Q&A for How to Clean Your Dog's Ears

Excess fluid left in the ear after cleaning is probably making your dog uncomfortable, which is why he's shaking his head.

Avoid using Q-tips to clean your dog's ears, as these may push more debris into your dog's ear canal.

Use an ear cleaning solution to flush out the ear and cotton balls to wipe away any debris and excess solution. Always dry off the ear with a towel once you're done.

Use a cleaner made specifically to clean dogs' ears. This will be a sympathetic pH to dog skin and hopefully shouldn't sting or cause discomfort.

This is likely to be wax. However, ear mites or yeast infections can cause the ear to produce excessive amounts of brown wax, so be suspicious of an underlying problem.

Warmed coconut oil is considered a safe ear cleaner for dogs. Just be careful that it isn't hot when put in the ears.

You can make an appointment with your vet. Most likely, your dog has an ear infection that needs to be treated right away.

Take your dog to the vet. He could have an infection or an object deeply embedded in his ear.

if your dog has an ear infection take her to the vet immediately. Your vet will probably prescribe a special ear cleaning solution that will help the infection.

Yes, that would be painful for the dog.

You should buy a bottle of ear wash for dogs and wash his ears. If he continues to shake his head, consider talking to your vet.

Take her to the vet. That is a problem that needs to be addressed by a professional.

Yes, Vinegar is a safe PH for cleansing. However, the rubbing alcohol helps the moisture to evaporate out of the ear. If moisture stays down in the ear, it can also cause problems that would need vet care.

The hair protects the ear from infections and dirt, so do not remove it unnecessarily.

Yes. Vets are specially trained in these things and know how to do it safely.

It is better to carefully trim standard poodles ear hair. If you pluck out the hair, there's always a chance of getting an infection.

No. You will give your dog an ear infection.

Definitely do not put water in your dog's ears. Olive oil is a remedy for ear infections, not itching. Your dog may have ear mites and need to be taken to the vet.

Better to consult with your vet. If you wash a dog's ears, they can become vulnerable to bacterial infection due to wet ear, or fungus could also grow.

Yes it will. It is more likely for dogs with droopy ears to get infections, anyway, so you should follow the steps in this article.

It can indicate an itchy infection that is caused by yeast, or alternatively it could be an infestation of ear mites.

No. It is unnecessary to use anything but an ear wax loop or a cotton ball.

Using a cleanser made for pet ears would be better, but if you don't want to do this, try to find a white vinegar with a mildly acidic pH and mix it with rubbing alcohol in a 50:50 ratio. This will help cleanse the ear as well as dry it out effectively. Do not flood the ear with too much liquid, as that can cause injury.

No. Some dogs are just not as vocal as others, so it should be fine.

Otitis externa is an inflammation of the external ear canal, which can be caused by a number of things, including mites or wax. Most of the time it is caused by an allergy. The inflammation allows bacteria and yeast to build up in the ear canal, which can cause a secondary infection.

Try to make sure she does not scratch her ear a lot, as it may cause the infection to become worse.

Wax and water won't mix, so won't be effective. A commercial product designed for cleaning dogs' ears or 50/50 solution of vinegar and rubbing alcohol will dissolve the wax.

Like a microscopic tick. They build up in the ear and create a brown scabby looking discharge.

You can use a flat cotton ball and wipe the edges but don’t go too deep! You can also put in the dog ear cleaning drops, only one or two drops should work.