To Clean Your Dog's Ears:
1. Take an appropriate ear cleansing solution and pour it into the vertical canal of the ear (see illustration). If your dog is upset by having something poured into the ear, you may saturate a cotton ball or piece of gauze with the solution instead, and put the soaked cotton ball or gauze into the ear.
2. Massage the vertical canal by applying gentle pressure with your fingers to the side of your dog's head just to the front of and below the external opening of the ear canal. This is the same part of the head that would be, on a human, just in front of the ear and below the cheek bone - if you find this place on your own head and press gently, you'll feel your ear canal being compressed. This is what you want to achieve with your dog.
3. Use cottonballs - not swabs - to clean out the ear canal. Take one cottonball at a time and stuff it as far into the ear canal as you can without losing hold of it; with the cotton ball in place, massage the ear canal again, then remove. Repeat this until the cotton ball comes out dry.
4. If you have been directed to apply medication to the ear, apply it now.