She hates me

[1scottie2labbies]

Due to lastest ear infection. I have a new wash to do 2x a day. She hates me she knows what the bottle is. No treat is worth that MOM. I feel so bad for her.

[luke from georgia]

how do you apply the ear wash?

do you squirt it in?
do you soak a cotton ball and put it in the ear?
other method?

ears are very sensitive. she may be associating your handling of her ears and the sight of the solution with pain. maybe you even accidently hurt her while handling her ears some time in the past.

if there is a negative association with the bottle, you have two options as i know.

1. let her know she has no choice but to take the ear cleaning. show her that no matter how much she may run away or struggle, she WILL get her ears cleaned. period. end of story.

2. desensitize the fear away from the ear clearning solution. this method takes much longer. show bottle, praise/treat/give her a favorite toy, etc. do nothing. let time pass. show bottle again, more rewards. do this until she clearly welcomes the sight of the bottle. later show bottle and touch her ear, rewards, do nothing, etc. see? this will take much, much longer.

with my dogs, i handle their ears regularly. i don't mean a full on soaking cleansing of the ear. about once per month, i take a cotton swab, put small amount of solution on it, and wipe the inside flap of their ears, even if they are not dirty. doing this also allows me to examin the inside of their ears for signs of ear wax, dirt, or infection.

this way, there is no pain association. IF their ears get infected, the dogs will not be as afraid of the ear solution and me handling their ears. i can see how a dog could develop a fear of the ear cleaning if the ONLY time the bottle comes out and the ears were handled are times when it hurts them.

[luke from georgia]

i realize that she needs this ear wash NOW, not in three weeks.
try to handle her ears gently with firm hand and a calm attitude.
she doesn't hate you. she just doesn't understand that you are trying to help her get better.
dogs are very resilient and forgiving. she's be back to her old self once she starts to feel better.