Step-by-Step guide to ear cleaning
- Sit on the floor and have your dog sit in front of you with his rear end positioned between your legs. If you have a large breed dog, position him so he is sitting with his rear end in the corner of a room, with his one side against the wall. Stand on his other side.
- Grasp one ear and hold the ear flap (pinna) up vertically to expose straighten out the ear canal.
- While holding your dog’s ear flap, gently but firmly with one hand, hold the ear cleaning solution in your other hand.
- Squeeze some ear cleaning solution into your dog’s ear. Use enough cleaner to completely fill the ear canal. It is fine if some of the cleaner spills out of the ear canal. Do not put the tip of the bottle into the ear. If the tip of the bottle touches your dog’s ear, wipe the tip off with a clean cotton ball soaked in alcohol to prevent the spread of bacteria or yeast.
- Continue to hold the ear flap up vertically with one hand and gently massage the base of the ear below the ear opening for about 30 seconds with the other hand. This allows the cleaning solution to break up the debris that is in the ear canal. You should hear a squishing sound as the cleaning solution moves around in the horizontal part of the ear canal.
- While still holding up the ear flap , wipe away debris from the inner part of the ear flap and the upper ear canal using a cotton ball or gauze.
- Allow your dog to shake his head. This allows the remaining ear cleaning solution and debris from the ear canal to move out of the canal to the outer opening of the ear.
- Once again, hold the ear flap up, and remove the loosened debris and cleaning solution from the outer opening of the ear canal using a cotton ball or gauze.
- Remove any debris and remaining cleaning solution from the ear canal with a cotton ball or gauze – only go into the ear canal as far as your finger will reach. Never use a cotton-tipped applicator (Q-tip®) to remove the solution from the ear canal. Doing so can damage the ear canal and/or ear drum or push debris further into the ear canal.
- Praise your dog and provide treats.
- Repeat the same process with the other ear.
- If your dog appears to be in pain during the cleaning process, stop and consult your veterinarian. Repeat the cleaning procedure as often as is recommended by your veterinarian. If your dog has an ear infection and requires medication to be applied to the ears, clean the ears first and then apply the medication.
Anatomy of the ear