HOW TO CURE CHRONIC EAR INFECTIONS IN DOGS

For the last few years, I’ve had a dog who has been dealing with chronic ear infections. He would itch his ear and shake his head profusely to the point that he would give himself hematomas. An ear hematoma is when the ear fills with blood inside the ear flap, leading to cauliflower ear, similar to what wrestlers and jiu jitsu players get.

I tried everything I could get my hands to try to cure these ear infections. I used over-the-counter ear drops like Zymox and veterinarian prescribed ointments, drops and antibiotics. They all provided temporary relief but in a few weeks the infection would always come back. As you know, veterinarian office visits are expensive and when treatment is not working it can be extremely frustrating.

A few months ago, I was venting to my uncle about this problem and how I felt so bad for this poor dog because no matter what I did, I just haven’t been able to solve this ear infection problem. He suggested I call his old friend who bred, raised and hunted bird dogs most of his life. Usually, I am a little skeptical when it comes to taking advice from strangers and non-professionals (vets) but I was out of options so I figured I’d give him a call and see if he had any suggestions.

I explained my situation to him, and he understood and said that he had dealt with the same problem a few times over the years. He told me had a homemade concoction that’s always worked on his dogs and was sure it would fix my problem. He explained that some dogs are just more prone to ear infections than others. As I understand it, the way some dogs’ ears hang there isn’t enough air flow, and the ear canal gets dirty, moist and warm. Prime conditions for an ear infection.

If your dog has a stubborn ear infection that you just can’t seem to cure you might consider giving this a try. I always recommend consulting a veterinarian first. You need to make certain that you are actually dealing with an ear infection and nothing more serious like a ruptured ear drum. If your dog has a ruptured ear drum do not use this solution. Another thing your vet will check for is ear mites. Ear mites will cause similar symptoms but likely will require different treatment. So I always advise to work with a vet first before moving on to this method. If it is indeed an ear infection, you are welcome to share this recipe with your vet.

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 8oz SLANT TIP PLASTIC APPLICATOR BOTTLE
• ISOPROPYL ALCOHOL
• BORIC ACID POWDER
• WHITE VINEGAR
• BETADINE (POVIDONE-IODINE SOLUTION)

STEP 1: Pour six ounces of isopropyl alcohol into the plastic bottle.
STEP 2: Carefully put 1 ½ teaspoons of boric acid powder in the bottle.
STEP 3: Put the top on the plastic bottle and shake it really well until the boric acid dissolves completely.
STEP 4: Put two ounces of white vinegar in the bottle. Shake it up to mix it.
STEP 5: Put one teaspoon of Betadine (povidone-iodine solution) in the bottle. Shake it up to mix it.

If your measurements are correct it will look like this:

INSTRUCTIONS:
Carefully clean the ear with Q-tips to get as much gunk/discharge out. Next, shake the solution up well. Once that's done, insert the tip of the applicator bottle into the dogs ear and gently squeeze the bottle to fill the dogs ear canal with the solution. Remove the bottle and quickly cover his ear over the ear canal with your hand and massage it for 15 - 30 seconds. This ensures that the solution really gets into all the tight spaces. Keep in mind, as soon as you take your hand off of the dogs head, the dog is going to shake his head immediately. So do this outside and get away from the dog quickly so you do not get sprayed with this solution.

Repeat this process everyday for at least week. You should see improvement after a few days but don’t stop until at least a week has gone by. If after a week the ear infection is gone, treat his ear once a week. As long as things are going well for a month or two you are probably safe to cut it back to cleaning his ears a few times a month. Dogs like this are prone to ear infections so it is best practice to be pro-active and clean their ears regularly to prevent them. 

I hope this helps. If anything is not clear or you have questions, feel free to send me an email. I will do my best to help if I can.