Walkies, the ears, and rain . . .

. . . and how do you all deal with it? Our Sophie (and first Cavalier) loves to walk with her nose to the ground, sniffing her way because of her hunting dog DNA and a nose that works. So... the ears drag the ground. Whether the walk is for 5 minutes, or 2 miles.

And then it rains, endlessly, for weeks (not quite normal for us) and the ears are wet.

Do you all just live with it? Put a snood on your dog for walkies? Shall I make a Gore-Tex one for the rain? I'm at a loss here, for knowing how to deal with the wet ears. What do y'all do?

I just put up with it and give them a wipe when we get home. If anyone has any suggestions I'd love to hear them too. I dont think Ollie would wear a snood, he'd spend so much time trying to get it off, we'd get nowhere

I am having the same problem...but way worse. Dixie's fur is so long (touches the ground) that EVERY time we go on a walk she comes back with sticks, leaves, stickers etc. all stuck in her fur. It takes me at least 1/2 hour to get it all out. It is not cool enough here in Texas for her to wear a sweater, or I would put one on her just to keep her fur from attracting every thing on the ground. I am open for suggestions too. PS It has been raining here for 8 straight days, so we come home with wet ears, tail, legs, and fur on her stomach....what a MESS !!!!!

Hi, Chaos has an all over waterproof suit which fastens at the ankles with velcro and zips up along the back, this is good for when it is cold and raining but would be too hot if it was a warm day. I got it on ebay from a lady who makes them for cavaliers (can give you details if you want). Unfortunately, she cant really wear anything now because of SM. She was also coming home covered in sticks and burrs and would not let me groom her under her tummy so I have been forced to have her tummy shaved and also round her rear end. Really did not want to do it but her comfort has to come first. She does not mind her ears being combed so have left them long. When they get wet I just rub them with a towel. You could try a hair dryer on wet ears etc. but Chaos runs a mile from that, I think you have to start getting them used to it when they are young. My friend's cavalier quite happily gets a blow dry.
Judy

Hi

Sorry I haven't a clue but I must say Autumn is the worst time of the year for assorted flotsam and jetsam they all fetch back with them ,on their ears ,tangled in their bloomers and dangling from their chest and tummy coat .Having 4 sometimes it takes over an hour once I get home to detangle them all especially Daisy and Rosie being the worst offenders ,so I normally squat on the floor or bed turn them on their backs with their four legs waving in the air pop their tail under my bum to keep it out of the way then start combing and brushing them from top to tail ,and they do totally relax and seem to thoroughly enjoy it and I am sure even occasionally doze off too ,plus I thoroughly enjoy it as well .

Cut the ears short?
We have a patio out our back that is fenced off for the dogs but the edge (about a foot) is grass and leaves, Sam sticks his head into the leaves, digs, and then sticks his head in the mud!! My hubby had to bath him the other day because his head was smelly!!

I just dry the ears off with a towel. But the leaves, UGH! I spend half the day picking up leaves off the floor this time of year. I also end up combing both of them daily.

Looks like I'll have to deal with wet ears along with the rest of the wet dog.
It's nice to see her use her nose, though. Our last dog, another breed, didn't have a very good 'sniffer.'