Ear Care for Potbellied Pigs

There has been a steady influx of problem pigs and ears in my e-mail lately. Inner ear infections, yeast infections, liquids in the ear, etc. I am going to try and address this problem the best way I know how.

IF YOU NEVER PUT ANYTHING DOWN IN THAT EAR,
YOUR CHANCE OF PROBLEMS ARE A LOT LESS!!!! 
 
When we clean ears its only as far as the fingertip will go with a damp cloth or cotton ball. That stuff that drives you crazy that is down deep is what keeps the water out of your pig’s ears when he is in his pool, or for outside pigs his mud hole.
We found this by trial and error over the years and the pigs that go into vets yearly for checkups and teeth and feet seem to be the ones that are having a problem because people want their ears cleaned while they are there. This is not a dog, it is a pig, who has many means of protecting itself from its environment without our help.
Most of the problems I hear from are pigs that have liquids squirted in the ear canal. This can lead to a yeast infection that is hard to clear up. It can also lead to inner ear infections that can cause major problems for the pig and its owner. Both of these problems show symptoms of tilted head and lack of coordination.
My vet and I agree that putting any liquid in a pigs ear for cleaning purposes may not be a good thing so we just DO NOT DO IT. You may have to ask your vet to please NOT clean the ears when you take the pig in for his checkups. Or you can say NO liquids in the ear itself just a damp cloth as far as the finger will go into the ear.
This advice has served the 73 pigs that live here quite well and we don’t have ear problems because we don’t cause ear problems.

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