Keeping a dog can bring you immense joy and make every day much brighter than the last. After all, they are man’s best friend. But no matter how much you love your best friend, smelly dog ears can make it difficult to show affection. One thing that almost no pet owner can get used to is that awful smell…but what can you do about it?
Most of the reasons for your dog’s smelly ears aren’t very harmful and can be resolved using simple methods. Your dog uses its ears quite a lot so there’s wear and tear happening inside the skin layers. These dead skin cells, if not removed, can make a smell when mixed with ear wax. Although you may describe the smell as unpleasant, this isn’t a signal for anything dangerous happening so you have nothing to worry about.
Dogs’ ears can clean themselves on their own but this is only if they’re healthy and aren’t recovering from ear issues such as infections, etc. In this case, you’ll need to take special care of keeping them clean so that the infection doesn’t return and cause more damage. You can take your pup to the vet, and they’re highly likely to recommend an ear flush to help clean out your pet’s ears and prevent bad smells.
It’s important to consider that not all dogs are made the same and distinctions between breeds can be a cause for varying smells as well. This means that the reason why, for example, your dog’s ears smell more than your friend’s dog could be a matter of breed differences.
If your dog has longer ears or narrow ear canals, it’s likely that there will be more build-up because these physical factors can make it difficult for ears to push the wax out from the ear canal. Similarly, dog breeds that have more hair in their ears are also likely to give off an odor. The issue can be self-created and not a matter of other physical features; your dog could love swimming or taking baths, both of which cause build-up inside the ears due to water exposure.
Hence, if all you’re experiencing is a funky odor from your dog’s ears, it’s likely that there’s no problem and all you need to do is wait for the smell to dissipate on its own. If you feel that the self-cleaning isn’t working that well and the smell keeps growing, you can use a high-quality ear flush as many times a week as your vet recommends. If you see signs of redness and itching that accompany the smell, then it’s best to take a trip to the vet so that the issue can be resolved before escalating.
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