What best to use to clean ear's?

We clean our dog's ear's out - well my husband does it hehe, but I have alway's wanted to know what is best to use? Obviously whatever you use be very gentle
Thank You

I use warm olive oil. No cotton wool buds though - only cotton wool pads. Buds are too small and could damage the ear.

I haven't delved inside my little boy's ears at all, but maybe I should, and too would appreciate some advice.

Thank you Eleanor. Is it necessary to clean our dogs' ears, and if so,how often?

It should be done if the ears look dirty, to prevent infections. You can also use a mixture of half water and half vinegar. If you use a cotton pad, make sure you don't push it into the ear canal, as this can cause damage.

If you don't want to use a cotton pad, you can use a pippet to gently squeeze the mixture into the ear, though the dog will likely shake his head straight away, so it's best done with somebody holding his head still. Then massage the base of his ear, and allow it to drain out.

Probably best to do it outside, unless you want a messy carpet.

If you use the pippet one, you might find it easier to put a cotton pad against the ear while you rub the base of the ear. This collects leakage and debris.

Just to let you know - Dempsey hates it!

Yes. Yes, he does. But it's happening tomorrow, whether he likes it or not.

He likes the part where his ear gets rubbed, but not the part where olive oil is squirted in.

Good advice, thank you.

I have another question, and hopefully this will help Karen as well as me and possibly others - presumably, like us humans, the dog's ear produces wax as nature's way of cleaning the ear canal. Is this wax black in dogs?

Tommy sorts Tilly's out , he seems to have an ear licking fetish , and Tilly just lies there and takes it

Dave wrote:Tommy sorts Tilly's out , he seems to have an ear licking fetish , and Tilly just lies there and takes it

Same as my two! Roxy has the ear fetish and is always at Vin's ears - he goes into 7th heaven and she usually finished off with nibbles all along his chest and down his back. The boy has his sister trained

I use the cotton pads as well, Rocky hates it though haha

Darcy hates it too I use cotton pads.

I just use a damp cottonwool pad and gently wipe around Rocky ears inside them, he loves it and always wants to eat the cottonwool pad afterwards but he doesn't get it.

RoxysMum wrote:

Dave wrote:Tommy sorts Tilly's out , he seems to have an ear licking fetish , and Tilly just lies there and takes it

Same as my two! Roxy has the ear fetish and is always at Vin's ears - he goes into 7th heaven and she usually finished off with nibbles all along his chest and down his back. The boy has his sister trained

This sounds more like foreplay

Lynda wrote:Good advice, thank you.

I have another question, and hopefully this will help Karen as well as me and possibly others - presumably, like us humans, the dog's ear produces wax as nature's way of cleaning the ear canal.  Is this wax black in dogs?

They do produce ear wax. It can be black, but that probably means he has ear mites, which leave a crust-like black residue in the ears which is actually dried blood - it can look a little like coffee grounds. If he's shaking his head at all or scratching at his ear, the chances are he has ear mites. If you want to be sure, you could go to a vet.

If you want to get rid of ear mites yourself, you'd need to clean the ears first anyway to get rid of excess wax. If the infestation is only mild, the cleaning itself may solve the problem if it is repeated. If the infestation is more serious, you can buy over-the-counter ear mite medication at pet shops and vets, which often contain a pesticide.

Hope this helps!

Dave wrote:

RoxysMum wrote:

Dave wrote:Tommy sorts Tilly's out , he seems to have an ear licking fetish , and Tilly just lies there and takes it

Same as my two! Roxy has the ear fetish and is always at Vin's ears - he goes into 7th heaven and she usually finished off with nibbles all along his chest and down his back. The boy has his sister trained

This sounds more like foreplay

Trust u Dave

I use ear wipes from PAH...or just scent/purfume free baby wipes and cotton buds for the inbetweeney bits but never down the canal. I clean them every time they're dirty to avoid infection mainly.

Yeah we have done that in the past aswell, use a cotten pub to get in the wee bits as you say, prevention is better than cure

14:15:0306.23.2013

Great advice I am going to clean Vinnies as he has been shaking his head of late and a very little amount of black wax in there too.