Best Dog Ear Cleaner in 2020

Best Dog Ear Cleaning Solution Wash – Top Ear Cleaners for Dog in 2020

Cleaning your pup’s ears is an area of pet grooming that people fail to realize can be essential to a happy dog. A lot of times, your dog may get hair, dust, dirt, and debris, and just like in our ears, it gets gunked up into ear wax, and can even attract ear mites in dogs. Some dogs have serious infections that cleaning their ears frequently can actually help them with as well. In this guide, we’re going to give you a list of what we have found that are the best dog ear cleaners out there, and most importantly, they’re all available at a really great price. You shouldn’t have to pay an arm and a leg on making sure your pooch is well taken care of, and feeling comfortable and clean too!

Top 5 Dog Ear Cleaners

① Zymox Otic Pet Ear Treatment **TOP PICK**
② Virbac Epi-Otic Advanced Ear Cleaner for Dogs
③ Veterinary Formula Clinical Care Ear Therapy
④ NaturVet Ear Wash with Tea Tree Oil for Dogs
⑤ Vet’s Best Ear Relief Wash for Dogs

How Do I Clean Their Ears?

Once in a while, you may have a dog that doesn’t like to be touched or have their ears rubbed. Other times, this may be just a sign of discomfort, so you should plan ahead and get your pet used to you touching them on their ears. Aside from this, you need to gain your dog’s trust that you are going to take care of his or her ears. If anything, sometimes you may need someone to hold your dog and pet them while you clean their ears because they’re just like babies too.

If you’re worried that your dog may bite you (because it hurts), there are pet-friendly alternatives you can try like a soft muzzle so that you can’t get nipped if there are injuries to clean or your dog is super sensitive. Of course, the most important thing to make it go smoother is also have everything right there next to you so you don’t have to waste any time. Some puppies can be just like babies, and that’s what’s important.

Does the Product Matter?

More than anything, it’s important that you use an ear cleaner that doesn’t dry up when you’re using it. Sometimes this can actually cause more problems with the ears becoming dry and the skin becoming brittle, and can actually cause infections, or more infections than there already are. If it’s something like ear mites that you’re dealing with, there are ways to treat this after you thoroughly clean your dog’s ears with a good product.

How you Shouldn’t Clean Your Dog’s Ears

Getting swimmer’s ear (water in the ear canal) really hurts us humans, and with dogs, getting water into their ear canals can actually cause maceration. Also, you don’t want to use a harsh acidic chemical like vinegar, no matter how natural it is. You also don’t want to use strong astringents other than a low percentage of peroxide. While you can use things like tea tree oil to treat or moisturize your dog’s ears, you need to be really careful as it can be toxic in high amounts, so make sure your ear wash doesn’t contain large amounts of it. And as always, if your dog does have an ear infection of any kind, you should go to a veterinarian first and foremost.

What Can Cleaning My Pooch’s Ears Do For Them?

Many infections can actually spread and be created in the ear. This can cause cracking and bleeding, as well as discomfort when it comes to your dog being able to be happy. Once a fungal infection hits your dog’s ears, frequent scratching can even spread it to other parts of the body, and this can cause them to end up with contact dermatitis, and even lose hair. Cleaning your pet’s ear’s regularly will help them to keep bacteria and fungus out of their ears, as well as other things (see below).

Cleaning your pet’s ears can also help reduce ear mites, which are a common problem when you have a dog that frequently goes outside or is around cats too. Some otic drops can actually help kill off some of the mites in the ears, then later on when you use an ear wash, you can help get rid of them even more, which will cause a lot less scratching.

Another thing that can greatly be healed and helped with ear washing is that by eliminating the wax and debris that lingers in the ear canal, you can also get rid of the cerumen that builds up and blocks the eardrum. This can end up over time causing your pet to be deaf, which can not only be uncomfortable for dogs but also can be dangerous (you can’t always warn a dog of a car coming, or get them to come to you if they can’t hear you). Therefore, frequent cleaning of your dog’s ears can not only make them happier but can also heal and repair the hearing issues that they may face as well.

The Top Ten Dog Ear Cleaner List

Without further ado, here is the list of the best ear cleaners. At the end, we’ll explain why and how we picked the best dog ear cleaner for your furry friend.

