# Question About Ears



## Hayley22 (Sep 21, 2011)

I just wanted to get a general idea... 


What do you clean your poodle's ears with?

How often do you clean them?

Do you pluck? How much and with what?


I've recently purchased some ear and eye wipes for Delphi, which I think work quite well, but they are rather pricey! I'm wondering about other options...


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## mom24doggies (Mar 28, 2011)

I do not clean Trev's ears very much at all. Maybe once a month or once every two months? However, I check them at least once a week. (I play with his ears a lot. So I end up looking at them more then that.) As far as plucking, he doesn't grow too much hair in his ears, so I rarely do that either. I'm one of those people that believes that "less is more". I've read a lot of stories where someone cleaned the ears too often, or plucked the ears too thoroughly, and the dog ended up with a nasty ear infection. So I prefer to leave well enough alone....Trev's ears are healthy, so they just get checked and occasionally cleaned. As far as what I use....when I pluck, I either use an ear powder or cornstarch, depending on which is available.  I don't recommend the cornstarch necessarily, as it would probably get really globby when wetted. In a pinch though, it works, (trying to pluck ear hair without some sort of oil absorbing substance is almost impossible.  ) and I just don't get it wet afterwards, I let Trev shake it out.  For cleaning, I use flushing. In the tub, I flip his ear backwards and gently use the water flow to flush out his ear. Yep, I get water in his ears on purpose!! It doesn't cause a problem as long as you let the ear dry out afterwards, which I'm getting to. After that, I take some alchohol based ear cleaner and squirt some (gently, ears are sensitive!) down his ear...massage the base, let him shake, then gently wipe out the outer ear with a soft towel or something. I used to use the traditional "squirt cleaner on some cotton and clean away!" method, but have since found out that cotton actually is abrasive and causes teeny tiny little scratches in the ear, which allows any bacteria in the ear to take hold and then cause an infection. Same with ear plucking, it causes a break in the skin which allows the nasties to take hold. Obviously, ear plucking is essential for those dogs that grow forests in their ears...which is why you must clean out their ear afterwards as good as possible and then keep an eye on it. There is a solution out there that some people make to use after plucking and it prevents infection, but I don't remember what it's called or how it's made. I believe it has the word "blue" in the name; maybe someone else will know what I'm talking about!! For dogs that don't grow much hair in the ear canal, I prefer to just leave it. Being that I'm a dog groomer though, and almost all vets insist that even one hair will cause an ear infection, I am obligated to pluck out all ears, forests or not. :-\ It gets to me, but that's what everyone wants, so...maybe if I get my own business I'll be able to do more educating. At this point, I hardly even talk to customers.  Anyways, I'm going to try to locate some articles for you about ear flushing and it's benefits. It's pretty interesting!! Hope I helped.


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## petitpie (Nov 16, 2011)

My groomer takes the hair out of the ears, only if it comes out easily with her fingers. She uses Halo's Natural Herbal Ear Wash and we're trying it now with good results.


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## Hayley22 (Sep 21, 2011)

Sorry it's taken me so long to reply to this!

Thanks for your description, mom24doggies! I have also read lots of stories where plucking as resulted in ear infections, so I'm weary of trying it. So far, Delphi hasn't had any ear issues and I haven't plucked a single hair. I do clean them, though, and check if they look healthy. The ear flushing idea sounds interesting! Definitely going to read up about it!


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## Hayley22 (Sep 21, 2011)

petitpie said:


> My groomer takes the hair out of the ears, only if it comes out easily with her fingers. She uses Halo's Natural Herbal Ear Wash and we're trying it now with good results.


Thanks, petitpie. Have you had any 'ear issues'?


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## tokipoke (Sep 3, 2011)

