ear mites

Question
hi,i think my 5 month old mini pot bellied pig may have ear mites, but i don't know, but in her ear, it has a lot of orange spots, so i had a feeling that it was blood cause she has been scratching her ear a lot, please help :(

Answer
Pigs often get mites, but not ear mites. They get mange mites, which leave orange marks on the inside of the ears, behind the ears, behind the front legs and sometimes on the belly.

These mites will not live long if they jump off the pig. They can not lay eggs unless they are on a pig, so there is no danger of humans or other pets catching them.

Your veterinarian can provide you with medicine for the mites. It requires two treatments. The first one kills all living mites, the second dose, two weeks later, kills any mites that hatched after the first dose. In severe cases, a third dose may be needed.

Pigs have very narrow ear canals. It's ok to gently clean the outer edges of the inside of the ear, but stay well away from the inner ear and ear canal. Twenty years ago vets thought it was Ok to clean pigs ears with flushes and swabs, but now we know that often causes temporary deafness, and occasionally, impaction and infection. When it comes to cleaning pig ears, less is usually best.