What do you use to clean your dogs ears?

Question

I have rescued 4 yr old cocker spainel who, due to neglectful previous owners, has cronice ear infections in both ears and is constantly medicated. The store brought ear cleaners seem to hurt when I use them. Does anyone know or a home or herbal remidy for cleaning his ears? Buster the dog thanks you!

Answer 1

I use mineral oil & a cotton washcloth to clean the black out of dogs ears, cats too...put one or two drops of mineral oil (baby oil) on a cotton washcloth and gently wipe. I never dig in, or use a q-tip, because i am afraid of hurting the dog... just what i canreach with my pointer finger

Answer 2

We have both a pug and a standard poodle which get yeast infections in their ears because they're flapped over and 'closed' just like cocker spaniels. On a weekly basis we flush their ears with a solution suggested by one vet we talked to: 1/3 alcohol
1/3 witch hazel
1/3 water
If you mix them in a bottle with a nozzle, you can get it right in the ear.
Another vet said that this combination didn't include what was needed to wash the debris out of the ears and that we needed to add that element. Since we couldn't decide on what to add, we've been buying products off the internet that include natural oils, etc. and they seem to work pretty well.
Often times we forget to use it and one of them gets another infection in which case we have to use Otomax, antibiotic drops, prescribed by the vet. Other brands of the antibiotic drops seem to irritate their ears. In fact, we use the Otomax once a month just to keep any infection at bay. We don't want to overuse it though because then it may lose its effectiveness as the infection tolerates the antibiotic.
We also try to clip the hair out of the poodle's ears (which is almost impossible) so that they 'breathe' better.
This is an ongoing battle and I wish you the best of luck because it takes persistence. Next dog I get is going to have perky ears for sure.

Answer 3

As this dog likely has sore ears you don't want to be using anything on them that's got alcohol in it. My vet suggested using nothing but warm water, be very gentle and don't try to clean too deep. After cleaning, use a dry cotton bowl to wipe the ear dry. Using oil is good except that there's always a residue left over which attracts dirt, thus defeating the purpose.

Answer 4

I use a mild shampoo on an old washrag. Just put a few drops, then swab out the ear, rinse the rag and repeat until all the soap is gone and the ear is clean. My dog LOVES for me to do this!!! God bless!

Answer 5

I use 1/2 alchohol, and 1/2 mouthwash. My dog had ear mites and an ear infection and it cleared right up. Olive oil will alo work for ear mites (Idon't know about the infection however) Good luck!

Answer 6

Cotton balls saturated w/ 1/2 & 1/2 water and rubbing alcohol -
squeezed out the excess water n alcohol...rub gently. Use dry cotton balls afterward to clean excess ..take your dog to the vet...get prescribed ear drops, there may be more going on than you know!..remember if you use drops to drop the solution...squeezing the solution directly into the ear can be painful.

Answer 7

50/50 vinegar and water. or hydrogen peroxide diluted. use a dropper to get it in the ear and then gently massage it. let the dog shake then re-apply. let the dog shake then wipe the excess with a tissue. my lab has problems with her ears and i use both for her. clears her up quickly and i use it once a week for maintenance. i asked the vet and he said it was fine to use.

Answer 8

Not alcohol . use peroxide , pour some into the ears , massage so it will get all the way down, the dog will shake its head . alcohol will Burn the ears especially if there are sores inside.and use q tips after the dog shakes its head. don't go to far down . it is the same as cleaning your ears with q tips if you do.

Answer 9

The vet that I take my dogs to suggests a q-tip dipped in peroxide - not dripping wet, but damp so you can clean out the dirt properly.

Answer 10

Sorry to hear that. My sister accidentally, we think, made her dog deaf because she was overtreating for ear mites. Just be careful with what you use and only use by directions.