How to Clean Your Dog's Ears (and How Often You Should Be Doing It)

When it comes to keeping our dogs looking their best, we usually do all the normal pampering—giving them baths, cutting their nails, brushing their teeth, and grooming their fur. But one task that often gets overlooked is cleaning their ears.

Ear infections are a common ailment in dogs—particularly in breeds that have long, droopy ears (like cocker spaniels or basset hounds) or those that grow hair in their ear canals (as poodles do). A foul or yeasty odor in the ears is one quick way to tell if your pup might have an ear infection; redness and discharge, or frequent head-shaking or scratching, are some other signs that there might be an issue. If your dog seems to be in pain or cries when you touch around their ears, you'll want to schedule an appointment with your vet for as soon as possible.

Even if your dog doesn't seem prone to ear infections, it's important to keep their ears clean in order to keep it that way. According to Dogster, you should be cleaning your dog's ears anywhere from once a week to once a month, depending on the breed. Your vet can give you a recommendation for how often you should be cleaning your pup's ears, and even a quick lesson on how to do it yourself at home.

If you're uncomfortable undertaking the task on your own, your vet can do it for you—as can a dog groomer. But if you want to give it a try on your own, it's actually pretty simple. All you really need are some cotton balls and a vet-approved ear cleaner (your vet may sell one, or be able to tell you the nearest pet supply store or website that does).

According to Dogster, you should apply the dog cleaner to your dog's ear with a cotton ball or gauze. Squeeze a bit down the ear so that it makes its way into the ear canal, then gently massage the dog's ears near the base in order to break down any debris and/or ear wax. If your dog needs to shake their head, let them. Then, use the cotton ball or gauze to wipe the inside of the ear clean. (It may take a few swipes to clean the ear out fully.)

Though you may be tempted to use a cotton swab, just as with your own ears, this is a bad idea. "I generally don’t like to put Q-tips down the ears because I don’t like to push stuff down," Dr. Jeff Grognet, co-owner of Mid-Isle Veterinary Hospital in Qualicum Beach, BC, Canada, told Dogster. "This dilutes the ointment, but also, in some cases, the ointment doesn’t even get through to the skin inside the ear."

Cleaning your dog's ears is definitely easy, and important enough that there's no excuse not to make it a part of your regular grooming routine.