According to the Veterinary Pet Insurance Company, canine ear problems were the leading cause of vet visits in 2009. I was recently asked to try out a product called Vet’s Best Ear Relief, a wet and dry system from veterinarian Dawn Curie Thomas. In the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you that they sent me a free sample to try on my dogs.
We chose to use Maggie, the Golden Retriever, as our test subject. She quite often has dirty ears that we usually clean with either rubbing alcohol or hydrogen peroxide on cotton balls.
The Company’s Claims: The Ear Relief Wash bottle states that its non-stinging alcohol-free forumal controls odors and itching while soothing raw, red, and greasy ears. Instructions are to place drops in the ear canals, massage in, and repeat daily, especially before and after swimming and bathing.
The Ear Relief Dry solution is to be used after the Wash to keep ears from itching. It is massaged into the ear canals and dries into a soft powder.
My opinion: The biggest thing I noticed about these products were the wonderful smells. The wash product is made of yucca, aloe vera, chamomile, tea tree oil, clove oil, and echinacea. The dry product contains clove oil, aloe vera, chamomile, tea tree oil, silica, and echinacea. Both smell absolutely heavenly, like a cross between a box of herbal teas and a sachet made of cloves. Much better than rubbing alcohol!
As far as the effectiveness of the product, I found it to be roughly equivalent to using alcohol, only less drying to the ears. I have never washed my dogs’ ears daily before, and probably wouldn’t on a regular basis, but if you were going to do that, this product would be helpful because it doesn’t contain any alcohol which would tend to dry out the ear canals.
The bottles are ample-sized, each containing four fluid ounces, and topped with an easy to operate twist-open dispenser. Even if you have to hold your dog down while you mess with his or her ears, this dispensing system is easy to operate one-handed.
Maggie didn’t particularly like the treatment, but she doesn’t like having her ears cleaned in any event. The only disadvantage I saw to this product is that it is a two-step system. If your dog doesn’t like the first step, you may have a hard time getting the dry product in after the wash.
I can’t advise you on price, as I have no idea what you would pay for this retail. However, I was satisfied with the product and if I had a dog who really had ear problems that required frequent washing, this would be a product I would try. And for those of us who prefer natural products, this one’s a winner.
You can find out more about all of Vet’s Best products on their Facebook page or on their web site.
Until next time,
Good day, and good dog!
I think that’s a brilliant ideal I would like to try them out how much do they cost
Dogs who eat a raw diet rarely if ever have ear problems and never really need their ears cleaned. The pet food companies and pharmaceutical companies don’t want this to catch on though!
http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html