How to Clean Dog Ears
Labradoodle Ear Care
Grooming Ears underside and inside.
The hair begins its journey deep in the ear canal. If this hair isn't removed, wax and other dirt might accumulate, resulting in an ear infection, either bacterial or yeast. You can tell when the doggie has hot ears that there is a problem, and a trip to the vet is in order. The doggie will scratch its ears (A LOT), shake its head, and the inside of its ear smell weird or bad.
Get a hemostat from your vet.
It is not difficult to use tweezers or, better still, a hemostat to regularly pluck out the hair. I usually give a quick demonstration during puppy pick-up. Sometimes, it can be a two-person job: one to hold the dog and promise treats, the other to pluck. Always try to make hair plucking pleasant for your pup. Our pups have had their ears handled regularly since birth and find it pleasurable; I start with some fun ear rubs and grab a few hairs at a time.
Of course, your groomer can do the ear plucking for you. She should be fine if you take your dog every six to eight weeks.
Pull all hair from the ear canal and shave the underside of the ear near the ear canal.
You can use your fingers as tweezers to pull out hair or ask your vet for a pair of hemostats. Just grab and pull, mainly when using the ear powder. Inner ears should be kept clean, and the hair in the ear canal should be shaved away.
Inner ears should be kept clean with ear wash monthly.
Ear wash can be purchased at pet stores and online. Flood the ear with solution (gently squirt bottle), massage gently to the count of 60, wipe with a tissue, flood again, wipe with a tissue, and leave alone without massage. The dog will shake out the excess, which can be wiped with a tissue, cotton ball, etc.
You will not be plucking and rinsing on the same days.
I use and recommend both of these ear washes:
The ear powder is a simple step to make plucking easier.
I purchase a lot of products from Chewy and have inserted links above.