# Standard: Very hairy inner ears



## homemadehitshow (Jul 8, 2015)

Since I post so many "issues" I want to start by saying that Teddy is an absolute pleasure to own and I love spending time with him and seeing is enjoyment of life.










Our latest issue is ear infections, mostly caused by his ears being super hairy very deep down.

Any suggestions as to what we can do to mitigate this ? As of right now he does not mind me rubbing his ears or even putting my finger down to clean but I cannot get inside the deeper parts with my finger.


----------



## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

Have you had a culture done to see exactly what kind of infection? Misha's turned out to be yeast and after treating with Zymox it has not come back. We keep the hair trimmed around the entrance to the ear canal and the groomer will very lightly pluck only the loose hair occasionally.


----------



## peccan (Aug 26, 2014)

In the ideal case, the hair from the ear passage gets pulled outward as you pull the other hair.

Of course, the ear inside the passage can and often does get great ideas about which way to grow so they need to get gripped with a tool to coax them in the right direction.

If you can't get a reliable child to help you or if the hair is really stubborn, you'll need a pair of round-tipped tweezers/forceps/tongs, possibly those with an angle. Personally I'd keep the tong action to minimum to reduce the risk of accidents, and as soon as I could get the inner hair to finger grasping position, would try my luck pulling those out before proceeding.

If the ears are really packed or if the pulling causes much discomfort to Teddy (as I imagine it might, the infection making the tissue more sensitive), it might be worthwhile to ask for a sedation (+ pain meds) at a vet's and pluck the ears more or less clean to give a good base to continue from at home. (We did this with Sulo's ears when he was 4 months and needed to be sedated for his milk teeth extraction.)

I actually don't recommend taking all the ear hair out, just enough to allow for good ventilation.


----------



## homemadehitshow (Jul 8, 2015)

Thanks, he was sedated and plucked yesterday, this is more looking for ongoing suggestions. I am thinking maybe start with just the Zymox ?


----------



## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

The vet didn't culture or prescribe anything? 

I bought my Zymox on Amazon.com

Warning, it makes a mess, very oily hair for a week or so.


----------



## homemadehitshow (Jul 8, 2015)

N2Mischief said:


> The vet didn't culture or prescribe anything?
> 
> I bought my Zymox on Amazon.com
> 
> Warning, it makes a mess, very oily hair for a week or so.


No, no, the vet did a full treatment, provided drops etc.

I am looking for an ongoing solution to stop this happening over and over again.

We've had the oily ears for a couple of weeks now, does the regular Zymox cleaning fluid cause that also ?

Thanks.


----------



## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

I have never tried the cleaning solution, so I don't know. I bought the Zymox with cortisone and her ears cleared up in just a few days. This was after using the prescription that did not treat the infection. A few weeks later her ear had some yellow crust inside and was starting to itch so I started the Zymox again and in a few days it was clear. Since then her ears have been great. I haven't had to use the Zymox in quite awhile. She does get her ears cleaned out and flushed at the groomers.


----------



## Dechi (Aug 22, 2015)

N2Mischief said:


> I have never tried the cleaning solution, so I don't know. I bought the Zymox with cortisone and her ears cleared up in just a few days. This was after using the prescription that did not treat the infection. A few weeks later her ear had some yellow crust inside and was starting to itch so I started the Zymox again and in a few days it was clear. Since then her ears have been great. I haven't had to use the Zymox in quite awhile. She does get her ears cleaned out and flushed at the groomers.


Do you meed a prescription to buy Zamox ?


----------



## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

No, it is OTC


----------



## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

Since your vet just did a thorough job cleaning and plucking your regular maintenance should do the trick. You should also check with the vet to see if they think allergy may be plaing a role in the ear troubles. Peeves is allergic to cheese and showed it with inflammation in his ears.


----------



## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

I will say that I have been very lucky and very rarely have ear troubles with my standards. I don't pluck ear hair unless I need to but one of my bitches and a couple of her kiddos that I own all seem to have particularly hairy inner ears. So, I do pluck them as needed. For routine maintenance, I clean with Chris Christensen Mystic Ear. I do this about once every 1-3 weeks, depending on the dog. At the first sign of wax buildup or irritation, I start cleaning/flushing daily with TrizUltra (available on Amazon). This will treat the start of an ear infection before you ever have to go to the vet. I literally would not ever be without Triz on hand. For dogs prone to ear issues, using Wonder Ear powder from Chantilly Kennels can help keep things nice and dry.


----------

