Prevalence of bacterial otitis externa in dogs at veterinary clinical complex, Nagpur

Abstract

The present investigation was carried out to determine the prevalence and demographic distribution of otitis externa in dogs attending the Veterinary Clinical Complex, Nagpur Veterinary College, Nagpur, from March 2025 to December 2025. Among the 18,172 cases attending the Medicine Section, 228 dogs were diagnosed with otitis externa, yielding an overall prevalence of 1.25%. In this study, the prevalence was to be higher in male dogs (59.21%) than in female dogs (40.79%). The highest prevalence was observed in the 3.1-6-year age group (38.60%), followed by 1 month-3 years (31.58%), 6.1-9 years (19.30%), and >9.1 years (10.52%). Breed-wise, Labrador Retrievers (30.70%) were the most affected, followed by nondescript dogs (19.74%), German Shepherds (13.16%), and Golden Retrievers (12.30%). In the weight-wise distribution, the highest number of dogs with otitis externa were in the 24.1-34.0 kg group, i.e., 40.35%. The high susceptibility of middle-aged, male, and medium-to-large breed dogs could be due to anatomical, hormonal, and exposure factors. Differences in the prevalence of otitis externa compared with previous studies could be attributed to geographical, climatic, and managerial variations. The present study provides insight into the prevalence of otitis externa in dogs in the Nagpur region.