Greenbriar Animal Hospital

Use ½ cotton ball per ear for small dogs and 1 cotton ball per ear for medium and larger dogs.  Use ear cleaning solution made for dogs - if you do not have any ear cleaner, apple cider vinegar diluted ½ and ½ with water will work in a pinch.  Never use alcohol or hydrogen peroxide in the ear. Soak each piece of cotton until dripping wet with your ear cleaner. If your dog is ear cleaning shy, do this before getting the dog! Lightly tuck one wet cotton ball into the ear and massage below and around the ear for 60 seconds. Repeat with the other ear. Remove the cotton or let your dog shake it out. If the cotton has lots of dark brown ear wax on it, repeat the whole cotton ball cleaning process one time. If there is still a lot of dark brown ear wax the second time, stop and make a note to do the ear cleaning again in a few days. Needing to do frequent ear cleanings (more often than every few weeks) and still having dirty ears is a sign of possible ear infections or other problems, so please call us for an appointment if this happens!