How To Take the Hair Out of Your Dog’s Ears

In a 2008 pet health study conducted by the VPI pet insurance company, ear infections were the number one reason dog owners sought veterinary care. Thorough and regular ear cleaning and maintenance can help your dog avoid ear problems and infections.
Many dogs don't like having their ears cleaned, which makes doing a good job very hard. It's helpful, before you even begin cleaning your dog's ears that you learn how to make this pleasurable for your dog.

Handling Your Dog's Ears

Practice handling your dog's ears gently. Give delicious treats while you massage the outside of and eventually the inside of the ear. Repeat this until your dog really enjoys having his ears handled. Once your dog accepts all kinds of ear manipulation with your hands, repeat this by using a cloth and then with cotton balls.

Your Dog's Ears

Dogs with heavy, floppy ears generally need to have their ears cleaned more frequently than dogs with prick ears (which stand upright and allow for better air circulation), and dogs that have a lot hair inside their ears may require additional maintenance (increased cleaning and for some, plucking of hair growing in the ear).
If your dog is itching his ears a lot, if the ears smell funny, are very red or inflamed, if your dog is constantly shaking his head, it is best to visit your veterinarian as these may be indications of an existing ear infection or other ear problems

Cleaning Your Dog's Ears 

You will need to tilt your dog’s head to the side a little.  Hold the ear flap upwards in order to straighten the ear canal.  If you are using a solution follow the instructions on how much to squirt in the ear.  Massage the base of the ear with your thumb and forefinger to enable the solution to go deeper into the ear.  The dog maybe want to shake his head at this point.  Allow him to shake and then wipe the ear out with a dry cotton ball.  Be careful not to go too deeply – the dog will generally let you know if you are hurting.  You might need to have some cotton buds or q-tips on hand to get in the grooves, just don’t poke them in too far into the actual canal itself.  Use them only in the outer ear canal area and the grooves that you can see.  And, make sure you don’t leave any remnants of wool in the ear.  You may need to tie the ears back for a few minutes to allow them to dry out.

Alternatively, you can pour the solution onto the cotton ball or pad until it is wet through and then wipe inside the ear.  You need to reiterate a couple of times to get all the dirt away.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=4odbAlDRiz0

Cherrybrook has many products to help keep your dog’s ears clean and healthy as well as products to aid the appearance of your dog’s ears for the show ring.

Plucking Dog’s Ear Hair 
Ear hair can be a problem especially in the small designer dogs.  Plucking the ears regularly to keep hair blocking the canal to a minimum can help prevent ear infections and moisture.

Fly Bitten Ears

Some breeds of dogs are susceptible to having their ears bitten on the tips by flies and other insects.  This causes the ear to bleed and you will notice a hard crusty surface on the edge of the outer ear.

The best remedy for this is finding antiseptic and repellent solution specifically designed to keep flies and biting insects out. and put this on the dog according to the instructions.

Ilium is an effective repellant ointment for use against flies and other biting insects and can be purchased through Vet Products Direct online.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=eZvfQ8kpf-o