How to stop dog scratching ear wound

Constant ear scratching is a sign your dog may have ear mites. Learn what other symptoms ear mites cause and how you can work with your vet to get rid of them.

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Ear Mites Defined
Signs Your Dog Has Ear Mites
How to Treat Ear Mites in Dogs
How to Diagnose Ear Mites in Dogs
Preventing Ear Mites in Dogs
Causes Of Ear Tip Scabs & Crusts
Common Causes of Ear Injuries
Caring for an ear tip injury
Ear Flap Injury Aftercare

Ear mites are microscopic parasites who like to live in a dog’s ears. They eat wax, oil, and other debris found inside the affected dog’s ears. It sounds like a good deal—the mites get food and a place to live and your dog gets clean ears. But there’s a hitch: These itchy bugs drive your dog nuts, and they’ll scratch and shake their heads incessantly to try and get rid of them. Read on to learn more about the signs and symptoms of ear mites in dogs and how to get rid of them quickly and efficiently with treatment from your veterinarian.

Ear Mites Defined

Ear mites are tiny, spider-like parasites that are found in dogs, cats, ferrets, and foxes. They don’t actually bite the animals, but they do cause irritation that makes your dog’s ears extremely itchy. Half the time when a dog has red, irritated ears, the Companion Animal Parasite Council says ear mites are to blame.

If your dog has ear mites, it’s often the case that other pets in your home do, too. Ear mites are highly contagious among animals, but not to people. You might have some temporary itching if mites come into contact with your skin, but Michele Pietrzak, DVM, medical director of VCA Met Vet West Animal Hospital in Pittsburgh, notes that humans can’t get an ear mite infestation from animals.

Signs Your Dog Has Ear Mites

It’s tough to spot ear mites in your dog’s ears because they’re nearly invisible. If you look hard, you might see them—search for white specks that move. It’s much easier though to notice other symptoms of ear mites in dogs, such as:

Intense ear scratching
Back-and-forth head shaking
Dark brown crumbly residue (like coffee grounds) in the ears
Painful sores on the head or outer ears from constant scratching

Ear mites can occur in any breed or at any age. But some dogs are more prone to ear mites than others. “We tend to see more ear mite infestations in young puppies and dogs who have been in group settings,” Pietrzak says. “Also, dogs who spend a lot of time outdoors are more likely to get them from laying on grass or concrete.”

- James Brokensha Photography / Getty

James Brokensha Photography / Getty

How to Treat Ear Mites in Dogs

Cleaning your dog’s ears may provide some relief from discomfort, but home remedies won’t eliminate an ear mite infestation, Pietrzak says. Also, it’s easy to make a mistake when you self-diagnose your dog with what you think is ear mites.

Itchy ears in dogs is a symptom that can have many different causes. It could turn out to be another type of ear infection, so it’s best to talk to your veterinarian about your concerns. Only a vet can determine exactly what’s causing your pup’s symptoms and can treat ear mites in dogs.

How to Diagnose Ear Mites in Dogs

During an exam, your vet will look inside your dog’s ears to assess their health. Your vet will also analyze ear residue under a microscope. Once a diagnosis is made, the first step to treating ear mites in dogs is a thorough ear cleaning.

Your dog will also need prescription medication to treat an ear mite infestation. Some medications are daily ear drops while others are topical products you use one a month, Pietrzak says.

You should know that ear mites require long-term treatment. Adult ear mites can live up to two months. They constantly reproduce—VCA Hospitals report that a female can lay up to five eggs a day. So even if the adults die off, new mites will emerge because no medication can kill the eggs.

“Treating the ears only once or for only one or two weeks simply won’t do it,” Pietrzak says. “More mites are always hatching. To really solve the problem, you need several months of treatment.”

Your vet will also look for any underlying bacterial or yeast infections or for scratches that may have become infected. If your dog has an infection, your vet will prescribe antibiotics or antifungal medications to treat it.

Preventing Ear Mites in Dogs

If you have multiple pets in the home, there’s a good chance more than one of them has ear mites. It’s usually best to treat all pets for ear mites at the same time to avoid reinfection. Also, it’s important to wash all bedding and disinfect common areas of your home. Otherwise, mites can live on surfaces and spread to other pets.

It’s a good idea to regularly clean your dog’s ears too. Wash them at home or ask your groomer to do it. Also, talk to your veterinarian about prescription flea and tick medications that double as ear mite preventatives, Pietrzak says.

