pet has a Very Mild ear infection

Question
Hi i went to the vet to take my dog for just his yearly exam and they said he was perfectly fine just that he had a very mild ear infection. They said that they can clean his ear and give medication... but they were trying to charge me over 100.00 dollars.. I wanted to know if there is any other thing that you maybe able to recommend????

Answer
A hundred+ bucks to swab out an ear and sell you some ointment?! Holy cow! I should have gone to vet school after all!

If the ear is hairy, you do need to get all of that out of there first, using ear powder and tweezers to pull it all out. It's not too difficult to clean out an ear with Q-tips; just be careful you don't go too deeply down into the ear canal.

Make up a 50/50 solution of white vinegar and water, and put a bit of that in the ear. Massage it in at the base of the ear, and then swab it again, trying to remove as much dirt/debris as you can. Initially, do this every day, and then less frequently after a week. I don't know that this will clear up an ear infection, but it should hold it at bay.

You really need Dermalone (previously Panalog) to clear that infection up, but it does require a prescription. Your vet should be willing to give you a prescription for that so that you can order it online, or elsewhere; if not, find another vet.