Lump in ear?

Dexter has a lump in his right ear, near where I sometimes prick him for his BG testing.

I didn’t notice it before today, so I’m guessing it’s new. Has this happened to anyone else? Should I be worried? He seems completely normal.

 

Might be a bruise or scar tissue. Keep an eye on it for a few days and try to test away from the area. It’s best to test at the very edge of the ear.

 

I was thinking it might be scar tissue, too. I've been trying to test lower down, but sometimes I feel so badly for him, because he has test spots down both ears.

 

Where do you usually test? It’s recommended to test at the very very edge. where the raised spot is is way too far into the ear.

If this is a big bruise, it should get smaller and go away after a few days. If it doesn’t get better after a week or so or gets bigger, I would see a vet. Most likely it’s some bleeding under the skin which causes a raised bruise.

 

I usually test right at the edge. I have the AlphaTrak 2 lancet device, and can normally prick pretty close to the edge. I'll try to go even closer next time. I hope it goes down tonight.

 

Oh, ok. So you didn’t test at the site of where the bump is? Sorry, I misunderstood.
Yeah, I would just keep an eye on it.

 

No, you aren't wrong-- I must've tested his ear and caused the bump. I always use a fresh lancet, so I really hope it's not an infection. I think/hope it'll go down over the next couple days.

 

Bronx got same thing in one ear so I avoided that area when I couldn't use his other ear. It went away after about a week

 

My Ravan has has small bumps all along the edge of one ear that are sore if i even touch them. He jerks his head away. I'm sure it's from testing. I use only the other ear . It doesn't seem to get the bumps?
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I use a cotton square (like for makeup) & a 30 gauge lancet, I now make sure I hold the spot after I test & lightly squeeze it for several seconds with the cotton square. I tried using a lancing pen but I couldn't get right on the edge
of his ear with it. I use the 30 gauge "CareTouch " lancets They have really small needles. I read a while back that some people have stopped using Neosporin because they felt it was causing the problem. I stopped using it also. I've been holding a warm cloth on his ear to see if that will help.

 

Lots of very good info here http://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB/threads/testing-and-shooting-tips.85113/

 

Looks like a little hematoma, that accumulation of blood and blood fluids in the ear. An ear hematoma is normally caused by a cat/dog shaking their heads. It can also be caused by a puncture in the ear like trying to get blood to far from the edge of the ear. Since Dexter's hematoma is so small I would just monitor it to see if it grows. For the time being I would only test the other ear.

 

Hi again-- thanks for all your feedback. Update: the ear hematoma is gone! It was fine this morning, so it must have been a bad test spot/shaking of the head combo. I've become such a worrywart with this little guy! Appreciate all your insights.