How to Clean Golden Retriever Ears

Cleaning your golden retriever’s ears is more than a way to keep your very good boy clean — it also offers owners an opportunity to check for infections and pests lurking in a dog’s coat. When you see your dog shaking or scratching its head a lot, it’s time to clean out its ears.

How can you get started, what materials should you use and how often should you clean your dog’s ears? Use this guide to walk you through the cleaning process.

What to Use to Clean Golden Retrievers’ Ears

For your ear cleaning session, you will need:

• Commercial ear cleaning solution, preferably one that uses natural enzymes.
• Commercial ear cleaning wipes or cotton pads.
• Scissors.
• A small towel.

Before you begin the cleaning process, take your dog outside to play — tiring it out will make it more docile. You want easy access to your dog’s ears and don’t want to alarm or excite it while you clean.

How Can I Clean My Dog’s Ears at Home?

You want your dog to feel safe while also signaling it’s time to be submissive. Have your dog sit on your lap as best you can — you may only get half its body on your knees — and put one hand under its front paw while using the other to clean the opposite ear.

Begin with a visual inspection of the ear, looking for signs of infection, ear mites or discoloration. Redness, swelling and fluid discharge may signal an infection or other issue. If you notice any of these problems, you should contact your vet and get your dog an appointment.

Use your scissors to trim any excess hair around the dog’s ears. Take out the bottle of ear cleaning solution and let your dog inspect it. Have a treat ready to distract your dog during the cleaning process if it starts moving around. Then lift the ear flap out of the way, and pour some solution into the ear. Keep the dog’s ear flap tilted up and massage below the ear for about 20 seconds, allowing the solution to penetrate the ear. Hold your towel below the ear and let go of your dog’s head.

It will shake its head, sending the solution out of its ears. Next, use your cleaning or cotton pad to wipe the ear canal and outer ear. Reward your dog with a treat at the end. The more pleasant the experience, the more likely your dog will tolerate the cleaning the next time.

How Often Should You Clean Golden Retrievers’ Ears?

Cleaning your dog’s ears once a month should be enough to keep it healthy. If your golden retriever swims a lot, clean its ears more frequently as it may get more debris in its ears and have a greater chance of getting an ear infection.

Since ear cleaning can stress out your golden retriever, give it lots of extra attention after you finish. Do you want additional information about cleaning your golden retriever’s ears? Reach out to us today to learn more.