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My dog is scratching her ear, whimpering, and has dark brown clumps.

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Siberian Husky | Female | spayed | 2 years and 4 months old | 45 lbs

2 days ago, we noticed that our dog got up and whimpered in the middle of the night (around 1:30 am) when we are all sleeping. We looked to see what was going on, and we saw that she was scratching her left ear very intensely and that she may have hurt herself. Upon checking her ear, we saw that she had a scrape/cut on the ear flap but right where the Vertical Ear Canal starts. She also had dark brown clumps in her ear, but we believe it is dried up blood. It seems to hurt her when it is touched

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Debi Matlack

Answered By Debi Matlack

Veterinary Technician

Published on November 9th, 2020

Those brown clumps could also be ear mites, which itch intensely and can cause a dog to injure themselves by scratching and shaking their head. It could also be some kind of ear infection or other problem. I recommend getting her checked at your vet as soon as possible to have her ear checked to determine why she's scratching so hard and get her treated so she (and you) can get some relief soon.
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