and head shaking

Question
my dog has a bloody/brown discharge in 1 ear and shakes her head. I called a local vet and she said to wipe it with qtip dipped in baby oil and to dab a little advantage in the ear. I have done that but it doesn't seem to help. Is this ear mites? Do I need to take her in?any home treatment I can try? thanks so much

Answer
If the debris in her ear is very dark, almost black, and flaky it is very possible that it is ear mites.  If the discharge is liquidy and has a smell to it then it is most likely an infection, in which case your dog will need a trip to the vet to determine if it is a bacteria infection, yeast, or both.  I'm not sure what the point in putting the advantage in the ear is since Advantage only kills fleas.  The only thing you are really going to be able to do without a vet visit is keep the ears clean.  You want to use an alcohol-free cleaner so it doesn't irritate the ear.  I really think the vest thing to do is to take her to the vet so they can look under the microscope for ear mites, as well as do a cytology to check for yeast and bacteria.

Amanda