Ear Infections in Alpacas

I've posted a couple of times about a chronic ear infection one of our crias was suffering from. Our vet clinic is awsome, and three of the vets worked as a team in treating her for this condition after she healed from the second bout.
Perry Stanfield was a large animal vet for years, and just a few years ago switched over to treating small animals. He has perfected a technique that he uses frequently in dogs, and the team decided it would be appropriate for this alpaca.
Problem No. 1. The animal has to be perfectly still, which means total anesthesia. Alpacas are usually operated on only using sedation and ether. In came Brooke Johnson who has worked with anesthetizing alpacas at a clinic in another county. Then our vet, who we call on the most, Amber Itle, was the team leader.


Here Eve is obviosly sedated as they insert a catheter for administering the drugs.

Here you see the canellas.

Two vet techs hold Eve's head up while Perry takes a look in the ear.

You can see the inside of her ear on the screen in the background. I don't know if this is the start of the procedure, or the end. What he did was totally irrigate the ear. The eardrum had healed after the last infection, but was very tough and had to be broken. Behind the eardrum was loads of putrid matter, just working it's way into another infection. It was all washed away and sterilized.

Here is Eve, coming around.

And the Tech, Emily, poses her for a picture. They all love her and say she was the model patient.

Eve has been doing great since the procedure. We have a concoction that Perry "brewed" up, and had to put it in the ear two times a day for two weeks. Now we are at once a day, and will soon be twice a week for a month. She hates it, it makes her cough, but it is because it drains through her sinuses, and as long as that happens, it means she is clear.