Dogs that have "forests" in their ears and get it plucked probably had a problem in there before the hair was plucked. If there's TOO much hair, it restricts airflow and gets gunky cause the ears can't breathe. Then you suddenly rip out all the hair and not only is the skin inflamed and the pores open, but now there is airflow to the ear. Many dogs start scratching and shaking their heads like crazy. This can cause hematomas in floppy eared dogs from shaking so hard. The blood vessels in the ears will burst. The best way to prevent all this is to keep close tabs on your dog's ears on a daily basis. If they romp through sandy areas or a muddy puddle, look in their ears, because sometimes the dirt will fly in there. I clean Leroy's ears with a regular ear cleaner you can buy in petstores, every two weeks or so. For a good cleaning, I squirt a couple of drops in there and massage and let him shake it out. I then take cotton pads and rub away excess ear cleaner. I use ear powder to rip out the ear hairs with my fingers. He does not grow them quickly, but maybe it's also because I pluck them consistently. I do not like any hair in there so I keep it pretty clean. I have not had any issues. Many groomers will pull the ear hairs with hemostats (look like tweezers). They will clamp down on all the long hairs, twirl the hemostats and pull out everything in one go. I do NOT like this method. I only use my fingers because I get many dogs that shake their heads too much that when I try to use hemostats, I will either end up clamping down on their ear or stabbing their heads. Plus, when I pull the hairs, I use a gentle pull and the hairs that come out are the hairs that need to come out - using hardly any force. You have to watch out for the hairs _right_ on the outside of the ear opening because these are not the hairs to be pulled, and if you accidentally pull it, the dog will yelp. Leroy has tiny hairs in there that I pluck when he's laying down. He'll groan every now and then when I get deep hairs. What's funny is that I will barely pluck client dog's ear hairs and they shriek and flip out. So every dog has different sensitivities when it comes to ear hair plucking. Sometimes though, dogs freak out for no reason because they find it intrusive and want you to stop. So I get some good bluffers every now and then. If a dog really cannot tolerate the hair plucking, I pluck as much as I can with soft pulling and then I take blunt scissors and cut the longs hairs as much as possible. I have never tried the ear flushing method, but have heard good things about it. It is somewhat controversial because many people believe you should never purposefully put water in the ear. In order to use this method, you have to do it correctly and make sure the ears have a chance to dry out. I check the ears of dogs I groom and if there isn't much hair in there and it looks clean, I do not clean it. It's better to leave it alone then to force ear cleaner in there. If it looks a little gunky, I will clean it. Also, with the use of ear powder, you will be surprised how much hair suddenly appears... it really fluffs out every strand in there!


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## Rowan (May 27, 2011)

I check their ears at night during the evening brush out / tooth brushing session. I only clean them if there's wax evident or if they 'smell' off, and that's rarely. So I probably clean them once a month--if that--with the Les Poochs Medacetic Ear Cleaner, which is more of a preventative than anything, and then once every 3 months (or as needed) with the Chris Christensen Mystic Ear Cleaner. The CC Mystic ear cleaner is more of a foaming cleanser and that's why I have both on hand. 

I've never owned a poodle with really hairy ears so I only pull those few hairs that are near the outer ear canal/ear flap. They come out easily and make it easier to check the ears. The pups don't even mind! I also shave this area very gently to keep it clean and improve air flow. 

I've never had any ear issues except with rescue poodles. All three had raging yeast/ear infections upon arrival but after switching to a high-quality diet and practicing good hygiene, all had pristine ears.


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## Mallhopper (Dec 16, 2011)

We're just getting over an ear infection.  Bentley has BIG, heavy ears and I think we might have given him a bath and didn't thoroughly dry the ears enough. My groomer pulls his hair from his ears and we are using some ear wash that the vet gave us once a week. It seems to be helping.


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

It is a good idea to keep the opening free of hair so the ear can breath. There is no need to dig into the ear canal. We use R7 ear powder to make the hairs easy to grip. Gimborn R-7 Step 1 Ear Care Powder for Dogs & Cats | PetEdge.com We wash the ears out once every couple of weeks with this BLUE POWER EAR TREATMENT Just squueze some solution into the ear canal, smoosh around by squeezing the outside of the ear, and wipe out with cottonballs or make up pads. The gentian violet will stain fabric, so be sure to wipe it all out before thee dog shakes its head. I prefer to do this in the basement or outside, just inn case.


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## ArreauStandardPoodle (Sep 1, 2009)

It is a good idea to keep the opening free of hair so the ear can breath. There is no need to dig into the ear canal. We use R7 ear powder to make the hairs easy to grip. Gimborn R-7 Step 1 Ear Care Powder for Dogs & Cats | PetEdge.com We wash the ears out once every couple of weeks with this BLUE POWER EAR TREATMENT Just squueze some solution into the ear canal, smoosh around by squeezing the outside of the ear, and wipe out with cottonballs or make up pads. The gentian violet will stain fabric, so be sure to wipe it all out before thee dog shakes its head. I prefer to do this in the basement or outside, just in case. This is very effective in preventing yeast or fungus as gentian violet is the active ingredient in most solutions used to cure thrush.


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## Myleen (Apr 30, 2016)

*found a great video on ear grooming, plucking hair.*

Wish I had been pulling hair out of Tobys ears earlier and more often (like the breeder told me to do) 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpQ16o73LPQ


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

Super old thread alert! Bittersweet seeing a post from Petitepie! Anyways, I don't believe in plucking like this. I trip and have the groomer very lightly pluck just loose hair, but if she over plucks Misha immediately gets an infection.


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## Myleen (Apr 30, 2016)

OK, I've reread the hair in the ear posts. Sure do appreciate those who elaborate. Tobys has a small forest I guess. I've ordered and finally got (just now) the items for his ears, and grooming. It is going to be a very interesting week. 
I'm really glad I re-read these posts ... noting .... _"You have to watch out for the hairs right on the outside of the ear opening because these are not the hairs to be pulled, and if you accidentally pull it, the dog will yelp"_...along with other advice given. 

All of this information shared is so very much appreciated.
My main task is ears...and nails the next 7-10 days. Wish me luck that I do a proper job :cheers2:


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