When I got back from BlogPaws, I could see that Toby's ears were still bothering him a great deal. I made an appointment at the vet and took him in as soon as I could.
It turns out he does have a lot of wax buildup, so I went home with some ear drops designed to dissolve the excess. The vet noticed that one of his eyes looked a little red and irritated, so I got some ointment for that. I also pointed out the pimply rash Toby has on his belly, which resulted in a prescription for antibiotics and some special shampoo.
The shampoo created a bit of a quandary since we don't have a bathtub. The vet recommended that I just take him into the shower, which works fine except for the fact that the shampoo has to sit on him for 5-10 minutes before it's rinsed off.
That means I have to try to overlook the ball of abject misery huddled in the corner of the shower while I'm shampooing my own hair and shaving my legs. I find myself apologizing a lot.
Most of the treatments haven't been working particularly well so far. His ears are still very sensitive and his belly rash persists. Really, only the eye looks better and it's still red-rimmed if you pull down the lid. Poor little guy.
So the antibiotics have been extended an extra five days, the showers remain on the schedule every third day, and there are four doses left of the hated ear drops.
The only good thing is that the medicated shampoo seems to be improving his coat overall. His hair was very thin on his back when we started, but after just one shampoo, I could see velvety new fur covering the area.
He goes back to the vet once a week until he shows improvement. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.
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