Dog Ear Care and Grooming: What Most Owners Don’t Know

That funky, yeasty ear smell isn’t “just dog” and it’s often the earliest signal something is off. We sit down and get very real about dog ear care, because ear infections are one of the most common problems we see in the grooming room and they’re also one of the most preventable when you know what to watch for. If your dog is scratching, shaking their head, rubbing their face on furniture, or leaving that unmistakable odor in the house, we explain what those signs can mean and why waiting usually makes it worse.

We walk you through a simple at-home routine for weekly ear checks, what changes to log, and what different types of buildup can look like. We also unpack two frequent culprits groomers see all the time: yeast-related gunk and the dry, powdery debris often associated with ear mites, plus why a vet visit matters when things don’t improve. You’ll hear our perspective on why groomers can’t diagnose, but can still be a strong early-warning system because we see these patterns up close on a regular schedule.

Then we tackle the hot topic: ear hair removal. Some dogs truly benefit from better airflow, while others can get irritated if plucking is overdone or unnecessary. We talk about the real risks, including increased head shaking and even the chance of a hematoma, and how we decide when to do it, when to skip it, and when to refer straight to your veterinarian. We also share safer cleaning basics, why alcohol-based ear cleaners can help dry the canal after swimming or baths, and why cotton balls beat Q-tips every time. If allergies are part of your dog’s story, we connect the dots between skin issues, drainage, and repeat ear infections so you can advocate for deeper answers. 

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To learn more about Hound Therapy visit:
https://www.HoundTherapy.com
Hound Therapy
3509 E Park Blvd.
Plano, TX
469-367-0009

Transcript

Welcome And The Big Mistake

SPEAKER_00 0:03

Welcome to Tale Talk Grooming Chronicles with Health Therapy, the podcast where we talk all things pet grooming, daycare, academy, and more. Hosted by Shannon and Tanya of House Therapy, serving pet owners across North Texas. We're here to share expert tips, hilarious pet stories, and the inside scoop on keeping your furry friends happy and healthy. Our motto, humanity over vanity. And don't worry, we don't fight. Let's get started.

Infection Red Flags You Can Smell

SPEAKER_01 0:40

Most owners clean their dog's ears the wrong way or not at all. Today we reveal the hidden risks, the grooming mistakes that lead to infections, and the simple habits that keep your dog's ears healthy for life. Welcome back, everyone. I'm Sophia Yvette, co-host and producer, back in the studio with Shannon and Tanya, professional groomers at Hound Therapy. Ladies, it is always lovely talking to you both. Now, today's question is one every dog owner needs to hear. What do most owners not know about dog ear care and grooming?

SPEAKER_02 1:21

I would say it's it's one of the most commonly overlooked areas until there's a severe problem. So it's it's when one by the time they notice it, it's it's really bad. Usually it's usually time to go to the vet. Yeah. Um some some telltale signs are scratching, shaking their head a lot, um rubbing their face on the furniture. A smell. A smell for me is number one. If you if they if I can walk into your house and it smells, um, yeah, that tells me your dog has got like a it, there's a there's a specific scent that that yeast makes on them. And though that ear infection has got that 100%. It's like when you smell it, you know that this there's something madly wrong with this. Very distinct. Uh and I would say that's probably the number one most common thing that we see.

Weekly Ear Checks And What You See

SPEAKER_02 2:12

Um, the other, the other thing that dogs can get is called mites, ear mites. And um the best way to see this is a visual. Check your ears, dog, your your ears on your dog at least once a week or every two weeks. Just make sure that it doesn't have to be a daily thing, but it does need to be done consistently. Um if you've noticed something that looks a little different, you know, make a note and date it, and then um go back to your log and say, oh, well, this is definitely worse. I, you know, I looked in the ear and it was tiny bit red. Now I'm looking at it, it's you know, got white goop in it, it's dripping down the side part of his ear. Um, black, gooey tarry usually means um not necessarily an infection, but it it's gonna mean that there's, you know, an excess amount of yeast in there that they're gonna have to pull that earhair out, or you're gonna have to take it to the vet and have it flushed out. Um it's we pull earhair here if you ask us to do that. And uh we don't for a lot of other dogs. So everything is on a need to know, I would say, basis. So uh it's every dog is different. Some dogs really need it done all the time, and some vets are really pro for it. Some are really negative. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, we can't diagnose an ear infection, but like we see it enough to where I can tell you, like, hey, you should probably go have this checked out for the vet. So if your groomer tells you you should have something checked out by a vet, make the appointment. Make the appointment. Yeah. Because we see your dogs, you know, probably more regular and and look at all of those areas way more than most people do. Um, I clean my dog's ears, you know, every morning with just a a dry uh, you know, piece of toilet paper. And you get up and, you know, she follows me to the bathroom and she