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① Zymox Otic Pet Ear Treatment with Hydrocortisone

Zymox Otic Pet Ear Treatment helps to cure chronic and acute problems and infections, as well as can help treat your dog if they have bacterial infections, and even yeast or fungal infections. It has three different enzymes in it that gives a pure antibiotic makeup to destroy all types of viruses and bacteria, including Staph. Not only that, but it has hydrocortisone so it eliminates and relieves itching of your dog’s ears, and helps them not be inflamed or irritated as much. You can use it as a treatment and a cleaner by just applying it once per day.

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② Virbac Epi-Otic Advanced ear Cleaner for Dogs & Cats

Virbac has an advanced cleaner which contains a very small amount of the ever popular salicylic acid (a mild 0.2 percent solution so it’s not too strong for your dogs). The formula is also designed with a light citrus scent to help get rid of odor in your dog’s ear canal. If your pet has chronic otitis externa, this product is highly recommended. Other ingredients include a Monosaccharide complex and docusate sodium, which also has good antibacterial rinsing properties. This product is also great for routine cleaning or daily use! If your dog shakes out excess liquid, but their ears still appear slightly wet, don’t worry, the formula will evaporate quickly!

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③ Veterinary Formula Clinical Care Ear Therapy

Vet Formula Clinical Ear Therapy has great cleaning properties, and is designed to naturally disinfect your dog’s ear and eliminate odor. One great benefit about this product is that it’s alcohol free, so even if your pet has sensitive ears, once you gain their trust this product won’t cause any pain. While we highly recommend this product for dogs, it’s good for any small animals that are older than 12 weeks of age. With ingredients like Propylene Glycol, glycerin, cocamidopropyl betaine, a small dose of lactic, benzoic, and salicylic acids, this product is gentle for frequent routine use.

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④ NaturVet Ear Wash with Tea Tree Oil for Dogs & Cats

NaturVet has released the boss of all ear washes with a slight bit of “forbidden fruit” which can still be used as often as needed, such as when your pet goes swimming or after you bathe them. Since it’s so gentle, it’s great for both dogs and cats. This product has Witch Hazel, Glycerin, Boric acid, tea tree oil, Echinacea extract, aloe vera extract and a pleasant baby powder scent that will leave your fuzzy baby smelling like what they are; your baby!

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⑤ Vet’s Best Ear Relief Wash for Dogs

Vet’s Best Dog Ear Relief is a unique blend that includes all natural ingredients, even chamomile extract, yucca oil, and clove oil (with numbing antioxidant properties) to help control the odor of your pet’s ears, and relieve them of their itchiness. Not only that, but the solution is free of any alcohol, so it won’t burn your dog’s ears. Literally all of the oils in this are natural, and the product consists of Witch Hazel, and even Echinacea aside from the other ingredients listed. That’s it. No questions asked, and a happy pet to follow using it.

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⑥ Zymox Plus Advanced Formula Hydrocortisone Otic Dog & Cat Ear Cleaner

Zymox has an advanced formula with this blend which includes hydrocortisone ointment, and help restore antibacterial, fungal, and ear yeast infections in your pets, so it almost acts like an antibiotic. It also does contain benzyl alcohol, so your pet may end up being a little sensitive to it if they have sensitive ears (even though they claim it won’t). However, the added enzymes actually pierce through the mucus that can be found in dog’s ears as well, to both clean and eliminate ear infections. You don’t even have to actually clean the ear. This is a great solution for using as an alternative to antibiotics, and the solution is non-toxic. They even have an extensive warning not to clean ears or use with other ear products, cleaners, or put water in your pet’s ear.

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⑦ Burt’s Bees Dog Ear Cleaner Solution

Burt’s Bees has been a natural wonder when it comes to treating our skin issues with sensitive skin products that have great healing properties, and this pet ear cleaner is no different. Other than water, it has alcohol in it, but more importantly it is designed with glycerin, citric acid (for cleaning and bacteria breakdown), peppermint oil, witch hazel, and tea tree oil to provide a maximum protective barrier in your pet’s ear while it cleans and deodorizes.

