Shar Pei Ear Problems

Out almost 3-yr female is due to go in for surgery to her ears. We had a
similar problem with an another dog and while the surgery does appear
drastic, I believe the dog was far more comfortable once healed. The first
one had her ear canales routed to the side of her head, vs. thru the normal
path, due to re-curing infections and cleaning issues. The one who is due
the surgery, the Vet explained that this case appears worse in that they may
remove the canal down the about the ear drum, then sew the opening closed. A
known hearing loss is to be expected, but I am looking for help in
understanding that this will not become a burden to her.

The misery she goes thru when we clean her ears and I am talking of hours
per day of head shaking, panting, and general uneasiness. We have tried
practically every solution on the market, in addition to some home remedies.
The problem appears that the vertical portion of her ear canal is so narrow,
she has a difficult time shaking out the 'bunk' and the cleaning fluid. You
can hear it squishing around when you rub her ears/side of her head.

I am just very uneasy about he surgery, assuming the most drastic course of
action is necessary, but watching this beautiful, loving little girl suffer
thru the cleaning process, is probably worse. I refer to it as a cleaning
session, but we are never really able to get everything cleaned, just a
temporary reprieve of a few days at most.

If the pending surgery were to simply re-rout the canals as the previous one
had to have it done, I would not have as much of a struggle with the
decision. I am looking for experiences, thoughts, support from those who had
a pet go thru a similar type of limited hearing loss. How much can she be
expected to hear, and how drastic will it impact her quality of life? I have
the vet's answers(maybe up to 50% loss, not much impact to quality of life),
but I am looking for more information.

thanx to all in advance....