Undoubtedly, the Golden Retrievers are perfect family friends. Yet, the drawback of susceptibility to various health hazards always remains. Among the various health issues, an ear infection is one of the prominent ones. Thus, you probably want to know how often could you clean the ears of your Golden Retriever. Don’t you?
Maintaining dog hygiene isn’t a bad idea. But excessive cleaning may be harmful. So, clean the ears of your Golden Retriever at least once a week. Further, you should check the ears of your pet frequently while brushing its skin coat daily.
Apart from this, the Golden Retrievers are susceptible to various other health issues like constipation, cancer, hip dysplasia, thyroid disorders, heart disease, etc. Besides this, the Golden Retrievers still hold 4th position in popularity in the USA.
Doesn’t it show that no matter what, Golden Retrievers will always be everyone’s favorite? But this for sure does not mean you can ignore the potential health hazards.
So, you will know more about ear infections and the way to clean the ears further in this article.
Ear Infection In The Golden Retriever
As the name suggests, ear infections are infections in the ear due to bacteria or viruses. These causative agents inflame the ear tissues of your pet and develop undesirable foul fluids in the space of the ear. As a result, the pet suffers from swelling, redness, and inflammation.
Furthermore, ear infections are of three types as per the parts affected. I.e.:
Externa (Otitis externa): inflammation in the external layer of cells in the ear canal.
Media (Otitis media): the infections that reach the middle ear. After spreading through the external ear.
Interna (Otitis interna): the infection that further penetrates and affects the inner ear.
In addition, all these ear infections are more common nowadays.
Do you know the American Kennel Club researched ear infections of the dogs?
And as per the reports, nearly 20% of dogs were suffering from ear infections in one or both ears in 2019. Don’t you think these outrageous figures are scary? Furthermore, this data for sure suggests cleaning the ears of your Golden Retriever regularly.
How Often Should I Clean The Ears Of My Golden Retriever?
Since the Golden Retrievers have droopy ears covered with dense hair, these dogs are more prone to ear infections. Therefore, cleaning the ears is essential for the healthy lifespan of the Golden Retriever. Moreover, cleaning the ears of your pet helps to maintain the pat hygienic and clean.
So, you can clean the ears of the Golden Retrievers regularly. And that might may never be too much. Hence, cleaning the ears of your pal more than thrice a day is quite excessive that invites ear problems. Therefore, it is better to clean the ears of your Golden Retrievers once a week.
However, the cleaning time differs with the nature, age, and activity of the pet. Since the younger pets are more energetic, they play and run a lot. Thus requires more cleaning.
Further, the dogs are more likely to get an ear infection while swimming. Hence the owner should check the ear of their pet after swimming.
Along with this, you can observe the ears of your pet daily while brushing its hair. And should clean the ears in the following cases:
- Foul discharge coming from the ears
- Smelly ears or hair around ears
- Inflammation in ears
- Redness inside the ears of your pet
- Scaly or patches inside the ears
- When your pet frequently tilts its head.
- If your Golden Retriever is continuously pawing in the ear
Does your Golden Retriever show these signs?
If it does, you should immediately clean the ear of your pet. Also, consult the Vet for assistance.
Do you know how to clean the ears of your Golden Retrievers?
Why Should I Clean The Ears My Golden Retriever?
As we know that, the Golden Retrievers are susceptible to various harmful health issues. Thus, lack of cleanliness and hygiene induces these issues that may lead to fatal consequences.
Hence, the harmful consequences when you fail to clean the ears of your Golden Retriever are:
- Yeast infection
- Meningitis
- Brass abscess
- Loss of hearing
- Bacterial infection
- Fungal infection
- Cancer
- Aggressive behavior
Being a parent of the Golden Retriever is no doubt a tedious job. Moreover, if you fail to care for or groom your pet, your beloved dog may suffer from fatal health issues. And eventually, the lifespan of your Golden Retriever declines.
Therefore, you should regularly clean the ears of your Golden Retriever.
But are you familiar with the equipment you can use for cleaning the ears of the pet?
How often do you clean the ears of your pet?
Do you think it will be enough to prevent ear infections?
Essential Requirements For Cleaning The Ears Of Golden Retriever
If you have a job, regular cleaning the Golden Retriever might be exhausting. Therefore, some equipment can ease your job and ensure the clean ears of the Golden Retriever.
And the requirements are as follows:
- Dam cotton wool or cotton pad
- Dog specific ear cleaner
- Clean and soft cotton towel
- Healthy natural snacks as treats
Always make sure that you have all these things before you start cleaning the ears of your pet.
Do you check for the requirements before cleaning?
What do you use most commonly as treats?
What To Clean The Ears Of My Golden Retrievers?
Once you are confident that you have all that you need to clean the ears of your Golden Retriever, you can start cleaning. For your convenience, you can follow the following steps:
- Settle your pet between your legs and make it comfortable.
- Lift the ears of your pal carefully and observe them.
- Look for the signs of ear infections, like inflammation, redness, foul discharge, and heat. Although a little light-colored wax is natural, excessive ear wax is a sign of infection.
- Clean the areas around the ears of your Golden Retriever. Also, remove the dirt and discharge gently with damp cotton wool.
- Put the cleaner in the ears of your pet cautiously. And be sure that the cleaner is dog-specific and prescribed by a professional.
- Once you put the cleaner, massage the base of the ear softly.
- Keep the pet tilted for some time. After that, repeat the same procedure in another ear of your pal.
Do you follow these steps for cleaning the ears of your pet?
Do you have any recommendations about the product to use for cleaning the ears of the pet?
Common Mistakes While Cleaning The Ears Of The Golden Retriever
Sometimes the owner knowingly or unknowingly makes mistakes when they clean the ears of the Golden Retrievers. As a result, the actions do more actions in the ears instead of mitigating the infections.
However, some of these mistakes are:
- Ear infection treatment at home without consulting professionals
- Excessive cleaning the ears of your pet
- Using harsh chemicals for cleaning the ears
- Cleaning the infected ear at home
- Use of Q-tips for ear cleaning
Are you making these mistakes?
If you are, I hope you do not repeat them in the future.
How To Know That The Ears Of Golden Retrievers Are Not Clean?
Although you regularly clean the ears of your Golden Retriever, sometimes the pet may still suffer from ear infections. But the Golden Retriever cannot speak its thoughts out aloud. Thus, observe the body language of your pet to know its emotions.
Thus, when your efforts fail to clean the ears of your Golden Retriever, your pal shows the following signs:
- Restlessness
- Pawing the ears continuously
- Inflammation and redness around the ear
- Foul-smelling discharge from the ears (dark-green or yellow-green fluid)
- Appetite loss
- Yelping
- Barking or growling
- Tilting the head to sides
- Hiding
- Avoiding touch in the ears
Does your Golden Retriever also show these signs?
If they do, then you must immediately consult the Vet.
Moreover, you can read the following ideas to get for knowledge about ear infections and clean:
- Golden Retriever Ear Infections – Causes and Treatments
- How To Clean Your Golden Retriever’s Ears At Home?
Furthermore, the Golden Retriever loses its charm and charisma when it suffers from health issues. And the pet becomes exhausted, aggressive, and grumpy. Besides this, the pet loses interest in everything from food to playing.
Your little ignorance pulls the pet to the darker edge of the world of health issues. Thus, it is up to you what do you want. If you want a playful Golden Retriever, you should manage sufficient time for its care.
What do you prefer? A companion for your child and family or an aggressive pet battling with illnesses.
The choice is yours, be careful what you choose.
If you have suggestions or views, please share them in the comment box.
