These can be caused by the pet shaking its head or scratching at the ear or trauma. In this case, Remmy had an underlying ear infection that probably caused her to shake or scratch her ear and then the hematoma occurred.

So we discussed the options for Remmy's ear. There basically are 2 options. The number one recommendation involves surgery. The surgery is performed under general anesthesia and the ear is drained and then surgery is performed with sutures or a pre-made device to prevent the ear from refilling with fluid again. There is a very small chance of the ear refilling. The next option involves draining the ear while the pet is awake and bandaging the ear or placing a cannula and then allowing the bandage to provide compression while the ear heals. This can involve several bandage attempts. There is a 50% chance this way of the hematoma reoccurring. There also are many similar techniques performed that are used by veterinarians.

Remmy's owner elected to proceed with the surgery. After placing her under anesthesia, the licensed veterinary technician shaved and prepped the ear for surgery. I then made an incision into the ear flap and drained the bloody fluid that was trapped. Then a plastic flap was fitted to the ear flap on either side and plastic pegs were placed through the flap on either side. This provides compression to allow the ear to heal together without filling back up with fluid. Surgery went well and we placed an E-collar on her to prevent her from scratching at her ear.

We also treated the underlying ear infection, which is just as important as treating the hematoma. Remmy healed wonderfully- we still are treating her ear infection. She no longer has to wear her e-collar- even the nice soft heavy duty e-collar her dad got her. Remmy is back to her normal happy self again.