Ear Cleaning?

[WOTANSMUTTI]

What the best way to go about cleaning a dachsie's ears? Wo's got some brown stuff on the out ear and I'd like to help. He's already suspicious and I think I'm in for a fight no matter what is suggested here...

Anybody have some good (or bad) experiences in this?<IMG SRC="http://dachsie.org/ubb/cwmsmilies/cwm43.gif" border=0>

<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by WOTANSMUTTI on October 15, 2000 at 04:21 AM</font>

[Mrs.F]

I use baby wipes (make sure that they are alcohol free). I just give each ear a quick wipe every couple of weeks. The wipes are room temperature so they don't seem to bother my girls as much as the cotton ball soaked with solution from the vet used to, and they smell pretty good too! You need to use either a different wipe or a different part of the wipe for each ear though, in case you're dealing with more than everyday "dirt". You don't want to spread problems from one ear to another! Foster and Smith sells Doggie Ear wipes, but baby wipes seem to work just as well and are easy to pick up at the market.

Penny lets me do ANYTHING to her, but as you know my dear little Maggie is a bit, er, temperamental. Even so, she's never had any problem with the ear cleanings. I think I did start her off just one ear at a time though, with a treat lying close in the wings.


<FONT COLOR="#00FFFF" SIZE="1" FACE="Verdana, Arial">This message has been edited by Mrs.F on October 15, 2000 at 07:00 AM</font>

[Wienergal]

Sonja, I use a mixture of isopropyl alcohol and white vinegar to clean the wieners' ears. Peaches is prone to ear infections, so I use a cotton ball to squeeze some of the solution down into her ear, then use a thick, soft paper towel to clean the ear out. Farfie just needs cleaning, so I just dip the paper towel into the solution and swab his ears out.

You hold the ear upwards, then aim your finger straight down into the ear canal (so that your finger is sort of parallel to Wo's skull, not pointing in toward it), and swab all around.

If Wo has brown goo in there, it might be just dirt, but it might also be (1) ear mites or (2) a bacterial infection. The residue from a bacterial infection is kind of goopy; I think the ear mite residue is more granular (Penny's Aunt?). Both of these can cause serious problems, so you might want to have Wo checked out at the vet. Do his ears itch or bother him at all? Is he pawing at them? If not, it might just be dirt.

Both my dogs actually like having their ears cleaned. Maybe Wo will too!! Good luck!

[Mrs.F]

Hey Weinergal, I was really surprised to read that you use an alcohol/vinegar mixture. The vet told me to be sure to avoid alcohol! He said it would dry out the delicate skin too much and cause flaking and/or itching. That's the only reason I buy the brand name baby wipes rather than the store brand! If you have good success with alcohol, maybe I'll just switch over to the cheap-o's! http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/smile.gif

Of course this was the same vet that told me I had no reason to worry about Penny's seizures, "Some dogs just have them..." http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/grrr.gif

[Roxane]

Hi Sonja:
There is a solution the vet gave me some time back which has always worked very well.
It is a bit sticky but it really does the job. You put in a couple of drops and then massage the ear from the outside. So far, all of mine, large and small, have enjoyed that part. Then with a cotten swab, very carefully remove the residue. The solution seems to loosen the debris which then readily sticks to the swab. I only do this when visually inspecting the ears I can see they need attention. The product is called Optic Clear, has a long shelf life and can also be used on cats.(It does contain a small percentage of alcohol)
Hope this helps,
Roxane

[Oscar's Mom]

I was using these ear cleaning pads but they dont clean deep enough. Now I also have some liquid stuff from the vets, that you squirt in the ears and then wipe - Oscar totally hates this but it works really well. So, I'm going to alternate with the wipes and the liquid stuff.

[Penny's Aunt]

You might try a 50/50 combo of baby oil & 3% hydrogen peroxide. It won't hurt to let it go down the ear canal. Wipe out the outer ear (that you can see) with a tissue or cotton ball (& as Mrs. F said, always use a new one, or a fresh part of the tissue so as not to spread any possible contamination).

Alcohol does tend to have a drying effect, & may not be the best thing to use. Also, dry Q-tips & dry tissue on a dry ear canal can cause an irritation that leads to problems.

You can also use a Q-tip to clean out deeper. Don't let it scare you! A dog's ear goes down, then makes an abrupt turn into the eardrum area. As long as you are gentle & only go straight down, you won't hit anything you shouldn't. To get to the eardrum area, you have to make a definite effort to go around that corner.

Yes, infections are goopy & ear mites are grainy (like coffee grounds, usually), but sometimes a combo of the two can fool anyone, even vets.

But some dogs have oilier ears than others, & it seems to collect dust & dirt. Just a weekly wipe-out seems to keep them clean.

Basically, just do what you feel comfortable doing & no more. If the dog shows any indication of pain or red inflammation, he may have a problem that requires more than cleaning, so call the vet & ask for advice.

[Wienergal]

Heidi, I read about the alcohol/vinegar solution. Now I'm wondering...am I doing MORE damage to Peaches's ears by using that, instead of the expen$ive $tuff from the vet? Her ears seem to be about the same. But now I'm thinking of trying the wipes.

Farfel, of course, who has no ear problems, requires ear washing only about 4 times a year, so it hasn't harmed him.

Thanks for the info, guys! You learn something new every day!

[OwnedByChaucer]

Chaucer's ears tend to get icky when there's a lot of dust flying about. We're remodeling our home right now, and whenever my husband does a lot of sanding or sawing, no matter where we move the dogs to, or how we cross-ventilate, the ears get icky. I think that the gypsum dust hangs in the air, so even hours after we finish it's still "floating" around.

I use some solution I got from the vet to clean the poor little guy's ears (much to his chagrin), and then he seems to be good to go until the next time the dust flies.

[Owen's Mom]

I have two different ear cleaning solutions. One is called Aloe-Cetic Solution and is an aloe based liquid (and it has some alchol in it, and it vet prescribed) and I hate the smell of it, but I pour it down Owee's ears, massage it is, let him shake it out, roll around on the floor etc. then I take a Q-tip and get the goo out and use a tissue to get the outer ear clean. A couple of times a week, when he's just lying around, I squirt a little of a mineral oil/aloe solution from the Homeopathic vet onto a tissue and just clean any obvious dirt. He loves that part and does this goofy groaning noise while I do it.

http://dachsie.org/ubb/smilies/biggrin.gif



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~~Amy & Owen~~
22.8 lbs of Black and Tan Standard Muscle!!
www.dachshundrescue.org