How to clean dirty cat ears

When a cat's ears are dirty, special pet ear cleaning solutions can be used for cleaning. Usually, the cat needs to be secured first, then 1-2 drops of the ear cleaning solution are placed inside the cat's ear, making the liquid level equal to the inner ear canal. Next, gently massage the cat's ears for about half a minute, release the cat's head, and let it shake out the dirt and ear cleaning solution itself. After shaking, use cotton swabs or paper towels to wipe the outer ear canal. If a cat's ear canal is not cleaned in time, it is prone to bacterial, fungal, and ear mite infections.

What causes dirty cat ears?

Firstly, dirty cat ears may be due to a long period without cleaning, resulting in a buildup of ear canal secretions. Secondly, it may be caused by the stimulation of the ceruminous glands due to infection by certain pathogens, leading to an increase in secretions. Common pathogens include bacterial or fungal pathogens, and it is necessary to take the cat to a pet hospital for ear canal secretion examination to identify them. Lastly, it could be due to infection by parasites, with the most common being ear mites.

How to tell if a cat has ear mites or dirty ears?

When a cat has ear mites, it will cause an increase in ear canal secretions and may also exhibit symptoms such as frequent head shaking and scratching its ears. If the ear canal is simply dirty, the cat will not shake its head. Secondly, when a cat has ear mites, the ear canal secretions are dark brown and accompanied by a foul smell, while dirty ears have no smell and no redness inside the ear canal.

Ear mites can cause black oily secretions in a cat's ears. To determine if a cat has ear mites, bring the cat to a pet hospital for an ear canal secretion examination.

Precautions when cleaning a cat's ears?

When cleaning a cat's ears, do not use cotton swabs inside the ear canal because they can damage the cat's eardrum and push debris into the ear. After dropping the ear cleaning solution, massage the cat's ears for about 30 seconds to let the medicine work. It is best to clean the cat's ear canals at a fixed time, preferably once a month or twice.