Oh, no! Ear mites!

Indoor cats can and do get ear mites quite frequently. There's something about those little critters (shudder!) that allow them to make their presence known whether a kitty is indoor, outdoor, or a combination thereof. I don't know if you have dogs, but dogs going in and out of the house can track in ear mites. Also, as horrible as it seems, many cats pick up the mites from their local veterinary clinics. And, lastly, while it's not as common for ear mites to hitch a ride on humans as it is for fleas, it's certainly possible -- especially if we visit friends or family members with pets. Unfortunately, ear mites are just prevalent everywhere. But, as gross as they are (and as potentially dangerous as they can be when left untreated for extended periods of time), they are generally easy to treat and be rid of.

If Daisy has ear mites, it's quite possible (and, even likely) that all of the other pets in the house have them as well. But, I would be sure to have Daisy seen by the vet since there are other conditions which can mimic the symptoms of ear mites. Yeast infections and bacterial ear infections have many of the same symptoms as ear mite infestations, but can require very different treatments. I'm just now going through an ear infection with my dog and we needed to ensure that there were no ear mites before coming to the conclusion that it was a primary yeast infection. So, with that being said, I would try to get her seen and then have medication prescribed instead of treating for ear mites when another, more severe issue could be the culprit. And, as I said, if it's determined that she does have ear mites, you may have to treat all of the kitties (or other pets) in the home as they are so contagious.

If Daisy has ear mites, you should notice dark brown debris in her ear canal. Usually, you don't have mites without that debris. However, yeast infections and wax build-up also leave behind a similar residue -- hence why having a vet due an ear swab is wise. There are a number of ways to treat ear mites ranging from using Revolution to using liquid drops (one kind is Tresaderm though there are others as well) and so on. I would steer clear of store-brought medications as they rarely work and I have seen individuals do harm when trying to treat ear mites at home (ie. using mineral oil). Once you have a diagnosis, cleaning the ears will also be beneficial though many OTC ear cleaners are safe and effective. The little bugs are nasty, but when treated promptly and thoroghly, rarely leave damage in their wake.

Good luck with Daisy and the other critters in your home. Your vet may be willing to prescribe something without seeing Daisy, but, for me, I'd want to have my cat be seen. But, no matter what you decide, I hope all is well and that things can be taken care of quickly and without too much hassle or expense. Please keep us updated on how Daisy (and the others) are doing! (One last thing, if you do wind up bringing Daisy in to be seen, if she does have ear mites, a vet will almost always provide enough medication in order to treat the other pets in the home as well -- you'd rarely have to bring them each in for an exam before being given meds.)

They don't. It takes direct and close contact with another infected animal. If you're seeing black gunk in an indoor only cat's ears it means that cat must go to the vet, you're likely dealing with an ear infection.

Wow, you have two answers and they are totally different. If it were my cat, I think I would want the vet to have a look. Better safe than sorry.

You can look through past threads on here, too. Anytime someone's had an indoor only cat that had been treated successfully for earmites in the past, when they get black build up and irritation in their ears again it's usually an ear infection or the result of an allergy.

Personal experience and from chatting with my vet, too. If you have a house cat that shouldn't have earmites but suddenly notice that they do, that likely means they weren't treated successfully before. One reason this happens is if there is a lot of build up in the ears, any drops applied to the ears may not get all of the mites - the other reason is not following up on that 21 day cycle properly.
Just like not properly treating worms can lead to the cat still having them, even if inside for years.

I'm sure that nurseangel was smart enough to make sure they were gone (if any of her cats had them) to begin with. So a vet visit to check for infection is the best bet here. (good luck, by the way! )