Ear Care:
Ear Care Ear infections are a fairly common problem with dogs and can be quite painful if not detected early and taken care of. Cocker spaniels require regular ear maintenance. Their long floppy ears restrict air flow. Good air circulation in the ear is necessary to prevent ear infections, eliminating the moist environment in which bacteria thrive.

If your dog seems to have something wrong with his ears which causes him to scratch at them or shake his head, cautiously explore the ear with a cotton swab. An accumulation of wax will probably work itself out. Dirt, dried blood or foul smelling ears are indications of infection or ear mites and should be treated immediately.

Your cocker spaniel will benefit from routine and frequent ear cleaning. A mixture of 1/2 peroxide and 1/2 alcohol can be used, or purchase a good cleansing solution from your veterinarian. Regular ear cleaning will soften and remove dead tissue, debris and wax.

The best way to clean ears is to use a paper towel wrapped around a finger. Using cotton swabs to clean the ears could result in damage if you probe too deeply into the ear. Cotton balls may be placed into the ear while bathing to keep ears dry.

The typical cocker cut is of much benefit for the cocker's ears. The top 1/3 of the ears are trimmed close, as well as the inside of the ears and neck covered by the ears. This cut will give the dog great air flow to its ears and allow the long, floppy ear look that cockers are known for.

Any time your dog visits the veterinarian, ask them to check its ears. An otoscope, a lighted, hand-held tool, will be used. This tool magnifies the ear canal. It can be purchased from pet supply catalogs and operates on two AAA batteries.

If ears are not properly taken care of, enough scar tissue will form. This may result in surgery or loss of hearing. Routine ear care will help prevent problems and also detect problems before they become serious.

Bathing:
Dogs don’t need frequent baths. In fact, frequent baths can dry the natural oils in canine skin and lead to constant scratching, which in turn can lead to bacterial infections and oozing hot spots.

For dogs that get bathed more than once a month, aloe-based shampoos and coat conditioners and foods and supplements with Omega fatty acids help maintain coat oils and skin health.

Before bathing, clear any mats or tangles from your dogs coat. Teach her to stand in the tub, then add warm or tepid water. Soak her to the skin, lather, then rinse thoroughly to prevent dull, sticky coat and dry skin.

Take care to keep water and soap out of her eyes and ears and clean her face and the insides of her ears with a sponge or washcloth.

Daily Examination:
Even if your dog doesn’t need daily grooming, check her thoroughly to make sure she has no cuts, sores, fleas, rashes, bumps, ticks, or hitchhikers in her coat or dirt in her ears. Remove fleas with a fine-toothed comb and drop them into a container of soapy water. Remove embedded ticks with tweezers or protected fingers and drop them in a vial of alcohol. (Grasp the tick body, rock it back and forth, then pull firmly.) Carefully remove vegetative matter such as grass awns, seed casings, or thorny twigs with fingers or comb.

During this daily exam, check your dogs feet and ears, look at her teeth, and feel for cuts or tumors.

Shedding:
Dog hair grows and dies just as human hair does. Shedding can take anywhere from three weeks to two months. A warm bath helps accelerate the process and daily (or twice-daily) grooming can help control clouds of hair that scurry into corners and under furniture.

Shedding is controlled by hormonal changes that are tied to photoperiod (day length) and is influenced by level of nutrition and general state of health. In addition to natural biennial shedding, a dog may drop its coat after surgery, x-rays under anesthesia, and whelping puppies.

Owners should be aware before purchase that a long-coated dog, purebred or mixed, will require grooming throughout its life. If the inclination to groom or the time to do so are not part of the plan, provisions should be made for professional coat care for the dog. Otherwise, a dog that can do with a lick and a promise is a better choice as a family pet.

Skin:
Healthy skin is certainly a consideration for a well-groomed dog, and healthy skin begins with a good diet. Again, the choices are legion. The rule of thumb is thus: If your dog does well on the food you buy, if his skin and coat are healthy, if he has energy and enjoys life, if he is maintaining his optimum weight, if his intestines are working well, if the food is highly digestible and thus leaves little manure to clean up, keep on keepin' on. But if the dog's energy level is low, if his coat is dull and his skin dry and itchy or sore, if a vet check shows no thyroid or other medical condition to account for the anomalies, consider switching the diet or supplementing with fatty acids.

Grooming is essential for healthy skin, not so much for keeping it clean, but for making the owner aware of any problems that may be developing. Flea allergies can cause severe skin problems, so daily examination of the dog during flea season is a must. Contact allergies can also cause skin to break out. Irritated skin leads to scratching, which can open the skin to staphylococcus infections. An ounce of prevention is definitely worth a pound of cure for the dog and the pocketbook the antibiotics for skin infections are among the most expensive medications, and the cost of treatment can be dollars a day for a couple of weeks or longer.

Skin irritations and infections can crop up overnight, so keep a close eye on the situation. Groom daily for fleas and ticks if Lad has had a problem. Use a fine-toothed comb to check for fleas, then flick the tiny insects into a container of warm, soapy water. Remove ticks with protected fingers and drop in a vial of alcohol. Treat the house for fleas as well; modern controls for these pests use genetically altered natural insecticides, growth inhibitors, and drying agents that are both environmentally friendly and less toxic to people and pets.