My dog has recurrent problems with seeds in his ear. Can I use cotton wool balls as ear plugs during walks?

[DogEarAdvice]

Our Frenchie just shakes off the dog snood-type ear protectors, and any other type of ear protector also gets scratched off/shaken off/pulled off after rolling wildly on the ground…

He’s had two nasty spiky fox tail seeds in his ears in the last few weeks, one after the other (despite us doing our best to avoid seedy areas). Poor boy was in so much pain after the last one :-(

Can we use cotton wool balls in his ears during walks? And remove once home?

Or can anyone recommend any amazing dog ear protectors that won’t come off?

Thank you. He’s nearly four and has never had this problem before - and we really don’t want him to go through it again.

The issue with this is that his hearing would be impaired, so I'd imagine he wouldn't respond to your commands / calls and couldn't go off lead.

It would also mean poor ventilation and sweaty ear canals, so you'd run the risk of an ear infection.

I'd alter the walking route; stay away from fields and long grass until grass seed season is over. I hate those pesky things.

Not had this problem with dogs ears, but I'm wondering if a cone of shame would prevent the ear protectors being taken off?

Would a happy hoodie help?

Hi, thanks everyone. I have tried to avoid seedy areas but the grass verges in our area have been left unmowed and are rife with foxtail seeds so even walking him down the road on lead isn’t safe from the horrible things!

The happy hoodie is just like one of the dog snoods we tried - it was great whilst on but he kept rolling on the ground/shaking his head and making it slip down off his ears.

I have read that some people use cotton wool in the dog’s ears to prevent ear issues with seeds but I will ask our vet and see what she says.

There are woolly head protectors on Etsy (which make the Frenchies look like teddy bears 😂) which look like they might be more secure, but they would be too hot for summer. I wish someone would make them in a lightweight mesh!

Ive got cotton snoods from etsy for mine. They keep them on most of the time although they do end up round my spaniels neck sometimes when she runs through dense foliage. I also had them for my previous dogs and they do get used to them after a few days, occasionally there is rolling and i have to pull them back into place but they are usually good.
maybe he just needs time to get used to one.
i wouldnt use cottonwool, as pp said it may cause other ear issues and i cant imagine it would stay in anyway

Hi, thanks! Today he wore the snood and I just had to keep pulling it back up. Maybe he’ll get used to it 🤞🏻It’s very bloody seedy around here. The snood was covered with them!

Spoke to the vet who said cotton wool balls in the ear would be fine and wouldn’t cause any ear issues if just used for the duration of walks - but said good luck keeping them in!

Ps @YouveCatToBeKittenMe Can you link to the snoods you use please? There are quite a few on Etsy. Thanks 😊

These ones
https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/691910434/dog-snood-small-size-cavalier-king?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=dog+snoods&ref=sr_gallery-1-2&bes=1&organic_search_click=1
there are different listings for the different sizes by the same company

Thank you!