Is something actually wrong with your pet? Grooming is not the right answer to a medical problem. If your pet has a wound, a hot spot, an ear that smells or is painful, a lump, a limp, a rash that is spreading, is scratching itself raw, or is in any distress, see a veterinarian first and come to us afterwards. We will happily groom around a healing problem once a vet has seen it, and we will tell you honestly when we think something needs a veterinarian rather than a bath.
Ear cleaning here means the outer ear, wiped clean with a damp pad, and nothing more than that — we do not go down an ear canal and we never put anything into an ear, on any dog, for any reason. It is $15 on its own or included in a full groom, and it takes only a minute or two once your dog is settled. Spaniels, doodles, and any breed with a heavy, floppy ear benefit from this the most, simply because a covered ear traps moisture and debris against the outer skin in a way an upright ear does not.
The hair around and just inside the edge of a heavy ear is trimmed back at the same time, for the same reason the ear itself gets wiped: it keeps air moving across skin that would otherwise stay damp and covered. None of this reaches inside the ear canal itself, which is a part of the body we leave entirely alone, both because it is not a safe place for anyone but a veterinarian to work with instruments and because problems in there are a medical matter, not a grooming one.
An ear that smells, feels hot, is clearly painful to the touch, is discharging anything, or has your dog shaking its head and pawing at it is not a grooming question, and we will not clean around it as if it were. That is a veterinary question, the same week rather than at the next groom, and if we see it at an appointment we stop, point it out, and tell you plainly rather than carry on and pretend everything is routine.
What outer-ear cleaning actually involves
The outside of the ear, wiped clean and, where it helps, trimmed, and nothing goes further than that.
What is wiped, and what is not
A soft pad, dampened with a gentle ear cleaner, wipes the visible folds and the outer opening of the ear — the parts you can see and reach without pushing anything inside. The canal itself is never entered, with a cotton swab, a pad, or anything else, because it is not a place a groomer has any business working, and doing so risks pushing debris further in rather than removing it.
Trimming the hair around the ear
On a heavy or hairy-eared dog, the hair on the flap and just around its edge is trimmed back at the same visit, which helps air reach skin that would otherwise stay covered and damp most of the day. This is a light tidy rather than a close shave, and it stops well short of the ear opening itself, repeated at every visit rather than only once the hair has visibly grown long.
Why we never go down the canal
The ear canal is narrow, sits close to the eardrum, and is genuinely easy to injure with the wrong tool or the wrong pressure, which is exactly why it is examined and treated by a veterinarian rather than a groomer. We wipe what we can see and reach safely and stop there, on every dog, without exception, regardless of how calm the dog is or how confident we feel.
Why nothing is ever put into an ear
No liquid, powder or product of any kind is dripped or pushed into an ear here, cleaning solution included. Anything applied inside an ear is a decision for a veterinarian who has actually looked at what is going on in there, not something a groomer should be doing on a guess, however good the intention or however routine the product looks on a shelf.
What we check for while we wipe
While the outer ear is being cleaned, we look and smell for anything that should not be there — an unusual odour, redness, heat, discharge, or a dog that flinches when the ear is touched. Any of that changes the conversation immediately from a grooming task to a recommendation that you see a veterinarian, and we would rather raise it on the spot than say nothing.
The breeds that need this the most, and why
A covered, floppy ear behaves very differently from an upright one, and the grooming has to account for that.
Spaniels and other heavy-eared breeds
A spaniel's ear is long, heavy, and sits flat against the side of the head, which keeps air from moving across the skin underneath the way it would on an upright ear. That trapped, warm, slightly damp environment is exactly why these ears are checked and cleaned on the outside at every single visit, not only when an owner happens to mention a smell.
Doodles and other hairy-eared crosses
A doodle's ear often carries as much hair as the rest of its coat, and that hair on and around the ear flap traps moisture and debris against the skin in much the same way a spaniel's heavier ear does. Keeping that hair trimmed back and the outer ear wiped clean is routine maintenance, done the same visit as everything else, not a separate concern.
