How to Check Your Dog's Ears at Home

Ear infections are among the top five reasons dogs visit the veterinarian, affecting an estimated 20% of dogs at some point in their lives. Many of these infections could be caught earlier, treated more cheaply, and resolved more quickly if owners knew how to perform a simple ear check at home. Here is a practical, step-by-step guide to inspecting your dog's ears, understanding what you are seeing, and knowing when it is time to call the vet.

Why Ear Health Matters More Than You Think

A dog's ear canal is shaped like an L, with a vertical canal dropping down from the ear opening and then turning horizontally toward the eardrum. This design is great for protecting the eardrum from objects and water, but it also creates a warm, dark, moist environment where bacteria and yeast thrive. When problems develop deep in that canal, they are invisible from the outside until they become painful and advanced.

Untreated ear infections can lead to chronic inflammation, thickening of the ear canal tissue, hearing loss, and in severe cases, damage to the middle and inner ear that affects balance and coordination. The average veterinary bill for an ear infection runs between $100 and $250 per visit, and chronic infections can require multiple visits, sedated ear flushes, or even surgery. Regular home checks are one of the simplest things you can do for your dog's long-term comfort and your wallet.

Breeds Most Prone to Ear Problems

While any dog can develop ear issues, certain breeds are significantly more susceptible due to their anatomy:

• Floppy-eared breeds: Cocker Spaniels, Basset Hounds, Bloodhounds, and Beagles. Their heavy ear flaps trap moisture and reduce airflow, creating ideal conditions for infection.
• Water-loving breeds: Labrador Retrievers, Golden Retrievers, and Standard Poodles. Frequent swimming introduces water into the ear canal, and if it is not dried properly, infections follow.
• Hairy-eared breeds: Schnauzers, Bichon Frises, and Shih Tzus. Hair growing inside the ear canal can trap wax, debris, and moisture.
• Allergy-prone breeds: French Bulldogs, West Highland White Terriers, and Shar-Peis. Allergies (both food and environmental) often manifest as ear inflammation before other symptoms appear.

If your dog belongs to any of these categories, weekly ear checks are a good habit. For other breeds, every two weeks is generally sufficient.

Signs of Ear Trouble to Watch For

Before you even look inside the ear, your dog's behavior may be telling you something is wrong. Watch for these warning signs:

• Frequent scratching at the ears or pawing at the side of the head
• Head shaking, especially if it is repeated and vigorous
• Head tilting to one side consistently
• Whimpering or pulling away when you touch the ears
• Unusual odor coming from the ear, often described as yeasty, sweet, or foul
• Visible discharge: brown, yellow, green, or bloody
• Redness or swelling around the ear opening
• Scabs or crusty buildup on the inner ear flap

Any one of these signs warrants a closer look. Multiple signs together mean you should schedule a vet visit soon, even if the ear looks relatively normal to you.

Step-by-Step Ear Inspection Guide

Step 1: Choose the right moment

Do not try to inspect your dog's ears when they are excited, anxious, or in the middle of play. The best time is when your dog is relaxed, perhaps after a walk or during a calm evening. Have some treats nearby to make the experience positive.

Step 2: Position yourself and your dog

For small dogs, place them on your lap or on a table at a comfortable height. For larger dogs, sit next to them on the floor. You want the ear at roughly your eye level so you do not have to contort yourself. If your dog tends to squirm, have a second person gently hold them or use a calming hand on their chest.

Step 3: Examine the outer ear flap

Gently lift the ear flap (pinna) and look at the inner surface. Healthy skin here should be a pale pink color with a thin layer of light yellowish wax. Note any redness, bumps, scabs, or dark spots. Run your fingers along the flap feeling for lumps, thickened areas, or warm spots that might indicate inflammation.

Step 4: Look into the ear canal

Gently fold the ear flap back to open up the ear canal entrance. You will not be able to see deep into the L-shaped canal, but you can assess the vertical portion. The skin should look smooth and pale pink. A small amount of light-colored wax is normal. What you are looking for is anything that deviates from this baseline.

