I have a three year old working cocker. He occasionally has problems with his ears with discharge which smells. I do try to keep on top of it by cleaning his ears regularly. Some time ago when it first came to light I visited the local vet who prescribed a solution to rinse out his ears with which did the trick, other than the discharge and the smell it wasn't believed to be anything serious. He is now having the same problem again. The cost of the solution from the vet was very expensive. I know there will be people out there who will say take him to the vet everytime, I was just wandering if there was a cheaper, safe solution/method I could use to flush out/rinse his ears with which is cheaper than going to the vet?   

Personally if my dog had a discharge then i'd be down the vets, both myself & young son have suffered with bad ears/ ear infections & it one of the most painfull things i have ever had to endure ( even worse than child birth! ). If he were mine i would go to the vets just to confirm whether it is or isnt an ear infection & if it is then you can get anti biotics & if it isnt then you can buy some cleaning solution to clean his ears with periodically to keep on top of the situation.
HTH :D

I would go to the vets to make sure that this isn't an ear infection, then when you've got the ear cleaner, try the canine chemist online, you may find you can get it cheaper - as long as it doesn't require a prescription ;)   There are many on here who swear by regular use of Thornit powder to keep their dogs ears in good condition, you can also get thet online :)  But do make sure that this isn't a painful infection first :D :D

The problem he has at the moment is exactly the same as he had the last time and doesn't appear to be giving him any pain or discomfort, he is lively etc.etc. I recall that the vet had no concerns about him on that occassion and just prescribed a large bottle of liquid to flush his ears with, no anti-biotics or other oral medication. I understood from what the vet told me that it was a condition that cockers suffered from because of their long (ish) ears etc.etc.   Obviously if it is something serious which would have serious consequences for his health and it was something that required treatment that only a vet could prescribe I would not hesitate to take him to the vet. All I am after is a "home remedy" that would do the same thing that the vet gave me last time but at a fraction of the cost.

Ok, if i am 100% sure that my dog doesnt have an ear infection & its just normal wax then i'll use either Leo's ear cleaner or auraclense, both of which you can buy on line from caninechemsts.
A lot of people swear by thornit, this is also good too
HTH
:D

Was it Leo Dog Ear Cleaner??  if so you can buy it from here

http://www.caninechemists.com/products.asp?dept=127  scroll down the page and you'll see it.  It works out at half the price as the bottle's twice as big ;) 

I've really not found any 'home remedy' that compares with this, you might also like to try 'Thornit' many breeders swear by it ;)

http://www.denbar-uk-ltd.co.uk/acatalog/Denbar_Thornit_111.html

Thanks for the advice everyone, I'll give the products a try. 

Have you tried using Garlic caps(the smelly ones not the odouless ones), simply prick the caps & squeeze into the ears.

Moonmaiden,

I've been unable to find good old smelly garlic capsules for the last 8 - 10 years :(  they seem to have disappeared from Wales entirely :(  and the non-smelly ones are worse than useless, all the effectiveness is in the smell!!  :( :(

Which ones do you buy?  and where from?

Try this site you will need to scroll down & the 90's are better value that the 30's.

LOLOL I have a friend who works for 7seas who sell Hofels in their factory shop so I get mine discounted ;)

The original is the smelly one

Dill, Does the "Smelly" garlic actually work? Just by pure coincidence I went into Boots the other day asking for something to clear wax from MY ears!! ( I don't think the problem is related to my dog :-)) The chemist told me not to bother with the propriatory brands (earex et al) but to use good ol' warm olive oil. Would it be safe to use olive oil for my dog's symptoms?

Thanks for that MM :)

Roly,

I find "smelly garlic" excellent for colds and chest infections, as for use in the ear I've never tried it so can't comment ;)  
I have never found olive oil any good for a dogs ears, it doesn't seem to dissolve the wax unless its soft, the dry hard wax never seems to shift, this is shifted really easily by the Leo ear cleaner, a dog's ear is so deep that air has a job getting down where it's needed and this is where problems start in a warm moist environment, for that I find the 'thymol' in the Leo cleaner is very effective indeed :D its derived from Thyme Oil - the most effective antibacterial of the essential oils.  You'll find no matter how careful you are, olive oil/wax mixture will get shaken out of the ears and will end up gumming up the fur or leaving it feeling greasy :( :(  which then has to be cleaned off somehow :(

Personally I don't ever use olive oil these days, the Leo stuff is so good I'd rather pay for it.

Hope this helps
Dill