black stuff in dogs ears

Question
I hate to bother you, but we don't have the money to take our dog to the vet, and he's always had very sensitive ears, however today there was some big black stuff coming out of his ears, what do you think i might be able to do for him to help him not be in pain. He yelps every so often and shakes his head, and today he was shaking a bit himself. I tried heating up some olive oil, and putting that in his ear, I think it helped to bring some of the black stuff out, but it didn't help for his pain. Thank you in advance. Christine.

Answer
You can mix vinegar with water in even amounts and flush the ear three times a day.  Sometimes there is a bad infection with a bacteria called Pseudomonas that causes this black discharge.  In that case, the longer the infection is in the ear the worse it gets.  It is very difficult for you to treat that at home.