Wondering how to clean your dog’s ears? If you’re between groomers or are noticing more buildup than normal in your pup’s ears, it’s easier to take care of at home than you might think!
Knowing how to clean dog ears can help protect your dog’s hearing and ensure his ears stay healthy throughout his life. Talk to your vet for advice or for a demonstration if you’re feeling hesitant.
All dogs should have their ears cleaned from time to time, but some dogs need more frequent and thorough cleaning than others.
Certain dog breeds are more prone to ear infections than others. Dogs with floppy ears and those with a lot of hair around the ears may be more susceptible to infection, as their ears are more likely to trap moisture and dirt.
Dogs with short ears may only need to have their ears wiped out occasionally, if you notice them beginning to look dirty.
Some signs and symptoms of an ear infection include:
Cleaning your dog’s ears at home is easy to do with the right supplies and techniques.
You’ll need cotton balls or cotton pads, a few of your dog’s high-value treats, and a veterinarian-approved ear cleaner.
REMEMBER: Never put a cotton-tipped applicator (Q-tip) into your dog's ear as it may cause damage to the eardrum.
Extra moisture in the ear canal is what often causes an ear infection in the first place, so be sure the canine ear cleanser has a “drying agent” listed in the ingredients. This ensures that any excess fluid will evaporate after you’ve finished cleaning out your dog’s ears.
Be sure to clean their ears outdoors or somewhere like the bathtub. When your pup shakes his head, the cleanser may be sprayed onto the walls (or you!).
If you’ve never cleaned your dog’s ears before, work your way up to the actual cleaning with a bit of training.
Start by getting your dog used to you looking in and touching their ears. Gently hold their chin for stability, and start to work on lifting up one ear, an inch at a time. Using your training technique, give a reward for calm behavior.
Once they’re comfortable, move on to the next steps of lifting the ear more, gently touching the inside of your dog’s ear with the dry cotton ball, swabbing the ear in gentle circles, and so on.
Now that your dog is comfortable with you cleaning their ears, you can start the cleaning process.
We don’t recommend squirting the ear cleaner from the bottle directly into your dog’s ear, as it can be jarring and uncomfortable for your pup.
Instead, soak a cotton ball or pad in your cleaning solution, then gently work it into the skin of the interior ear in small, gentle circles. This will transfer the cleaner into your dog’s ears, allowing it to moisten the skin and wash away ear wax and debris.
Finally, as you remove the cotton ball, you'll want to clean the folds of the ears if they appear dirty or waxy. Repeat this exercise in the other ear, ensuring to maintain a relaxed and calm state.
Let the ear cleaner settle into your dog’s ears for 30 seconds, then gently massage under your dog’s ears where the base of the ears meets the head. You should hear the “squish” of the liquid. This will help the ear cleaner move around the ear canal.
Lastly, take a new, dry cotton ball/pad and again, work it into the skin of the interior ear in small, gentle circles. After 10 seconds or so, remove it and wipe away any debris. Reward your pup with a treat!
Regular cleaning can help prevent ear infections. Inspect your dog's ears regularly and talk to your vet about your dog's needs. Over-cleaning can cause irritation, but under-cleaning can make way for excessive buildup.
A FREE phone consultation is available for all dogs.
We do appointments by scheduling only as we are not open to the public. No dog is permitted on our property without undergoing a complete behavior assessment and temperament test.
Where do I begin. My husband works for a company based in Florida but runs the Boston office, we are back and forth a bit and wanted to take our French bulldog, bear (his name) with us. Bear was trained with a sit command but that is really where it ended with his discipline. I wanted a dog I felt comfortable flying with. We did a bunch of research and came across Full potential K9 inc. After reading through their webpage we set up an appointment with the owner. He came to our home, met us, met Bear and did a bit of an evaluation. We settled on a customized board and train program. The next day, with a huge lump in my throat I dropped bear off to The owner/founder/head trainer Dillon. He was very kind and respectful of the fact that it was really hard for us and that for me particularly hard. Bear is an emotional support dog for me and Dillon was going to start the process of getting him to service dog status. Within days of Dillon having our dog, we all discovered a bunch more about Bear, good and bad that needed work and extra attention. Bear was a bit slow to learn as Dillon had to first work on behavior modifications such as crate and sometimes people reactivity. The constant communication we had with Dillon whether it was a quick text, video or phone call was vital for us in getting through giving up our dog for what would end up being almost ten weeks. Dillon as well as his whole staff, was available when ever we needed anything. They also went above and beyond with vet visits, filling prescriptions and respecting Bear’s need to be on very specific dog food. After a few weeks of training my husband and I had a long FaceTime chat with the staff (we were back in Boston at the time) about Bear’s progress, and difficulties. The honesty, detail, love and compassion the whole staff had for Bear was evident. We as a group decided to extend Bear’s training and really dive into a bunch of commands and boundaries we all knew would be best for both bear and his owners (myself, my husband and our two children). WHAT A GREAT CHOICE!! The leaps and bounds he has make with listening and following a bunch of commands is unreal. Bear is now home with us but it is unbelievable how much he has learned and how much we have all learned. Dillon went the extra mile by meeting me several times in high traffic areas like Home Depot so that Bear and I could be tested and perhaps occasionally fail. Dillon was right there, to get us back on track. The other piece of this perfect puzzle known as full potential K9 is their care and detail in teaching the owners. I really didn’t appreciate my role in keeping Bear safe, happy and successful as a well mannered animal. I think at the end of training we all agree .. the owners are the harder ones to train;) so THANK YOU TO THE WHOLE STAFF AND a special thanks to Dillon and Emma for giving me back my dog with all these amazing tools to be his best self! When you leave the training facility and the loving staff you know you have a new, extended family in them. They made it clear and have checked in often to let us know they are one phone call or visit away if we ever need anything! Don’t walk.. run to Full potential K9. If dogs could talk they would thank you for that;)
