[dtjovan]

This article would assume readers that you have experience in ear plucking and had applied the correct technique when doing so.

1. I had attended a one day pet grooming course (given a certificate) in one of the most reputable and recognised Pet Grooming Centre in my country in early 2017. One of the skills I was taught is hair plucking. I was taught to pluck hairs inside the ears to prevent possible infection due to moisture and other reasons. The dog (owned by one of the groomers) did not give a strong resist to me for ear plucking but neither did it like it.

2. I admitted that I did not do on my own dog as my dog isn't comfortable and I do not want to force myself into it.

3. I came across an article and felt lucky that I did not do so.
BBird's GroomBlog: NO MORE EAR HAIR PLUCKING!

4. Anyone here ever performed dog ear plucking resulting to some complications? Kindly share your experience / even photos.

 

[Laco]

According to both our Vet and our groomer, plucking ear hair causes more problems than it solves. Our groomer now trims Samantha's ear hair, to help keep air flowing. Trimming does not cause the irritation or potential for infection that plucking does.

 

[Rain]

Thanks for the link! I am not a professional by any means, but do clip and scissor my friend's toy poodle, I always felt kinda bad that I didn't pluck her ears but instead carefully scissor the hair in her ears so that it doesn't get too long and cause a problem. Looks like I was doing the right thing all along.

 

[Laco]

Apparently plucking used to be pretty standard procedure. Samantha always seemed bothered by her ears after grooming and plucking. She would shake her head a lot for a day or two. Now that the 'standard' is not to pluck, but to trim, she is far less irritated after grooming.

 

[Oreo1128]

So glad I found this post. I've never heard of ear hair plucking until I started looking into groomers for my current dog. Only one groomer I found in my area does it. Personally, I don't think it's necessary. What I didn't know is what our vet just told us. There is no need to clean a clean ear. Common sense, I know, but with my last dog, a beagle, she was prone to ear infections. As a result, I would clean her ears regularly with an ear solution as a preventative measure, but now I'm wondering if I only made the situation worse. Does anyone have any insight on this?

 

[Rain]

So glad I found this post. I've never heard of ear hair plucking until I started looking into groomers for my current dog. Only one groomer I found in my area does it. Personally, I don't think it's necessary. What I didn't know is what our vet just told us. There is no need to clean a clean ear. Common sense, I know, but with my last dog, a beagle, she was prone to ear infections. As a result, I would clean her ears regularly with an ear solution as a preventative measure, but now I'm wondering if I only made the situation worse. Does anyone have any insight on this?

I think it depends on the type of ear the dog has.

Dogs with heavier floppy ears, aka drop ears, like beagles and blood hounds, are prone to ear infections. The way the ears hang traps moisture in the ear and it's a breeding ground for ear infections, one of the ways to prevent an infection is to keep the ears clean by using a cleaning solution and making sure the inside of the ear stays dry.

Personally I've never had to clean my dogs ears, my 2 old dogs had semi prick ears, so the inside of their ears tended to stay dry. The dog i have now, Zody, has bat ears, and again his ears stay dry. I do keep an eye on his ears and so far so good.

As I wrote in my last post, I groom my friends poodle and so far I've noticed no trouble with her ears. We keep the hair covering her ears long, but trim all the hair under her ears (on her face and neck) short, and also I also trim the hair that grows in her ears. I'm guessing that lets enough air get to the ear and keeps it dry.

 

[Oreo1128]

Thank you, Rain. So far so good with my dog, Oreo. I got concerned when I noticed some black **** in his ears. The vet said his ears look normal, though. I'll just keep an eye on them. He's not scratching at them or shaking his head, so I think he's ok.