Keeping Canine Ears Clean
When you own a dog, you know there will be various things you will have to do on a daily basis to keep the dog clean, healthy, well fed and groomed. One of the jobs that often gets over looked is keeping the insides of the ear canal clean. With dogs that have a flap ear that hangs down, it's the old "out of sight, out of mind" that comes into play. We often forget because we don't see the wax build up. Many times a dog can get a yeast infection or worse down in the ear canal that can have a foul or pungent odor and become painful to the dog.
Ear canals themselves are very long and very deep. They are literally as long as an adults index finger, around 3 inches deep. If moisture or debris get trapped, especially in breeds where the ear flap lays down, it becomes a breeding ground for yeast, bacteria and waxy build up. Most ear cleaners or medicine do not come with a tip long enough on the bottle to get it very deep into the canal and thus the problem can fester.
There is hope! It can be really easy to clean their ears and to keep them from getting full of yeast and bacteria and not emptying your wallet every time you go to the vet for their expensive ear cleaners and medicine. One ear cleaner is Witch Hazel, sold in grocery and drug stores all across America. The second, and our favorite is a simple mixture of 50% regular, plain rubbing alcohol and 50% plain, regular white vinegar. You probably already have these 2 simple ingredients on hand. The alcohol will help clean and dry out the ears while the vinegar keeps the pH balance of the ears within a normal range. You can use this solution every day if needed until any problems are under control. If a dog has really moist or inflamed ears, the rubbing alcohol may sting at first..
Purchase a color applicator bottle such as this one at any beauty supply store.
They are very inexpensive and work great. Make sure you get the longest tip they offer so that you can get as deep into the ear canal as possible. If you go with this type of bottle, make sure it has some sort of closure for the end of the tip. Any solution stored in the bottle in between uses would be comprised as the alcohol will evaporate at a much quicker rate than the vinegar, making your solution unbalanced.
The other option is a "bulb syringe" which you can buy in any drug store near the baby section and ear care area.
How to:
If you are using the bottle, mix up the solution in the bottle. If using the bulb syringe, put your mixture in a bowl to suck up into the syringe. Gently get the tip as far down into the ear canal as you can. Remember that the ear canal is as long as an adults index finger, so it's highly unlikely you will puncture an ear drum or do any damage. Just be gentle and go slow if you are unsure. Next, just give the bottle or the bulb a squeeze to get the solution to the bottom of the canal. You will want to use some pressure in order to get the fluid as deep into the canal as possible but again, not squeezing so hard that you will hurt the dog. This is not the time to do your best fire hose impression! :)
Next, before the dog shakes it's head, gently massage the outside of the ear canal, between your thumb and index fingers, just under the ear opening. This will help the solution get all the way to the bottom and will also help loosen up any debris and wax that needs to come out. Finally, just let the dog shake it's head to help bring up any remaining solution, wax, debris, etc. You can use some soft issue or cotton balls to wipe any excess cleaning solution or wax from the inside of the ear or under the flap.
Each dog is different in regards to how often they will need their ears cleaned, however we recommend that they be routinely cleaned about once a week.
If your dog has ongoing or chronic ear problems, we suggest feeding a diet with less starch and carbs and going to a meat/veggies only diet. Added probiotics every day is an absolutely necessity. Yogurt is not enough to balance the PH. It has been our experience that if a dog has chronic ear problems, finding the right, high quality diet will dramatically reduce the occurrence of ear related issues.
Purchase a color applicator bottle such as this one at any beauty supply store.
They are very inexpensive and work great. Make sure you get the longest tip they offer so that you can get as deep into the ear canal as possible. If you go with this type of bottle, make sure it has some sort of closure for the end of the tip. Any solution stored in the bottle in between uses would be comprised as the alcohol will evaporate at a much quicker rate than the vinegar, making your solution unbalanced.
The other option is a "bulb syringe" which you can buy in any drug store near the baby section and ear care area.
How to:
If you are using the bottle, mix up the solution in the bottle. If using the bulb syringe, put your mixture in a bowl to suck up into the syringe. Gently get the tip as far down into the ear canal as you can. Remember that the ear canal is as long as an adults index finger, so it's highly unlikely you will puncture an ear drum or do any damage. Just be gentle and go slow if you are unsure. Next, just give the bottle or the bulb a squeeze to get the solution to the bottom of the canal. You will want to use some pressure in order to get the fluid as deep into the canal as possible but again, not squeezing so hard that you will hurt the dog. This is not the time to do your best fire hose impression! :)
Next, before the dog shakes it's head, gently massage the outside of the ear canal, between your thumb and index fingers, just under the ear opening. This will help the solution get all the way to the bottom and will also help loosen up any debris and wax that needs to come out. Finally, just let the dog shake it's head to help bring up any remaining solution, wax, debris, etc. You can use some soft issue or cotton balls to wipe any excess cleaning solution or wax from the inside of the ear or under the flap.
Each dog is different in regards to how often they will need their ears cleaned, however we recommend that they be routinely cleaned about once a week.
If your dog has ongoing or chronic ear problems, we suggest feeding a diet with less starch and carbs and going to a meat/veggies only diet. Added probiotics every day is an absolutely necessity. Yogurt is not enough to balance the PH. It has been our experience that if a dog has chronic ear problems, finding the right, high quality diet will dramatically reduce the occurrence of ear related issues.