Ear Hair Removal Pros And Risks

SPEAKER_02 3:55

loves it. So, and I always get a little bit of brown goo. Right now I'm getting a lot more because it's allergy season, it's hot. Um, and I would say one of the the very biggest uh pros and cons, or the uh I should say a big struggle that I have as a groomer is why groomers and vets recommend hair removal and why others don't, right? Who's right and who's wrong? Um and it's it's a hard thing to answer because like I mentioned, there's no one size fits all. Right, yeah. Everybody has a different opinion on it. So vets and groomers for air hair removal, what would be a few for you, Tanya? Um it approves the airflow in the early. There's a pro. Um a con would be that it would cause irritation. So if you have an excessive amount um and air can't get down in there, uh, we may not want to pull it because if we're gonna damage all of the follicles inside that ear, now we are really gonna cause an ear infection. Um I I think one of the biggest myths is that groomers can we cause ear infections. Yes. And and we don't. We don't do anything that would cause there to be an ear infection. At the most we we make it accessible. Right, and we try to prevent. So there's a lot of things that you can get by pulling the ear here. And I tell people it's you know, shaking the ears uh because it feels different, pulling all of that ear out. It's just like a rush of cool breeze, and for a couple of days it feels odd. So they shake their head. If they shake their head, they can get a broken blood vessel in their ears if they're hitting their ears on the side of the tables or, you know, against their face. But the harder they're shaking, um, the more likely you it is that you're gonna break a little blood vessel in there, which turns into a hematoma, which is a little sack that fills with blood on between the ear flaps. So, you know, we try to make make sure that you're aware of all of the things that could happen if we pull the ear hair. But based on our experience, um dogs that have their hair pulled from the time that they're a puppy to now, like every time they get them groomed, they have less hair. It's kind of like waxing. So they they have it's really easy to pull their hair. It takes two seconds. The dogs don't really mind. Uh most of them don't even care. Yeah. They're just like, okay, it's just another part of their grooming life. I mean, they're just used to it. Yeah. So we try to be really open about, you know, what we do and how we do it. Uh, and if I don't feel comfortable doing it, or if I feel like it's gonna cause a lot of pain to the dog, then we say go to the vet. Or if it's an infection, obviously I don't have medicine here. Um, you know, we we've noticed a strong smell. I'm not sure if it's infected or not. Uh, and I'm just gonna jump back to 99% of those for us are yeast. Um, I was a vet tech a long time ago and uh I saw a lot more ear mites. Uh and this was probably early 90s. Earmites are very dry, it's like a loose powder and it's a bug. So when you look at it under a microscope, there's little bugs crawling on it. They're little mites. So, and that's a different, those, those need to be smothered. That's a different kind of medication that you give. Uh, but they're both, they're both very bad ear infections. And without keeping your dog's ears cleaned, you're not going to be able to notice when when they need to go for a preventative. Um, you know, if you're just checking these out, you're not a a a grooming kind of person. Your dog doesn't need to be groomed that often.

Safe Cleaning Tools And Swimming Tips

SPEAKER_02 7:11

Um your vet, Amazon, anybody, you can get a good dog ear cleaner. Um, they're almost all of them are alcohol-based, and it will help to dry out whatever is inside that ear canal and it'll help keep your dog ear smelling fresh and clean and uh hopefully keeps the debris out of it. And kind of following up on the last podcast, a uh alcohol-based ear cleaner will also help dry out those ears after swimming. Yeah, anytime your dog gets wet in a bath, in a pool, in a lake, uh you definitely want to clean out those ears. That's that's probably my number one go-to. Just keep a little bottle of cleaner with you when you know you're going. A couple of cotton balls, do not use Q-tips, cotton balls. You don't want to jab into their ear canal. Um I wipe mine out almost every week because he goes swimming in the farm pond. It's gross. So and then he smells.

SPEAKER_01 8:01

Wow. Such great information today. Any final words of wisdom?

Allergies, Repeat Infections, Advocacy

SPEAKER_02 8:06

I would say connections between allergies and ear problems is also another very real thing. So if your dog has got allergies or skin problems, um, it's just like with you, you're gonna have drainage and it's gonna drain down into that ear canal area, which if if it sits down there, there's no amount of cleaning that you can do. So you need to keep your dog's um health and welfare in mind, advocate for them and uh try to, you know, look at them and and speak for them. So if you've noticed a smell, definitely, you know, come to your groomers, go to your your vet. Uh you you want to keep them cleaned out. If the if you're cleaning them out and there's just it doesn't stop and it's just brown and brown and brown and brown, chances are you got something else going on. And if your dog does repeatedly get ear infections, like time after time, you're constantly in the vet for an ear infection, advocate for your dog, see if there's something else internally going on there. Um Do I need a side appoint? Do I need to put on my allergy medicines? You know, is swimming just not for him? So it's a lot of it is your, like I said, not one size doesn't fit all. So every dog is different. Um, you've got dogs with big ear flaps and dogs with ears that stick up.

SPEAKER_01 9:13

So wow, ladies, this is such important information. Thank you both for sharing your expertise, and we'll see everyone next time.

Final Takeaways And How To Book

SPEAKER_00 9:26

That's a wrap for this episode of Tale Talk with Hound Therapy. Ready to book your pet's next groom daycare stay or grooming academy tour? Call us at 469-367-0009. That's 469-367-0009. To schedule an appointment or visit us online at www.houndtherapy.com, serving North Texas with expert pet care. Until next time, keep those tails whacked.