Veterinary Practice News • Veterinary Practice News Canada • VetMedTeam • VetCE • Veterinary Professionals' NextGen

Brain Teaser: A cocker spaniel needs a total ear canal ablation (TECA)

Can you answer these three questions?

July 29, 2021

By Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ, Fear Free Certified

Presentation

A cocker spaniel needs a total ear canal ablation (TECA).

Comments Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Demo-Cast

Aurora Pharmaceutical Demo-Cast: Barrier for Dogs

Date: September 25, 2025 1 p.m. ET | 10 a,m, PT

Join us for an informative session with Dr. Pete Hann as we discuss best practices in canine parasite prevention and why a year-round approach matters more than ever. Get insights, ask questions, and help your patients stay protected 365 days a year.

Learn More & Register

All Demo-Casts >

Beyond Itchy Pet Awareness Month: turning awareness into action

Tech Talk: No seat at the table causes real harm

Diagnosis and New treatment Options for Cats with FIP

Unlocking the Power of Genetic Testing To Revolutionize Detection of Feline Disease

Join Now!

555112

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.

Necessary

Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.

Cookie	Duration	Description
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional	11 months	The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance	11 months	This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
JSESSIONID	session	The JSESSIONID cookie is used by New Relic to store a session identifier so that New Relic can monitor session counts for an application.
viewed_cookie_policy	11 months	The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.

Functional

Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.

Cookie	Duration	Description
__cf_bm	30 minutes	This cookie, set by Cloudflare, is used to support Cloudflare Bot Management.

Performance

Analytics

Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.

Cookie	Duration	Description
vuid	2 years	Vimeo installs this cookie to collect tracking information by setting a unique ID to embed videos to the website.
_ga	2 years	The _ga cookie, installed by Google Analytics, calculates visitor, session and campaign data and also keeps track of site usage for the site's analytics report. The cookie stores information anonymously and assigns a randomly generated number to recognize unique visitors.
_gat	1 minute	This cookie is installed by Google Universal Analytics to restrain request rate and thus limit the collection of data on high traffic sites.
_gat_UA-	1 minute	A variation of the _gat cookie set by Google Analytics and Google Tag Manager to allow website owners to track visitor behaviour and measure site performance. The pattern element in the name contains the unique identity number of the account or website it relates to.
_gid	1 day	Installed by Google Analytics, _gid cookie stores information on how visitors use a website, while also creating an analytics report of the website's performance. Some of the data that are collected include the number of visitors, their source, and the pages they visit anonymously.
__gads	1 year 24 days	The __gads cookie, set by Google, is stored under DoubleClick domain and tracks the number of times users see an advert, measures the success of the campaign and calculates its revenue. This cookie can only be read from the domain they are set on and will not track any data while browsing through other sites.

Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.

Cookie	Duration	Description
ADV_u_id	3 months 8 days	Unique customer identifier used to track unique ad views and interactions with some ads.
anj	3 months	AppNexus sets the anj cookie that contains data stating whether a cookie ID is synced with partners.
fr	3 months	Facebook sets this cookie to show relevant advertisements to users by tracking user behaviour across the web, on sites that have Facebook pixel or Facebook social plugin.
IDE	1 year 24 days	Google DoubleClick IDE cookies are used to store information about how the user uses the website to present them with relevant ads and according to the user profile.
loc	never	AddThis sets this geolocation cookie to help understand the location of users who share the information.
OAGEO	session	OpenX sets this cookie to avoid the repeated display of the same ad.
OAID	1 year	Cookie set to record whether the user has opted out of the collection of information by the AdsWizz Service Cookies.
test_cookie	15 minutes	The test_cookie is set by doubleclick.net and is used to determine if the user's browser supports cookies.
uuid2	3 months	The uuid2 cookie is set by AppNexus and records information that helps in differentiating between devices and browsers. This information is used to pick out ads delivered by the platform and assess the ad performance and its attribute payment.
_fbp	3 months	This cookie is set by Facebook to display advertisements when either on Facebook or on a digital platform powered by Facebook advertising, after visiting the website.

Others

Question 1: What are classic signs that justify a TECA?
	Skin allergies and smelly ears
	Ear scratching and inability to pill the patient
	Calcified ear canals and failure of medical management

Question 2: What are possible complications of a TECA?
	Facial paralysis and loss of the palpebral reflex
	Facial paralysis and self-trauma to the tongue
	Facial paralysis and loss of bark

Question 3: What is the typical long-term outcome of a TECA?
	Good to excellent results
	Deafness and severe pain
	Common infection recurrence