I just acquired a three year old cat. The inside of her ears look filthy, and I have a sneaking suspicion that they’ve never been cleaned before. How do I go about this task?
Like their mommies do: with your tongue.
If her ears are truly nasty, she might have ear mites. You can either get her swabbed now before you clean them, or try cleaning them and see if they get filthy again fast. If she gets all funkified again pretty quickly, she’ll need to see the vet. (Don’t clean her ears again, it can muck up the swab.)
If you go the clean it, then wait and see route, go to the vet and get some ear-cleaning solution, or get some at a pet-supply store. I like Adams Pan-Otic, but whatever you get make sure it’s got a drying agent in it.
This can potentially be a two-person job, but try it with little to no restraint at first; less is often more with holding kitties.
Hold the external ear firmly but gently, and squirt some solution into the ear canal. The cat won’t care for this sensation much, and will try to shake its head. This is where the ear-holding comes in handy. Gently rub the area at the base of the ear, kind of squishing it around, for at least thirty seconds. (There will probably be horrible schlorping sounds, so don’t freak if you hear that.) This will probably itch, and she may try to scratch at that ear, so watch those back feet.
Now let her shake her head. This will help move any gunk you’ve broken loose up the ear canal. Take some gauze or cotton balls, and wipe away all the gunk you can get to. Don’t go any further than you can comfortably reach with your index finger, and do NOT use Q-tips or other swabs to go poking around in the ear canal. (We use swabs at work, but we’re professionals.)
Repeat with the other ear. You can do this once a day for two or three days. If she gets clean and stays clean, great. If she’s not getting clean or staying clean, stop cleaning and call the vet.
I doubt that will be happening anytime soon.
Carefully, I say.
What won’tr be happening soon?
Thank you CrazyCatLady!
Oh, and what won’t be happening is me licking her ears.
Well, first you stock in a good supply of bandaids…
Pepper Mill grabs our cats firmly, then takes a tissue and simply wipes the ears out. If the cats protest, she growls at them.
My cat’s ears smell like cat spit.
Car pressure washer should be just the ticket.