NO too ear plucking?

hello,


I have never heard of that before! I know plenty of people that pluck dogs ears and they have never had problems. I would say that it would help her because the hair in the ears causes moisture which causes build-up. too much build-up is what causes an ear infection.

I've heard it, but don't believe it. That hair traps stuff in there. You can get the ears so much cleaner after you've pulled it out.

This is just my *opinion*, but I think what happens is this:
People don't have their dogs groomed on a regular basis and when they finally get the dog into the groomers (or do it themselves) and the ears are full of hair. Well, there is so much in there that it can cause some skin damage from having to pull SO much at one time. Plus, the skin in the ear is probably already moist from not being able to dry out. If, in fact, they would have their dog groomed more regularly, the ear hair would not build up as badly thus less moisture and less plucking. The act of plucking the hair doesn't inherently cause an ear infection, but the fact that the ears are already full of bacteris and yeast to begin with.
 
We have seen this regularly with our grooming clients that don't groom regularly (at least every 8 weeks) on dogs that are "known" for hairy ears. Their ears are always FULL of hair, wax, dirt, and sometimes ear mites. SO, what *causes* the infection? Not plucking itself! JMO

Yes I agree that some people dont get their dogs groomed enough and the ears can get full of hair, messy and smelly, then you can have problems, as a dog groomer I generally pluck ears that are full of hair or dirty and smelly, if the ears only have a small amount of hair and are clean, I usually leave them because I think that the hair is there to keep other things out. When you bath your dog you should always clean inside the ears, but ALWAYS make sure you dry the ear with a soft cloth afterwards. Also if a dog is scratching at its ears it could have ear mites and needs to see a vet immediately.

I know some people use a small ear shaver to get the fur trimed in there. It's similar to a human nose hair trimer. I think I would use that over plucking for the sake of the dog.

I know some people use a small ear shaver to get the fur trimed in there. It's similar to a human nose hair trimer. I think I would use that over plucking for the sake of the dog.

Edit: (sorry for double posting, don't know how it happened? If someone can please delate this post)

I  doubt my Zoe would let me in her ear with an electric trimmer!  We just finally got the plucking down to an art![8D]

I know some people use a small ear shaver to get the fur trimed in there. It's similar to a human nose hair trimer. I think I would use that over plucking for the sake of the dog.

You can't really get the hair out of the ear canal with a shaver, and most dogs would freak out if you stuck something like that in their ears. Wouldn't the hairs that fell into the canal be irritating, as well?

Ear plucking, especially when done regularly, is not that bad. I'd much rather pull ear hair than demat a dog.

In some really serious cases of matted fur in the ear we have had to use the small ear shaver in a dogs ear. Of corse the vet also has an instriment used to clean the ear by squirting water and cleaning solutin into the ear and the sucking out the fluid and other gunk, That is only be something a vet should do. We also have a small camara that connect to the TV, we can put into the ear so we can see what's in there and show the owner. The owners who do shave their dogs ears seem to do fine or just as well off as thoes who pluck. The shaver is much more quiet than your tipical coat shaver so it doesn't seem to bother the dogs much.

It's really up to what the owner prefers and how often they do it.

That's really interesting.

I've always just plucked mats out of ears.

I'd like to see that camera. Is the gunk sucker like what the dentist uses?

It's sorta looks like a kids toy gun. It hooks up to the sink and has an indercator on it to show if the water is the right temp.

The camara is so nice to have. The vet was having a hard time convincing owners to get their dogs ears cleaned. He only wished they could see what he saw when looking into the ear, it was a joy when he bought the camara. Finaly people listend to him In each exam room we have a TV so it's a regular thing he does during a wellness exam.

The vet always buys new "toys" He is always up to date on the latest things in vet medicine.

Toby gets his ear hairs plucked every time he goes to the groomers (every 6 weeks). I think its important to keep the ears hair free so it allows air to flow and prevents infection.

I always thought that pulling ear hairs was good, decreases chance of infection. Tell them to find a new vet.

I'd find an older gentleman and pluck a couple of hairs out of his ears. No doubt he would tell you in no uncertain terms what to do with that idea. []

I keep my dogs ears clean but the ear hair keeps foreign bodies out so it stays were it grows.