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⑧ Vet Organics EcoEars Dog Ear Cleaner

This organic and economic dog ear cleanser helps to relieve ear infections for your dog. The alcohol in it is denatured grain alcohol (no, don’t drink it…), organic mullein leaf extract, witch hazel, rosemary, ionic silver solution, boric acid, vegetable glycerin, tea tree oil, and a food grade preservative that can literally eliminate fungus, kill mites, and provide some relief usually in about a day after using it for your pet.

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⑨ OtiRinse Ear Cleansing/Drying Solution for Dogs & Cats

OtiRinse is a great solution which not only has cleaning properties, but is designed to quickly dry and help dry out your pet’s ear. This is perfect for dogs or pets that end up getting their ears wet a lot, or even worse, has a cold that you need to take care of. Its aloe vera helps to heal the ear while it’s cleaning it, and the product has a nice little bit of floral fragrance added to it. It does also have benzyl alcohol, salicylic acid, and propylene glycol in it as well as glycerin and benzoic & lactic acids too.

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⑩ Vetoquinol Vet Solutions Ear Cleaning Solution for Dogs & Cats

Vetoquinol ear cleaning solution is not just formulated for dogs, but it’s also one on the list that’s highly recommended. This product has a great deal of healthy clean ingredients to assist in balancing the pH in your pet’s ears, deodorizing it and cleaning, plus drying them at the same time. You can literally use it in the treatment area specifically, or also routinely (such as after bath’s, wading in water, etc.). While it has a fragrant base and contains aloe vera. It has a solution which is made of SD-alcohol 40-2, lactic acid, benzoic acid, and salicylic acid. Unfortunately, even despite claims, these byproducts have been questioned to be a little irritating to your pet if they have ultra-sensitive ears at first (just like alcohol or peroxide). It is recommended that if there are open wounds on your pet, that you first use soap and water.

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Conclusion & What is the Best Dog Ear Cleaner

Now that we’ve gone through all that. Let’s weight the results. (Drum Roll Please!) Zymox Otic Pet Ear Treatment with Hydrocortisone (CHECK BEST PRICE HERE) ends up taking the cake by millions. Not only is it very safe, but also in all of the reviews, it has by far the most positive ones for a reason. Because the ingredients help pH balance your dog’s ears, they’re the perfect alternative to treating and washing your ears with a prescription, which can end up being very costly. By using This Otic pet ear treatment, you’re not only cleaning your ears, but you may end up actually saving yourself time and money by not having to take your pet to the vet.

Virbac Epi-Otic Advanced Ear Cleaner for Dogs & Cats comes in at a close second though, which is because not only is it highly effective, but you can actually use it on cats too. There are many homes in America that have both dogs and cats, or where your dog’s frequently go outside. Because of this, they’re more susceptible to getting infections and even ear mites, and this product can be used on both animals effectively to treat and clean their ears. Not only that, but the price isn’t too shabby on either of the products, and you definitely get a 5-star rating on the budget factor of both of our top two contenders. The only downside is that Virbac’s solution isn’t very effective when it comes to pets that have yeast infections constantly, and that’s one of the things that is pretty common in most dogs. Therefore, that’s why it still didn’t quite top of the list either.

When Should I Get a Prescription?

Sometimes on rare occasions, your dog may need to end up seeing a veterinarian because the products may not seem to be working. If this is ever the case, your vet can prescribe special ear drops (which shouldn’t be used in conjunction with or at the same time; probably not even the same day) as your ear cleaner. What you may not know is that the ear cleaner is still doing its job at cleaning your pup’s ears. The only downside is that they may have an internal or even a genetic issue that is causing more irritation to their ears rather than something that you can control with an over the counter wash.

Nevertheless, you’re better off having an Otic ear treatment, because they can greatly benefit your dog as well, even if you end up getting a prescription. If you ever have any problems with your ear wash treatment, you may also be able to talk to your vet and they may tell you another way to use the product (some dogs may need more or less, as common negative reviews is by the user not using enough, or using too much of the solution) rather than how you’re using it. With Zymox’s Otic ear treatment however, this is one of the most vet-recommended products, so you should go ahead and tell your vet you’ve thought about it. More than likely they’ll recommend you get it and try it first.