Dog ear wash?

Isn't it funny how they're all healthy until the minute you're temporarily poor... and then everyone has a problem?

Karma's started shaking her head... so I think her ears are itching her. But there are no signs of redness or infection or anything else I can see. So before I start rushing her to a vet spending money I don't have, is there some sort of ear wash you guys can recommend to see if I can stop this on my own? Maybe like an antiseptic ear wash or something?

Thanks!

earoxide is decent stuff and not to $$

garlic and mullin oil is what my vet recommended for Gigi ...

You can buy the malotic solution at petsmart or probably something like Quality Supply or you can take her to the vet and get ear cleaning solution and they probably will put her on antibiodics. that's how we got our solution since our black lab mix got chronic ear infections when he was a pup. he's almost 11 now but we use it if his ears or the other dogs' ears are bothering him. but you probably can buy solution at petsmart or quality supply like I said and make sure you get some gauze, too but do not stick it too far into the ear it just helps wipe out some of the wax. I hope she feels better soon!

I use rubbing alcohol, highest % you can find.
The Sheepies have what we call cauliflower ears (more crevices) than our Golden who more of a funnel ear.
We use cotton balls and an ocassional Q-tip to fit around the crevices. Be sure they dry out well.
we also use Panalog (or generic substitute) from the vet, as needed after cleaning. Ben loves it so much (rubbing their ears after putting in the Panalog), there he has learned to "give me an ear" and then "other ear."

The best (and cheapest) ear cleanser I can think of (owning a basset hound, I am an EAR CLEANING MACHINE!!!), would be 3 parts alcohol to 1 part apple cider vinegar. Mix it up in a squeeze bottle, and literally fill the ear canal with it, massaging it from the base, and making sure that the dog doesn't shake the solution out immediately. Then, after a couple of minutes, make a cotton ball, and clean the wax and funk out of there.

The alcohol is a drying agent, and depletes bacteria-causing moisture. The apple cider vinegar helps restore the PH balance of the ear. It works very well, and I highly recommend it.

I'd be careful going so heavy on the alcohol. If the ears aren't having problems with being too moist, you could dry them out too much and cause problems.

Myself, I now swear by Zymox for ears. It's amazing stuff. But I'm taking care of the family's Cocker Spaniels' ears, which were chronically infected before I found this stuff. For ears not so bad, you'd be okay with something normal from the petstore.

This is excellent everyone, thanks!

This really doesn't seem bad. My dalmatian used to get ear infections that were just insane... I know we used the panalog for them (man, she loved that stuff too!) and was probably on some kind of oral antibiotics... don't remember off the top of my head.

Anyway... I remember what her ears looked and smelled like when an infection was coming on and Karmas ears just seem like normal ears... so I didn't want to rush out to the vet for panalog quite yet... but if it escalates I sure will.

Now, for the earoxide or the rubbing alcohol solutions, are you just wiping their ears down with them instead of filling their ears with it?

I remember with the panalog we just squirted a bunch in and then rubbed her ears... but the only one I see mentioned with doing it that way is the alcohol/apple cider vinegar mixture (of which I have both on hand in the house, so that would be the easiest... but it's good to know my other options). She doesn't seem to have a waxy buildup or anything, which is why I was thinking of something that squirted in the ear (like panalog) figuring the problem was more inside... so do these others not work that way?

I used to worry about the rubbing alcohol being too drying too. This could easily be an issue for dogs with upright ears. But for dogs with floppy ears, especially hairy ones, moisture is a daily issue.

We don't clean their ears daily unless needed. I do check them daily as our Golden's allergy issues can cause a quick flair up.

We don't use Panalog daily, just as needed for the flare ups.

I wipe down the ear with a moist cotton balls. I was taught to never fill the canal with anything unless I knew 100% that there was not a hole in the drum.

The dogs love to have their ears rubbed, so be sure to do it for several minutes as a reward and they will let you check/treat their ears anytime.

As I mentioned in another thread, I have an allergy dog and ear issues can crop up anytime it seems. I tried several products on the market until I was recommended Blue Power. It really is amazing stuff!!
http://www.itsfortheanimals.com/
Click on the Blue Power Ear treatment link
I now can clean Ebony's ears less often and have not had an infection since I've been using it as a routine cleaner.
Check it out if you get a chance!

This is awesome guys, thanks!

It looks like it was just a one day thing because she hasn't been itchy all day. So... no idea what it was. But I'll check out all these things so I have something here for the next time this happens.

Thanks!

Mutigree, if the problem isn't that bad, try just moistening a cotton ball with the alcohol and vinegar solution, and rubbing the debris and dirt out with it rather than squeezing the solution in there. Feel free to use less alcohol if you suspect it will be too drying...you could go with 1/2 alcohol and 1/2 vinegar instead.

After trying several over-the-counter products, and prescriptions, this was the only solution that's kept my golden retriever's ear troubles at bay...my vet was the one that finally recommended it. I also swab out my basset's ears 2-3 times a week with this solution, although I'll cut back when she's older...since she's so little and SO low to the ground right now, the inside and outside of her ears get FILTHY everytime she's outside, and seeing as we're housetraining her, she's taken outside a lot. With your dog, I'd probably try it 2-3 times a week, until you feel the problem is a bit better, and then cut back to once a week, or once every 2 weeks. I worried initially that the alcohol would be too drying, but so far so good.

Oh, and I'd also recommend the Blue Power Ear Treatment...it's a home remedy, and although I've never used it, a lot of people swear by it for ear troubles!

One of my Shelties had horrible ears as a pup and I do NOT like anything the vet gives (now this is just my experience with the vet's around here), because it would help and then come back. I found this home-made ear solution and I can honestly say that this is the best stuff! I use it on all of our dogs and none of them have had an ear problem in over a year (when I started using it). I just made it part of my grooming routine, so when they get bathed, their ears get done too. I, also, used it on a Cocker Spaniel that we fostered, who had rough ears, and it cleared him right up.

http://www.zimfamilycockers.com/EarCleaner.html