Upright-eared dogs still get checked
A dog with upright, open ears is generally at less risk of a damp, covered environment building up, but the outer ear is still checked and wiped at every full groom regardless of ear shape. Ear problems are not exclusive to floppy-eared breeds, and skipping the check on an upright ear just because it looks less likely to need it is not something we do.
What a healthy outer ear looks and smells like
Pale pink skin, no strong odour, and no flinching when the ear flap is gently lifted and looked under — that is what we expect to find on most visits, and it is worth knowing what normal looks like for your own dog so a change is easier to notice between grooms, since normal varies more from one dog to the next than a general description can really capture.
When to check between visits
If your dog has heavy or hairy ears, a quick look and a sniff once a week at home is a reasonable habit, mainly so you notice a change early rather than at the next scheduled groom weeks away. We are not asking you to clean anything yourself — only to look, and to call a veterinarian if something seems different.
Ear hair plucking, and when a vet's request changes what we do
Plucking is genuinely contested among groomers, and we would rather tell you our actual position than pretend there is no debate.
What ear hair plucking is
Plucking is removing the hair growing just inside the ear opening by hand or with a small tool, rather than trimming the hair around the outer flap, which is a different and much gentler thing. It has traditionally been done on some heavy-eared breeds on the theory that it improves airflow into the canal, rather than the outer coat ordinary trimming already deals with.
Why it is contested rather than settled
Opinion is genuinely split on this, including among veterinarians: some consider it a reasonable part of ear maintenance on certain breeds, while others consider the mild irritation it can cause to be worse than the airflow benefit it is meant to provide. We are not going to pretend there is a single correct answer when the trade itself has not settled on one.
Why we do not pluck routinely
Because the question is genuinely unsettled, we do not pluck ear hair as a standard part of any groom here, on any dog, regardless of breed or how heavy the ear is. Where hair around the ear needs attention, we trim the outside rather than pluck from just inside the opening, which achieves much of the same practical benefit with considerably less discomfort involved.
The one situation where we will
If a veterinarian has specifically recommended plucking for your dog and told you so, we will do it at their request, because at that point it is a decision made by someone who has actually examined the ear and the dog, not a routine grooming choice made by us. Tell us at booking if that applies to your dog, ideally with the recommendation noted in writing.
What we do instead for most dogs
For the great majority of dogs, keeping the outer ear wiped clean and the surrounding hair trimmed back covers what grooming can usefully do for ear maintenance, without wading into a practice that even veterinarians disagree about. If you are unsure which approach is right for your dog, that is genuinely a better question for your veterinarian than for us.
Ear cleaning in western Queens
The outer ear wiped clean for $15, with the hair around a heavy or hairy ear trimmed back at the same time. We never go down an ear canal, and we never put anything into an ear.
It starts the same way whatever you have booked: both hands over the whole animal before anything is switched on, so we find what is under the top layer rather than discover it halfway through. Then you are told the price and the finish time out loud, before you leave the building. If the coat turns out to be worse than it looked, we stop and call you, and you decide what happens next rather than finding out at collection.
Grooming is not veterinary care. Grooming is grooming, not veterinary care. This page describes a service we offer. It is general information, and it is not a diagnosis, a treatment or veterinary advice for any particular animal. We are groomers, not veterinarians — we do not diagnose, we do not prescribe and we do not treat medical conditions. If your pet has a wound, a lump, an ear or skin problem, a limp or anything that worries you, speak to a licensed veterinarian who can actually examine it.
How we handle your animal. We do not sedate animals and we never will — sedation is a veterinary decision made by a veterinarian, not a grooming shortcut. We use no heated cage dryers of any kind, and no animal is ever left alone with a dryer running. Every pet is hand-dried by the person grooming it. If your animal tells us clearly that it has had enough, we stop, and you get an honest conversation instead of a finished haircut.
