When embarking on the bold task of dog grooming at home there are several items you will want to make sure you have handy.
For ear cleaning, these basic items include cotton balls, ear cleaner and possibly ear powder. When getting started with the lively event of bathing your dog at home, it’s always nice to start with something simple. Most dogs don’t mind having their ears cleaned which is why this might be a good place to start.
Have a few cotton balls on hand and a nice astringent ear cleaner for dogs. The astringent will help cut the greasy earwax and leave behind a nice fresh scent. Note, if you need more than 2 cotton balls per ear to clean out any debris, or if there is a yeasty or pungent odor coming from his ears, please call your veterinarian as this might indicate an ear infection. Also, never push the cotton ball deep into your dog’s ear canal. Just gently swab the opening part of the ear (only what you can see) and the underside of the earflap. Regarding ear hair-plucking, if your dog has continual hair growth, like a Shih Tzu, Maltese or Poodle, it will also have hair growing from its ear canal. It’s important to remove this hair to allow airflow through the ear and prevent ear infection. To remove this hair, first use any basic ear powder, sprinkled onto the hair to soak up grease. Then grasp little bits of hair at a time with your thumb and pointer finger, and pull out in a twirling motion. Continue this step until all the hair growing out of the canal is gone. This is the most effective and comfortable (for the dog) means of removing the ear hair. If you have trouble, or seem to be hurting your dog, you can take him to your local pet grooming professional for help.
Written by Erica L. Sanfiz
Just 4 Paws Pet Spa Owner & Professional Pet Stylist
www.justfourpaws.net
