Cleaning Ears

[LittleRockyCole]

I have a 10 week old male boxer with natural ears and I'm wondering what the best way to clean his ears is when he needs it. He doesn't really get water in them since they're always floped over.

 

[Linda Lou]

I don't done what others do but I use a mild dog shampoo to wash the easy to get parts and then carefully clean the rest with Q-tips. She loves having this done, I think because I started doing it so young. Her ears get very dirty often and they don't smell the greatest then.

 

[Matt S]

Here's a couple of articles on Ear Care & Cleaning that should be of assistance.

http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1644&articleid=273


http://www.barkbytes.com/care/earcare.htm

taken from barkbytes.com
Should only a gentle cleaning be needed there are some things that you should never do. For the health of your dog, DO NOT use soap and water. DO NOT poke or probe the internal ear canal, or the delicate tissues of the ear. DO NOT use Q-tips, or any other cotton tipped swab. These could push dirt, or foreign objects, deeper into the ear canal, causing a more serious problem.

 

[Astoreen]

LittleRockyCole-

It has been our personal experience that just as much water can get into the natural ear as the cropped one. Living in the rainy state, water has a tendency to be around quite often thus the yeast infections for our girl. There is a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and hydrogen peroxide, I believe, that can be dropped, a few drops at a time, into the ear canal to help clean and keep dry. I'm not certain on this but I can check with the vet (he's the one that mentioned it). Currently, we just use an ear cleaner twice a week as a preventitive measure since our girl seems prone to the smelly ears. :( A few drops in each ear, some massaging at the base of the ear canal, a couple head shakes, some cleaning with tissue/cotton of the external ear (the flap) and she's good to go.
I'll get back to you on that mixture to confirm, best of luck.