Cleaning my buns ears

[Lani]

Today I noticed that Oreo has been scratching in her ears and then shaking her head more than usual during her grooming sessions. I checked out her ears and it looks like there’s a bit of wax in there. When she was at the vet a few weeks ago, he checked her ears and said that she had a little wax build up. He cleaned them and checked for mites but said she didn’t have any and she was fine. Is it normal for there to be a little wax in there? Should I try to clean them for her and if so, what should I use?  

[Michelle&Lolli]

Lolli gets wax buildup as well and when I took her to get checked out, the vet said some animals are just more prone to it and they don’t really know why. They see it in some dogs, cats, rabbits, etc. I guess like us. I know sometimes I get more wax than normal. lol

When Lolli needs her ears cleaned out, I just use a q-tip. You don’t want to go down into the ear at all. With Lolli, I have found the wax is usually in the folds right above where her ear canal starts. Right at the base of the ear where it starts to go down into the skull. Sometimes it looks more like dead skin sloughed off, so I apply vitamin e oil – a very thin layer – to help moisturize her ears. I don’t know if it works or not but she does seem to quit scratching at her ears for a few days after i apply it. Or it could just be i removed the itchy wax. lol

I tried to find a picture of the anatomy of the ear and couldn’t find one. Just the main thing like with humans is to NOT go down into the ear.

[KatnipCrzy]

I would not recommend using a liquid ear cleanser unless directed by the vet- as it will introduce moisture and if it is not necessary you do not want to do that.
If you do clean you have to be careful not to do deep into the ear as you can rupture their eardrum and that will cause more problems than just wax in the ears.
Wax is not harmful as long as it is not bothering the bunny- do you think you can wipe it out with a cotton ball or tissue- or a q-tip used very carefully?

[Lani]

Yeah it looks like the wax is right in that fold at the bottom of the ear near her skull. I did notice that when the vet cleaned her ears he dipped the q-tip in something before putting it in her ear. I’m guessing maybe saline solution? Of course I didn’t think to ask at the time Do I need to do that or is a regular dry q-tip fine?

[Michelle&Lolli]

Probably should’ve included this – I do NOT use anything to clean her ears with except a dry q-tip and the vitamin e oil I sometimes use is only applied in a very thin layer to her upper ear. I don’t apply near the base at all.

[Lani]

Ok thanks! I think I could probably get it very carefully with a q-tip. I’ll have to do it in the middle of the day when she’s feeling less active

[Michelle&Lolli]

I’ll have to do it in the middle of the day when she’s feeling less active

Yeah I got bit the first time I tried cleaning Lolli’s ears. She still hates it but a towel over my lap helps a lot. Just remember that as long as you’re not going down into the ear canal, you can’t really damage anything so you can use a tiny bit of force if necessary to get it out. Like firmly holding their paws/legs so you can clip their nails. I don’t know if that makes sense or not. I was really afraid of hurting her at first so I went slow and gave her time to fight and bite which made it all worse and didn’t accomplish anything. Now I just grip her ear firmly, rub with slight pressure to get the wax and then we’re done. But make sure you protect your lap/legs. lol

[LittlePuffyTail]

Be careful not to clean the ears too often because q-tips can irritate the ear lining.

[Author]

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