Questions
Ear cleaning — the questions we are asked most
Do you clean inside my dog's ear canal?
No, never, on any dog. We wipe the outer ear — the parts of the flap and opening you can see and reach without pushing anything inside — and we stop there. The ear canal itself is narrow, close to the eardrum, and genuinely easy to injure with the wrong tool, which is exactly why cleaning inside it is a veterinarian's job rather than a groomer's. If your dog's ear needs attention beyond the outside, that is where we will point you.
My dog is a spaniel with long, heavy ears. Does that need special attention?
Yes. A heavy, floppy ear sits flat against the head and traps warmth and moisture against the skin underneath far more than an upright ear does, which is why we check and wipe it at every visit rather than only when asked. The hair on and around the ear flap is trimmed back at the same time, which helps air reach that skin between grooms.
How much does ear cleaning cost, and is it included in a groom?
On its own it is $15, and it is included at no extra charge in every full groom and every bath-and-brush appointment. It does not need a booked appointment either — it is one of the quick visits you can walk in for whenever the salon is quiet, or book alongside nails and a sanitary tidy.
My dog's ear smells bad. Can you clean it out for us?
We can wipe the outer ear as usual, but an unusual smell is not something outer-ear wiping fixes, and it is not something we will clean around and ignore either. That smell is a veterinary question worth asking that same week rather than waiting for the next groom, and if we notice it at an appointment we will tell you plainly and stop rather than carry on as if nothing were different.
Do you pluck ear hair?
Not routinely, no. It is a genuinely contested practice, including among veterinarians, and we would rather sit that debate out than pluck as a default on every heavy-eared dog that comes through the door. We trim the hair around the outer ear instead. The one exception is when a veterinarian has specifically recommended plucking for your dog and told you so — in that case we will do it, at their request.
My dog keeps shaking his head and scratching at his ear. Should I book a grooming appointment?
Not for the ear itself, no — head shaking and scratching at an ear is a veterinary question, and worth a call this week rather than a wait for a groom. We are glad to see your dog for everything else on the usual schedule, but we will not clean or work around an ear that is clearly bothering your dog, and we will tell you that plainly if we see it at an appointment.
What does a normal, healthy dog ear actually look like?
Pale pink skin, no strong smell, and no flinching when the flap is gently lifted and looked under is what we expect to see on most dogs at most visits. Knowing what normal looks like for your own dog makes a change easier to notice between grooms, which is exactly why we point out anything unusual rather than clean quietly and say nothing.
Is ear cleaning safe for puppies?
Yes, wiping the outer ear is gentle and suitable from a puppy's very first grooming visit, and it is a good thing to introduce early so your dog grows up comfortable having its ears handled. We go slowly and briefly with a young puppy, the same way we do with the rest of a first visit, rather than treat it as a full adult-length ear clean.
Related
Usually booked alongside this
Nails, Teeth & Quick Visits
Nail trim & grinding
Nails clipped for $20, or clipped and ground smooth for $30 so nothing catches on your floors or your legs. Walk in whenever we are quiet, or come to the Saturday morning walk-in nail clinic.
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Nails, Teeth & Quick Visits
Tooth brushing
Cosmetic tooth brushing for breath and surface film, $15, and nothing more than that — this is not a dental cleaning, and we will tell you plainly when your dog actually needs one.
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Nails, Teeth & Quick Visits
Sanitary & paw trim
A sanitary trim for $20 and a paw pad and foot tidy for $18, the between-grooms tidy that clears winter grit and the matting between the toes most owners never even see.
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Book an appointment
Call the salon with your pet's breed, weight and roughly when it was last groomed, and we will give you the price and the honest timing on the phone. Nails, ears and sanitary tidies are walk-in whenever we are quiet, and Saturday morning is a dedicated walk-in nail clinic.