Keeping your pet’s ear clean is one of the crucial grooming essentials. It is highly recommended for maintaining their overall health and hygiene. Cats are meticulous when it comes to their grooming.
Ear cleaning should be a regular weekly grooming ritual for most cats. Regular scrutiny and inspection of the ears by the owners is suitable for easy and quick identification of any infection. While some cats are happy to cooperate with you while their ears are checked, some might throw tantrums. Cat’s ears are quite often filled with debris, wax and dirt. Cleaning cats’ ears might seem intimidating at times, however, with the right tools and approach, it gets easier.
Why Should You Regularly Clean Your Cat’s Ears?
A cat’s ears are quite susceptible to infections and even prone to severe wax buildup. They might even get down with mite infections. Regularly scheduled ear cleaning helps to prevent ear infections and keep them healthy. Ear cleaning is also a great way to inspect the ears of the cat, which immensely helps in early detection of any upcoming ear problems, redness or odour. Some of the most vital supplies that you would need to clean your cat’s ears are cotton balls, soft gauze and ear-cleaning solutions that are cat-friendly. Towels to keep your cat healthy.
Stepwise Guide to Cleaning Cats' Ears
Given below is a detailed 8-Step Guide to Clean a Cat’s Ears
Keep the Supplies at Hand
Once you start with the process, the flow shouldn’t be disturbed. To ensure that the ear cleaning process of your cat is uninterrupted, it is always better to keep supplies such as cleaning products, gloves, cotton, bids, lukewarm water and clean cloth. You never know what you need, so it is better to have it all prepared.
Preparing the Cat
Choose the right place to carry out the cleaning process. It is quite obvious that your cat would not want to stick to one place while cleaning the ears. If your cat dislikes the ear-cleaning process, you might need help from someone to hold them firmly in place. Either place the cat on your lap or a table of suitable height. Wrap your cat in a thick towel to make them comfortable and restrain their random movements. Choose a quiet and comfortable space where your cat will not feel disturbed.
Holding the Cat Ideally
The ideal position to hold your cat is by holding the tip of the cat’s ears between your forefinger and thumb. Now bend the cartilage of the ears very lightly at an appropriate angle that allows proper vision into the inner ear canal.
Inspecting the Ears
It is now time for inspection. When examining the ear of the cat, here are a few things you should look out for. Whether there is any redness or infection in the ears, with a closer look, you will be able to spot it.
At the same time, look out for the presence of puss and the colour of ear wax in your cat’s ears. Black or red colour ear wax is indicative of an ear infection. However, light brown-coloured cat ear wax is normal in cats. Any dark discharge from the ears may indicate mite infection. Foul smell or dark discharge are symptoms of severe infection. There might be insect or worm buildup in the cat’s ears.
If visibility is not up to the mark, use a flashlight for a better view. Try to explore all the angles for a better inspection. The next step is to wipe off your cat’s ears with a cleansing wipe. You can also use a gently wet cotton ball. If required use a cotton bud. Whichever product you use, make sure it is wet, as it helps in easy handling.
Use the Cat-Friendly Cleaning Solution
After the initial step of cleaning, if you feel like there is hardly any progress or notable effect, always go for using an ear cleaner. Put a few drops and start with massaging. At this point, your cat might give you a very hard time with tantrums, try to divert it. If there is excess debris or wax buildup in the ears, go for any medicated product to help make cleaning easier.
Lift one of the ear flaps of the cat and now squeeze a few drops of the cat-friendly ear-cleaning solution into the ear canal of the cat. The nozzles of the ear cleaning solutions are often a bit stiff. So, make sure you do not hurt the cat or insert the nozzle too deep inside.
Massage Ear Base
Once the cleaning is over, it is time to massage the ear well. Don’t forget that however cautious you are while cleaning the ears, you might at times hurt your cat. It is always better to massage the ears of the cat when cleaning is over. You can use the cleaning solution for this purpose as well. While massaging, you might hear certain squishy sounds, and it is natural. Just ensure that you do not over-irritate the cats as they might react adversely.
Wiping the Debris
Once you are completely satisfied with debris and ear wax removal, use a dry cotton ball to wipe away any excess ear cleaner that might be residual in the ears. The cat might try shaking their head once or twice. Don’t stop them from doing so because it will help expel the loose debris. You can use a cotton gauge to wipe any loose and visible debris on the ear flap. Never try to stick anything too deep as it might injure the eardrums of the cat.
Rewarding the Cat
It is crucial to reward the cat at the end of the process. It is a step to make the whole experience positively reinforcing for them. It also ensures that in future your cat would co-operate with this part. Praise them and make them feel happy. You might end up giving them some treats as well.
Well, these were the steps for a regularly scheduled ear cleaning of cats. However, if things are serious and your cat is down with a terrible ear infection, these simple steps might not work out. In such conditions, always seek veterinary advice because medication may be needed. This is especially true for mite infections.
More About Cleaning Cat’s Ears
You might be thinking how often should you repeat this whole process? There is no ideal answer to this one as can. Cats are low maintenance. However, as a pet parent, make sure you check on your cat’s ears at least once every month. Otherwise, go as per your vet’s instructions. If you come across any puss, redness or discharge in your cat’s ears while cleansing, immediately consult a vet as these could be early symptoms of a dangerous infection.
If your cat is too uncomfortable with cleaning the ears, you can get help from other family members. Pet parents may consider trying alcohol wipes to clean the ears as they reduce the spread of yeast and bacterial infections. Pet parents need to be super patient when cleaning their cat’s ears especially if the cat is young and playful.
If someone can cuddle and distract them while cleaning their ears, the chore might get easier. After a session of meticulous cleaning, if you do not find any potential issues in your cat’s ears, there is no need to get worried. The only product you should avoid while cleaning a cat’s ears is hydrogen peroxide as it might chemically harm the cats. Generally, it is also not advisable to clean the cat’s ears with water as it is not effective.
Cleaning Products for Cat’s Ears
Once your cat is diagnosed with some ear problem, be it build-up of ear wax or any insect infestation, it is time to rapidly start the use of some kind of ear cleaning product. Here is a list of the best and most easily usable ear-cleaning products for cats that every pet owner should get hold of:
Petkin Pet Wipes
- Infused with natural ingredients like Vitamin E and Aloe vera
- It can be used on all the parts of the cat’s face such as ears and eyes
- Works without any water
- Ideal for skin conditioning and deodorization
- It comes in a pack of 100
Epitoic Ear Cleaner
- An anti-adhesive formulation that targets preventing the adherence of any bacteria in the cat’s ear canal
- Has antifungal and antibacterial properties to get rid of any infestation
- Gentle and soothing essence on the skin due to non-acidic formulation
- Ideal for cleansing the ears and even drying out
Otodex Ear Drops
- Formulated as fast fast-acting relief
- Targets the cleaning of ear wax
- Relives the cats of irritation and scratching
- Works against mite infection
It is always better to consult with your vet before trying out any particular product. Incorrect usage of any ear-cleaning product might hurt your cat, so ensure that it is always under valid medical supervision.
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