Cleaning your dogs ears

[bearhunter338-06]

What do you use to clean your dogs ears.

[moosecaller]

Epi-Otic at any good pet supply shop.

[Shooter Jr.]

I believe we use V.E.T. solution...

[gamehunter6o]

I hear caring dog owners lick them clean.:shock:

[spear]

I must be behind the times, cotton balls and warm water, works like a charm

[Foxton Gundogs]

[quote=bearhunter338-06;879500]What do you use to clean your dogs ears.[/qu

I use a 50/50 mix of rubbing alchohol and white vinigar, OR 50/50 mix of peroxide and water BUT you should mix this one fresh everytime you use it. as light breaks down the peroxide. You can use a que tip as a dogs ear canal takes a sharp bend and you wont injur the druminserting it up to about an inch. For yeast infection in ears the best I have found is (and the spelling may be off) "Synotic" drops or ointment from the vet.

[351BII]

Im going to try some of these. I just had to take my 9 month old lab in because she had a yeast infection in one of her ears. It was nasty:-?. Due to being wet and the labs ear is like a big flap and wont let air circulate in there to dry it out. Cost 200$ and not even 15 m ins at the vet to get it washed out and a shot so it pays to keep them clean thats for sure.

[rocksteady]

Karcher to wash.....

Air Compressor to dry.....








JUST KIDDING !!!!!!

Q-Tips and soapy water.....

[Kayte]

Epi-Otic at any good pet supply shop.
x2

my current dog has never needed her ears cleaned (bat ears ;) ) but i had a spaniel before her, and that dog needed her ears cleaned quite a bit! the epi-otic stuff on a cotton ball worked awesome. i wouldn't recommend using a qtip, that could end badly if you're not careful!

also, chronically yeasty ears can be a sign of allergies. many dogs with food allergies will get yeasty ears and/or feet. if your pup continues to have ear problems, it may be worth trying another food :)

[DGuest]

x2

my current dog has never needed her ears cleaned (bat ears ;) ) but i had a spaniel before her, and that dog needed her ears cleaned quite a bit! the epi-otic stuff on a cotton ball worked awesome. i wouldn't recommend using a qtip, that could end badly if you're not careful!

also, chronically yeasty ears can be a sign of allergies. many dogs with food allergies will get yeasty ears and/or feet. if your pup continues to have ear problems, it may be worth trying another food :)

My dog has allergies and all the symptoms you mentioned. It was a matter of playing around with her food to see which bothered her the least. We also found epi-otic to work best.

[Foxton Gundogs]

x2

my current dog has never needed her ears cleaned (bat ears ;) ) but i had a spaniel before her, and that dog needed her ears cleaned quite a bit! the epi-otic stuff on a cotton ball worked awesome. i wouldn't recommend using a qtip, that could end badly if you're not careful!

also, chronically yeasty ears can be a sign of allergies. many dogs with food allergies will get yeasty ears and/or feet. if your pup continues to have ear problems, it may be worth trying another food :)


ABSOLUTLY no problem with a q-tip (and thats from both my vets) because of the shape of the ear cannal and believe me with spaniels for over 25 years you do a LOT of ear cleaning.

[Spokerider]

IMO, nothing for the exterior ear....... The pinna can be cleaned with mild soap and water.

The skin of the ear canal is very thin and friable, and *cleaning* can cause damge and precipitate an infection.

Unless you have a good reason to muck around in the ear canal, they are best left alone.

[Cariboo Game Calls]

A vet advised me to use a 2 parts alcohol/1 part vinegar mix on cotton balls. My chocolate lab gets ear infections quite often, especially if he's swimming a lot.

[wiggy]

Vetericyn; works great; I breed Tibetan Mastiffs and they are known for ear troubles; since this stuff has become available i havent had any trouble. First time i see a sympton i give them all a spray and leave it alone. NP; i only clean out the extra wax build up that i can see with a wet q tip and nothing else. I also have some great products for dogs with allergies that are all natural and work.

[fudge]

white vinigar and warm water. Works well 4 my lab. I do it after he ahs been in the water or when they look red and it works well.

[gmcgilli66]

When I had Britts who wanted to dig out marmots, their outer ears would get filthy. We were vet recommended to use warm mineral oil and a soft cloth for the outer canal only and an otic solution for the inner ear when necessary.
My lab gets the same treatment. for cleaning.

[Jimbo]

Currently working on a 14 day antibiotic med from the vet. When this is over I am definitley going to be using ear cleaning solution weekly. Can't afford for this to turn into a chronic problem.

[Jedcote50]

I've had labs and golden retrievers and in my experiences you want to keep the cleaning of their ears to a minimum. I've had vets 'sell' me different solutions, but all that's really needed is warm water and a gentle flushing via a large ear syringe. I stay away from peroxide/ alcohol mixtures as they are prone to kill off as many 'good' bacteria as 'bad'. If your dog has a yeast infection (really stinky ears) then you need to consult your vet, and if it re-occurs you may need to find a different treatment (maybe a different vet). When my dogs got their inner ears wet, Ive trained them to accept clipping their ear flaps together on top their head with a soft tension old down-rigger clip to allow air to dry out the ear canal. Of course you have to make sure they don't go and roll in any crap while they're wearing the clip. Avoid sticking anything in their ears to dry or clean them - especially Cu-tips or rolled up Kleenex, the dog's inner ear is so fragile damage WILL occur. Too much cleaning strips out the natural lubricants and waxes necessary for proper hygiene so be cautious with the frequency of cleaning. And finally, be gentle when you give your dog that ol' scrathing behind the ears that they seem to love so much. Too vigorous of a deep scratching will also cause ear trauma that will only be noticed when your dog becomes deaf well before his senior years. I all learnt this the hard way more than once, and ya that's me yelling at my dog in the off-leash dog park, not because he disobedient, it's because he's deaf.

[Trapper D]

I hear caring dog owners lick them clean.:shock:
dont forget to give those little glands a nibble to .lol