Common dog ear infections: symptoms, causes, and effective treatments

You smell it. You can smell it as soon as you walk into the room. You look at your dog and your dog looks at you, you both know – it’s the ears.

For those of you who don’t know what this is like, congratulations. For those of you who do, I feel your pain.

Skin problems, particularly ear infections, are one of the most common issues we see in veterinary practice. Itchy, red, scaling, crusty dogs (and cats) are brought in by their owners daily.

I often get what I like to call ‘repeat offenders’, meaning pets that are seen for multiple ear infections over time. These pets are uncomfortable and their owners can be sad or frustrated. But why? What’s actually going on in those ear canals and how come it’s so common for these pets to be seen again and again?

In this article, we’re going to look at why dog ear infections are so common, why they can be super frustrating for owners, and how together we can make it less so!

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Dog ear infection symptoms

First off, it’s important that pet owners know how to spot a potential ear infection. You may notice more obvious signs, such as:

• Redness of the outer ear flap (called the pinna)

• Discharge (can be many colours: yellow, green, grey, dark brown, or even red!)

• Odour

• Ear scratching

• Visible signs of pain

There can also be subtle signs that might point to an ear infection:

• Head shaking

• Rubbing head/ears against surfaces

• Some sensitive pets may just act ‘off’ or even be less interested in food

But what does that ear wax colour mean?

A little bit of debris or discharge in your pet's ear without pain, redness, or odour can sometimes be a non-issue.

But there’s a fair few ear wax colours that can absolutely suggest a bigger problem:

• Pale yellow to light brown – May likely be normal build-up without infection, and can be cleaned at home as long as there are no other clinical symptoms.

• Dark brown – This often accompanies a musty smell and often indicates a yeast or bacterial infection. These dogs will need medication and ear cleaner from your vet!

• Yellow to green/milky – This type of discharge usually goes along with a more offensive odour (the one I mentioned at the beginning of this article… if you know, you know). We get worried about significant bacterial infections in these pets, and they should absolutely be seen by your vet.

• Red – Sometimes people mistake the dark brown yeasty debris above for red or blood. However, bright red discharge or blood in your pet's ear can indicate a multitude of issues like a growth, severe infection or wound. These pets also need prompt veterinary attention.

Causes of ear infections

So how did we get here? Owners ask me this question about ear infections almost every time and it’s a good one, though loaded.

The most simple way I like to explain it is to remind owners that the ear canal is just an extension of your skin, the largest organ of the body. It starts with something that causes irritation of that skin barrier down in the ear canal. We’ll come back to what kind of something that could be in a moment.

When the skin becomes irritated, your pet will shake/scratch/rub causing damage to the normal barrier that healthy skin has. With continued irritation and damage, bacteria and yeast that normally live on the skin and don’t cause problems, will then have the chance to overgrow and cause an active infection.

It’s a slippery slope of irritation, inflammation, and organism overgrowth – or what we know as an ear infection. This means that typically ear infections are not something that are passed from animal to animal, or from animal to person.

Here’s a list of common things that can kick-start this irritation in the ear canal:

• Foreign bodies ( like grass seeds, other plants)

• Skin growths or tumours

• Water/moisture (common after swimming, bathing, grooming)

• Parasites (Ear mites)

• Underlying allergies (flea allergy, food allergy/sensitivity (chicken) or environmental allergies like pollen or grasses)

There are certain breeds that are more at risk of developing ear infections simply because of their anatomy. Dogs with flopped-over ears, particularly those with long, pendulous pinnae (ear flaps) are predisposed to trapping moisture down in those long ear canals.

This includes breeds like:

• Basset Hounds

• Cocker Spaniels

• Golden Retrievers

Additionally, some breeds are also predisposed to developing ear infections as they are more likely to be suffering from underlying allergic skin disease. Commonly treated pups include:

• German Shepherds

• Golden Retrievers

• Labrador Retrievers

• Poodles (or any Poodle crosses)

• Shar Peis

• Spaniels

If your pet has underlying allergies contributing to ear problems, it’s really likely that they will continue to have repeat ear infections on and off unless we figure out what they’re allergic to and how we can avoid or manage those allergens.

This takes some time and dedication on everyone’s part, but if it’s done well can decrease the number of trips you and your pup are taking to the vet down the road.

We can’t cure a pet of allergies, but our hopes are to decrease the frequency and severity of symptom flare-ups long term, including ear infections.

How to prevent dog ear infections

Preventing ear infections means using a mix of routine and observation:

1. Clean your dog's ears every few weeks with a good ear-cleaning solution.

2. Clean your dog's ears every time your dog gets wet.

3. Check for regular changes in your dog's behaviour, like discharge, odour or swelling. Wax in dog's ears? It's probably worth checking.

4. Regular vet check-ups. Your vet can help identify early signs and prescribe things like ear drops.

5. Trim the hair around your dog's ears to prevent bacterial build-up.

Our guide on how to clean a dog's ears can help.

Can I treat my dog’s ear infection without a vet?

Cleaning your dog's ears at home in cases of non-problematic build-up is absolutely ok. If your pet has some paler to light brown waxy debris with no redness, odour, pain or itchiness associated, it’s likely fine to clean that out.

The important thing is using an appropriate cleaner and knowing how to clean your dog's ears safely!

All dogs have an L-shaped ear canal, which is a common reason ear cleaning as well as treating infections can be tricky.

To clean your pup's ears, you’ll need some cotton gauze or cotton pads and some safe ear cleaner. I do not recommend pet owners use cotton swabs to clean their pet's ears as it is very easy to stick them too far down the ear canal and risk damaging or puncturing the eardrum!

Some of my favourite safe cleaners that owners can use at home for general ear cleaning include products such as Virbac’s EpiOtic or Dechra’s CleanAural.

Vets typically don’t encourage using things like hydrogen peroxide or apple cider vinegar to clean dog ears. These solutions are harsh and can cause significant irritation to the ear canal.

When to see the vet

If you notice discharge in your pet's ears that is yellow, green, red, or dark brown, your dog should be seen by your vet

In particular, schedule a visit if you notice redness, pain, itchiness, head shaking, scratching, or odour. These can all be indicators that active infection is present and requires attention.

Your vet will look down your dog’s ear canal to evaluate the skin and eardrum. They’ll also be looking for any foreign bodies or growths along the way. It’s essential to make sure that the eardrum isn’t ruptured prior to putting most cleaners and medications into the ear canal.

Your vet will also take a sample of the debris to look at under a microscope to confirm there’s an infection and if so, what types of organisms are present. This impacts what medications will be chosen to treat the infection.

Ear mites also require a sample to be checked under the microscope for diagnosis. Your vet will often prescribe an ear cleaner (which may have different ingredients to the ones you have at home) as well as a medicated topical ear ointment. These ointments include antifungals, antibiotics, and an anti-inflammatory like a steroid.

In severe cases, oral antibiotics and/or steroids may also be necessary to treat more deeply seeded infections.

Online pharmacies dispense the same antibiotics and steroids your vet would normally give you, just at cheaper prices. Find out more about online pharmacies here.

How dog insurance helps

Ear infection was the fifth most common condition we saw dog insurance claims for in 2021.

There were 4,182 claims in dogs at an average cost of £158.65. But the actual cost of treatment can be a fair bit higher as dogs may get recurrent infections.

Don’t skip your rechecks! When your vet recommends your pet be seen for a recheck after treating an ear infection, stick to it.

One of the keys to success is checking the infection is resolved prior to discontinuing the medications used.

This recheck, believe it or not, often saves people more visits and money later on.

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