Making sure that your dog has clean ears and there is no build-up of wax or sebum in its ear canal is one of the essential things that any dog parent needs to be on the lookout for. Accumulation of wax in your canine’s ear can cause discomfort to your dog or painful ear infections that can end up causing permanent damage to its hearing ability.

Generally, a dog’s body can get rid of excess wax on its own, but some dog breeds are more prone to build-up due to factors like long hair or general anatomy of their ears like cocker spaniels and basset hounds. If your dog has previously suffered from an ear infection or belongs to one of the breeds that get them often, you should have their ears cleaned by a professional groomer when your dog goes for grooming or learn to clean your dog’s ear at home as that will be more timesaving.

In this article, we will go over the procedure of cleaning your dog’s ear step by step at home and answer frequently asked questions about keeping your pet’s ears clean.

How To Clean Dog’s Ears at Home?

This step-by-step guide will help you clean your dog’s ears at home without any trouble.

Things You Will Need

·        A towel.
·        Cotton balls.
·        Treats.
·        A cleaning solution, you can buy a vet-approved dog ear cleaning solution or make some at home by mixing white vinegar and warm water in the ratio of 1:1.

Steps For Cleaning

·        The first step is to get your dog comfortable and, in a place, where you can easily clean any mess made during the cleaning, as the dog will shake its head quite vigorously to get rid of the cleaning solution in its ear.

·        Clean the outer ear by dipping a cotton ball in the cleaning solution and wiping the ear flap gently, making sure to not insert the cotton ball too deep in the ear canal.

·        Drip a generous amount of the cleaning solution in the dog’s ear and massage the base of the ear gently, for about 30 seconds to a minute, so that the liquid may go all the way in the ear canal and dislodge the wax.

·        While you are massaging the back of the ear, give the dog its favorite treat to distract it from the solution in its ear.

·        Your dog will get rid of the cleaning solution in its ear by shaking his head which will cause the dirty liquid to come out. Wipe the liquid with a towel and use cleaner soaked cotton buds again to clean the outer part of your canine’s ear and if the cotton balls still become quite dirty with wax and gunk, you should repeat the cleaning process.

·        Repeat the entire process for the other ear while giving your dog treats to keep it calm and docile to ease the cleaning procedure.

Things To Remember When Cleaning

·        Overcleaning can cause infections, as too much of the cleaning solution can mess up the ear’s PH, which in turn will promote bacterial and fungal growth.

·        If your dog is showing signs of an ear infection, don’t clean its ear at home as you may end up causing more damage and irritating the ear farther.

·        While cleaning, if your dog is experiencing too much pain, discontinue the process and have the ears cleaned by a vet as there may be an actual issue in the ear that is the cause of such pain.

·        Never use Q-tips or anything pointy to clean the ears, you can damage the thin ear membrane that is vital for proper hearing or end up shoving the wax and debris deeper in the ear canal.

Symptoms of Dog Ear Infection

Recognizing and getting treatment for your dog when it suffers from an ear infection, as soon as possible, are vital for its complete recovery. Excessive ear wax accumulation or wrong cleaning methods are generally responsible for ear infections that is why you must be familiar with the appearance of an infected ear.

A healthy dog ear has a slight pink color, with no odor or pus, and a little wax is present. While an infected dog’s ear will appear red and inflamed, may have a stinky odor, and leak discharge. Your dog will also display signs of distress and pain when you touch its ear, or the pup might paw at its own ear and try rubbing it against things.

If your dog normally gets its ears cleaned with a minor inconvenience but suddenly gets jumpy when you try to clean its ears, it might be a sign of an ear infection. You should never try to clean an infected ear at home as the soreness will cause the dog to be quite irate and agitated, which can end up resulting in more damage to the poor pup’s ear.

FAQs

How often do you need to clean the dog ears?

This depends on what breed of dog you have and the activities it does, for example, a dog that swims should get its ear cleaned more often than a dog that doesn’t. Similarly, if your dog has long hair that covers its ear, there is more chance of wax and moisture accumulation, and thus its ears need to be cleaned regularly, some dog breeds produce too much wax and some have ears that flop downward resulting in the collection of moisture and debris in the ear canal, which is the perfect environment for bacterial propagation, for dogs with such anatomy, cleaning ears regularly is essential. If your dog does not fit in any of these categories, you just need to get its ear cleaned once a year.

Can you use hydrogen peroxide for cleaning dog ears?

Hydrogen peroxide should not be used for cleaning dog ears, no matter how diluted the solution you create by mixing it with water. Due to its abrasive and acidic nature, it can irritate the fragile lining of the inner ear and may cause a PH imbalance in your dog’s ear which actually causes the growth of bacteria and fungi in the ear canal.