Ear mites can make your dog itchy, scratchy, and miserable. Talk to your vet if you see ear mite symptoms so you can get a treatment that eliminates them. Soon your pup will be feeling better and you’ll be rid of ear mites for good.

Updated March 28, 2022

The picture above shows an ear problem in Adelaide that’s also found around the world. It only affects the margins and tips of the ears. The most common cause will surprise you.

Causes Of Ear Tip Scabs & Crusts

There are at least four reasons why a dog can have sores on the ear margin:

Damage caused by scratching or shaking due to an ear infection
Infestation with sarcoptic mange mites (‘fox mange’)
Other skin problems such as allergy
Attack by blood-sucking insects

Any ear tip injury that keeps being damaged by head shaking will heal slowly or not at all.

Ear Infections commonly lead to damage to the ear. However, it’s unusual that only the ear tip will be involved. Therefore, turn over the ear and inspect the ear canal. It may look red, swollen or dirty looking with a musty odour. Don’t forget to check the other ear as many problems are bilateral.

Floppy-eared dogs are cute and adorable … until their ear gets injured and it turns into a bloodbath. Dogs with droopy ears are prone to ear flap injuries especially when they run around, play rough, or get into fights. It can get extremely uncomfortable for your furry friend and frustrating for you.

The pinna (the technical term for the ear flap) has several tiny blood vessels. Any wound, no matter how small, can lead to profuse bleeding. It can also be quite messy whenever your dog shakes their head frequently or tries to scratch it. If left untreated, it can become infected, making things even worse.

Common Causes of Ear Injuries

The most common cause of ear flap injuries among dogs is trauma. Injuries can be caused by the dogs themselves when they scratch their ears or shake their head vigorously. Injurie can also be caused by an external factor, like getting stuck in branches or bushes.

Some dogs develop warts or polyps in their pinna as well. These masses can also bleed when scratched. Other problems include bacterial and fungal infections, and parasites.

Caring for an ear tip injury

Ear injuries should be taken to the vet for proper medication. However, you can perform first aid at home before going to the vet. Here’s how you can care for your dog’s ear injury:

Figure out the source of bleeding
The first thing you need to do is to locate where the blood is coming from. Check inside and outside the ear for lacerations and puncture wounds. See if there are any masses, lumps, or parasites that could have been the cause of injury.
Remove small objects or debris
Before you clean the wound, make sure to remove any debris. Oftentimes, small objects get stuck in the wound and your dog will try to shake their head in an attempt to remove it. This will be quite messy, so be careful! Use a pair of clean tweezers to remove anything such as pebbles, burrs, or grass.
Clean the wound
Avoid infection by cleaning the ear flap wound immediately. Rinse the area with water and wash gently with soap. Then pat the ear dry with a clean cloth or paper towel. If your dog has long fur, you might need to trim the area around the wound first before cleaning.
Stop the bleeding
Since a dog’s ear flap can bleed profusely, it’s important to stop the bleeding as fast as possible. Using gauze or a cloth, place it directly on the wound and apply pressure. Leave it on for several minutes until the bleeding stops.
Protect the wound
Ear flap injuries need to be monitored regularly because your dog will tend to scratch it and cause the wound to bleed again. This can delay the healing process and could cause infections. You can protect the wound by covering it with a gauze. Then, create a makeshift bandage by cutting a sleeve off an old T-shirt and fitting your dog’s head through the hole. This will keep the injury safe until you take your dog to the vet. A trusted brand in wound protection for dog ear injuries is No Flap Ear Wrap. They have a special patented design that makes recovery easier for the dogs; no restrictions on play, eating, or sleeping.

Ear Flap Injury Aftercare

Your vet will determine if your dog needs to have sutures or not. Whatever the case is, you have to prepare to take care of the injury once you get home. This will help the ear flap heal faster.

Remove the dressing
Carefully remove the bandage and dressing from your dog’s head. If necessary, use scissors to snip the bandage but be careful not to accidentally cut the ears or cause trauma.
Disinfect the wound
You can make a simple disinfectant using a saline solution. Dissolve one teaspoon of salt in a cup of lukewarm water. Use cotton balls with the saline solution when disinfecting the wound.
Replace the dressing
Depending on your vet’s instructions, you will need to change the dressings regularly during the first few days. As soon as the injury starts to heal, the dressing will require less frequent changes per day.

Ear flap injuries can be challenging for pet owners. But with the proper care from you and your vet, your dog’s ear will heal fast and they’ll be back to being happy and healthy very soon.