Clean dogs ears after swimming

[campingwithdoggo]

Would anyone recommend something to clean the dogs ears after swimming
She has a habit of popping herself in any water she can

Do they need cleaning? Mine are quite often in the water, and I never think about cleaning their ears.

My old Labrador would dive like an otter and I never thought of cleaning his ears. You can do more harm than good.

I've never cleaned my dogs ears after swimming 🙂

Phew
I just read somewhere I should be !

@campingwithdoggo

What sort of dog? Is it a breed with long floppy ears?

We had a Labrador that loved water and would happily put her head right under. She also had recurring ear infections. An ear infection - or even just water in the ear - can cause a dog to shake its head quite violently. This means long ears are slapped against the side of their head which can cause the small blood vessels in the ear to burst and result in a haematoma. This either has to be incised or left to heal on its own. Either way this can cause scar tissue to build up. Repeat infections/scar tissue can also cause the ear canal to narrow which means the dog becomes more prone to infections.

If your dog has long floppy ears I would definitely make sure you dry them properly after swimming. I'd also just pick up an ear cleaner from a pet shop and give them a bit of a clean now and then.

@Hedgerow2

She is a lab ! I will definitely see if I can dry her ears after swimming

We use Virbac Epiotic cleaner for our beagle - we don't do it every time he goes in the water, but because he has floppy ears, he's prone to infections so it's really useful to have it in the house.

We just put a few drops in, rub his ears a bit to let them soak and then wipe them out with a cotton ball. He hates it but ear drops for an infection are even worse so it's kind of the lesser of two evils, lol.