Cotton swab stuck deep in my dog's ear. What should I do now?

NEVER use something that small in a dog's ear. You should use a cotton ball and only wipe what you can see. Try blowing gently in and on that ear to get her to shake it out. If she doesn't shake it out then I recommend getting her in to your vet tomorrow so they can look in her ear to find it and remove it.

The only way to know if there is a piece of cotton still in the ear canal is to have your vet look inside with an otoscope. If there is a piece in there it can cause constant infections and a decrease in hearing. I know you flushed out the ear afterwards but cotton gets heavy when soaked and may not come out. The ear canal in a dog is very long so it could still be down there.

I would bring Rufuss to the veterinarian to remove it. You can damage his ear drum if you push it down into the ear by accident. It is a risk now either way but your veterinarian will be able to sedate Rufuss so he doesn't move and have tools that can help guide them. Understand that they also can puncture the ear drum. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

It sounds like Scarlett may have an ear infection. You will need to take her into the vet first thing Monday. The vet can diagnose the ear infection, what's causing it (ear mites, yeast, or bacteria), and can prescribe the correct medication to treat it. Best of luck.

Do not try to get anything out of her ear at home. You can push it farther in and possibly puncture her eardrum. Your veterinarian can look into her ear with an otoscope, see exactly what it is, and determine the best way to get it out.

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Willow has a cut on her ear. It is possible that she caused it herself by scratching, but if you did not observe it happening, she could have traumatized it on something else, or been wounded by another animal. Based on your description of the wound, I recommend bringing her to your local veterinarian to have her evaluated. At the very least, the wound likely needs to be cleaned and flushed with a sterile solution to prevent infection. Depending on how deep or infected the wound is, it may require more extensive management such as surgical closure of the wound, or bandages. Willow likely also needs an Elizabethan (cone) collar to prevent her from further traumatizing the wound. Unfortunately, dogs like to scratch at their ears and can make it very hard for wounds to heal. If the wound is superficial and Willow is otherwise healthy, you may be able to apply compression to the wound to get it to stop bleeding, and monitor it closely at home for signs of infection (redness, swelling, yellow-green discharge, foul odor). If you see any of these signs, Willow should definitely be evaluated by a veterinarian. Just a reminder, NEVER give dogs any pain medications that are intended for humans, as they can be lethally toxic to dogs. I hope this is helpful!

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Cookie yelped and vomited following her ear cleaning. The inside of dogs' ears is very sensitive, and we NEVER recommend cleaning their ears with Q-tips, for risk of causing damage to the ear drum (tympanic membrane). As long as she is acting normally at home (no head tilt, not ear scratching or head shaking, eating/drinking/urinating and defecating normally), she will likely be OK! From now on, please only ever clean her ears gently with a dry cotton ball, and only clean the visible, external portion of the ear canal. I hope this is helpful!