To promote your pet’s health and prevent infections, regularly cleaning your dog’s ears should be part of the ongoing canine hygiene routine of every dog owner.
For some dogs, especially the ones with floppy ears, this might mean an ear clean up every week, while for others once a month is enough.
To determine this, just check in once a week to see if there is a buildup of wax or dirt in your dog’s ears, and clean as needed.
If you are wondering why dog ear cleaning is so important, this article will look at the top reasons to keep your dog’s ears clean.
1. Prevent Infections
One of the main benefits of regularly cleaning your dog’s ears is to prevent dog ear infections. These can be extremely painful for your pet, so your best bet is to avoid them. Dirt and excess earwax buildup creates the perfect feeding ground for infection-causing bacteria.
Additionally, it is much harder for ear infection treatments to penetrate the inner ear if there is too much wax. With regular cleaning you should be able to prevent bacterial ear infections and promote faster recovery if your pet does get one.
2. Remove Weeds and Organic Matter
If your dog loves playing outside, rolling in the grass, running in the woods, or playing in the sand, then it is important to frequently check (at least once per week) the ears of your four legged bestie for dirt. Small twigs, weeds, and other plants can get lodged in the ear while your pet is having fun. If not cleaned out on regular basis, plants and weeds can work their way down the ear canal, posing serious health threats.
3. Get Rid of Ear Mites
Ear mites are highly contagious and annoying parasites that like to make themselves at home in your dog’s ears. These creatures feed on ear wax and oils, and can potentially lead to ear infections. While they are nearly invisible to the naked eye, regular cleaning with antibacterial products should get rid of them.
One way to check for ear mites is to take a small sample of your dog’s ear wax and spread it on a piece of paper. If you see small white specks in the ear wax, then your dog probably has some unfriendly visitors. In this case, increase the number of times you clean out your dog’s ears until the white specks are gone.
4. Maintain Healthy Bacteria Balance
Be careful not to clean your dog’s ears too frequently. Healthy bacteria also lives in a dog’s ears, and helps to fight off yeast and other organisms that might compromise the wellbeing of your dog’s ear health. Too much cleaning kills these bacteria, taking away the natural line of defense from ear infections.
If your pet is cleaned on the regular and enjoys an overall healthy life, then do not clean your dog’s ears more than once a week to give good bacteria enough time to reestablish and multiply before the next clean.
5. Keep Your Dog’s Ears Clean
If for no other reason, clean your dog’s ears for hygiene. The wax produced in the ear acts as a net that catches all the dirt, twigs, and even dust. If not regularly cleaned, the dirt forms a hard coat of ear wax and could easily result in a plethora of dog ear problems including ear mites and bacterial infections.
By cleaning regularly, you ensure that the buildup of dirt is not significant and hence much easier to remove and clean. Ear cleaning can be a great way to mitigate the chances of canine ear infection and at the same time allow for some bonding time with your dog. Plus, if there is an infection or other problems, then you will be able to catch them before your pet suffers too much pain.
For all of the important dog ear cleaning essentials, such as Zymox Enzymatic Ear Cleanser, Zymox Enzymatic Ear Solution or Zymox Antimicrobial Enzymatic Ear Solution, check out Dirty Dogs and Meow found online at dirtydogs.com.
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