Hygiene is an issue of great importance for the health of pets, especially when it comes to something as delicate as the ear. Many people are unaware that in addition to baths, dogs need an ear cleaning session to keep their ears free of infections and diseases. And because this subject is not mentioned very often, cases of infections are more recurrent than you might expect.
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General information
The rigorousness of the care required by the dog is closely related to its breed, because depending on this, the dog will have more or less predisposition to acquire infections or present hearing problems. Dogs with long and droopy ears, and those with abundant hair inside the auditory canal, such as the Papillon breed, are the main ones affected by infections and require more rigorous cleaning sessions.
The recommended number of sessions for these dogs is one per week, accompanied by other care to avoid infections. On the other hand, dogs with short, erect ears and with almost no hair in that area do not usually present problems due to infections, since they have a better ventilation of their ear canal. In these cases, the number of cleaning sessions should be once every 15 days or every two weeks.
Before starting the practice of ear cleaning in dogs, it is advisable to visit the veterinarian to receive personalized information.
Equipment needed for cleaning and preliminary check-up
To clean your dog’s ears it is necessary to have clean gauze, a cloth, a certified canine ear cleaner, a quiet and well-lit place, as well as serenity. These items will be used to remove wax and any other dirt that may be inside the ear. However, before starting this process, a preliminary check is essential.
The preliminary examination is to rule out the possibility of infection or the presence of something abnormal in the ear or ear that requires an immediate visit to the veterinarian. The first thing to check is the color of the ear canal, which has a pale pink tone when it is healthy. After this, make sure there is no foul or strange odor coming from the dog’s ear, then check the ear and head area for lumps and pain, along with large amounts of blackish wax.
In addition to physical evidence, it is also observed if the dog shakes its head excessively or tries to scratch its ears. If after preliminary examination none of these elements have been found, then the dog is healthy and cleaning can proceed. Otherwise, a veterinarian should be consulted as soon as possible.
External and internal ear cleaning
Cleaning the external part of the ear is not really complicated and is usually done with a cloth moistened with warm water. It is also recommended to do it with a gauze and canine ear cleaner. Small circular movements are used to clean this area. Something important to emphasize is that if a cloth is used, it should not drip or release water, because it can get inside the ear and become a serious problem in the future.
When cleaning a dog’s ears, the inner part is the one that requires more delicacy and caution. In this case, a piece of gauze is wrapped around the index finger and carefully introduced into the ear, without exerting force or putting it all the way in; it should only be passed slowly along the walls so that the dirt sticks to the gauze. This is where the canine ear cleaner is put to the greatest use, which is applied before inserting the gauze, waiting until it has spread well.
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