Step 5: Use magnification for a closer look

This is where a magnifying tool becomes genuinely useful. The ear canal entrance is relatively small, and details like tiny mites, subtle redness, or unusual wax textures are difficult to see with the naked eye alone. Using your phone's camera with magnification allows you to zoom into the canal entrance while also providing light from the torch, which is critical since the ear canal is naturally dark. At 4x to 6x magnification, you can see wax texture, small parasites, and skin conditions that would otherwise be invisible.

What Normal vs. Abnormal Looks Like

Understanding the baseline is key to spotting problems early:

• Normal wax: Light yellow to golden brown, thin consistency, mild or no odor. Think of a light honey color.
• Bacterial infection wax: Yellow-green, sometimes pus-like, with a strong unpleasant smell. The ear may look wet or swollen.
• Yeast infection wax: Dark brown to black, thick and mushy, often described as having a sweet or bread-like smell. The ear may look greasy.
• Ear mites: Dark, crumbly, coffee-ground-like debris. This is actually a mixture of dried blood, mite waste, and wax. Under magnification, you may see tiny white or translucent specks moving against the dark debris. These specks are the mites themselves, roughly 0.3 to 0.4 millimeters in size.
• Allergic inflammation: The skin appears red and puffy but may not have much discharge initially. Over time, it often progresses to a secondary yeast or bacterial infection.

The Ear Mite Challenge

Ear mites (Otodectes cynotis) deserve special attention because they are extremely common in puppies and young dogs, highly contagious between pets, and nearly invisible to the unaided eye. An adult ear mite is about the size of a pinhead. Without magnification, you will see the dark debris they leave behind but not the mites themselves.

With a magnified, well-lit view of the ear canal entrance, you can sometimes spot mites as tiny moving dots against the dark background of their debris. This distinction matters because ear mite treatment is different from bacterial or yeast infection treatment, and using the wrong approach wastes time and prolongs your dog's discomfort.

The Sniff Test

Do not underestimate your nose. A healthy dog ear has little to no smell. If you notice any odor when you lift the ear flap, that is an early warning sign even if everything looks visually normal. Different infections produce different smells: yeast infections tend to smell sweet or musty, while bacterial infections produce a sharper, more offensive odor. Get into the habit of giving a quick sniff during your regular checks so you know what your individual dog's normal baseline smells like.

When to Definitely See a Vet

Home ear checks are for monitoring and early detection, not for diagnosis or treatment. See your veterinarian if you notice any of the following:

• Any discharge that is not the normal light-colored wax
• Persistent odor that does not resolve within a day or two
• Redness or swelling inside the ear canal
• Your dog cries, flinches, or pulls away when you touch the ear
• Visible dark, coffee-ground-like debris suggesting mites
• Any bleeding from the ear
• A head tilt that persists, as this can indicate a middle ear infection
• A swollen ear flap (aural hematoma), which looks like a pillow and requires prompt treatment

Do not attempt to treat ear infections at home with over-the-counter drops without a veterinary diagnosis. Using the wrong treatment, for example an antibacterial when the problem is yeast, allows the actual problem to worsen. And never insert cotton swabs or any objects into your dog's ear canal. You can cause serious damage to the eardrum.

Capturing Photos for Telehealth Consultations

Veterinary telehealth has expanded dramatically, and many clinics now offer virtual consultations for non-emergency concerns. Ear issues are particularly well-suited to telehealth triage because a clear, magnified photo of the ear can give a veterinarian a great deal of information.

When photographing your dog's ear for a vet consultation, use magnification with a light source aimed into the canal. Take multiple photos: one of the outer ear flap, one of the canal entrance at normal zoom, and one or two at higher magnification showing the wax color and texture. Consistent, well-lit images help your vet decide whether you need to come in immediately or whether they can advise you over the phone.

If you are tracking a known condition over time, take photos at the same magnification level and angle each time. This creates a visual timeline that is far more informative than trying to describe changes from memory.

Building an Ear Check Routine

The easiest way to make ear checks a habit is to pair them with something you already do regularly. Many owners check ears during the weekly brushing session or after bath time. Keep it quick, around two minutes per ear, and always end with a treat so your dog associates the experience with something positive.

Over time, you will develop an intuitive sense for what your dog's ears normally look like, smell like, and feel like. That familiarity is your greatest tool for catching problems early, long before they become painful, expensive, or difficult to treat.