| If you think one of your pierced ears may be infected, | | | | always use earplugs because a number of |
| tell your mom or dad. An infected earlobe may be | | | | occupations result in hearing loss due to increased |
| swollen, red, warm, and painful, and it may ooze fluid | | | | noise. Making use of ear protective devices can |
| called pus. Don't wait for it to get better by itself | | | | decrease the development of hearing loss. |
| because the infection may spread and make you sick. | | | | Clean your ears with extra care. Wipe the outer ear |
| The skin in the ear canal grows like the finger nails -- | | | | with a washcloth or tissue. Do not put anything into |
| from deeper layers outwards -- transporting debris to | | | | your ear smaller than your elbow. Do not use Q-tips, |
| the exterior, where it falls off. Ear wax or cerumen, | | | | bobby pins or sharp pointed objects to clean your |
| composed of glandular secretions plus dead skin, isn't | | | | ears. These objects may injure the ear canal or |
| "dirty" but a barrier that keeps out contaminants -- a | | | | eardrum. |
| natural protection. Over-vigorous efforts to remove it | | | | If the ear piercing is a little bead ring, wash the ring |
| from the ears only interfere with the self-cleansing | | | | carefully, and rotate it through the ear with antibacterial |
| mechanism and may drive dirt further in. | | | | ointment on it. If it is a stud, it is harder to clean. You |
| The ear is normally a self-cleaning mechanism. Wax | | | | have to clean around it very carefully. It is not |
| acts in a protective manner, catching particles that | | | | recommended to take the stud out to clean it. When it |
| may land in the ear. Fine hairs inside the ear canal | | | | is first healing the layers of the skin inside the ear might |
| constantly move wax and sloughed skin out of the | | | | cause a problem when trying to put it back in. Once it |
| canal. Wax and skin can build up inside the ear canal. If | | | | is healed, pulling the ear piercings out, cleaning them |
| the canal is not clean, the eardrum can become | | | | and putting it back is fine. But during the healing |
| completely blocked, greatly reducing hearing and | | | | process phase, the first 3-6 weeks, I wouldn’t take |
| eventually cause permanent damage. | | | | it out. I have a ring in there so it can be rotated around |
| Women who are exposed to German measles, | | | | and cleaned properly. |
| measles, mumps, or any other viral diseases during | | | | If your ferret has ear mites, after cleaning the ear |
| their pregnancies have a very high risk of giving birth to | | | | thoroughly, drop the ear mite medication into the ear |
| a baby with serious hearing impairment. Have your | | | | canal: a large quantity is not necessary, but it should go |
| baby's hearing tested if you have been exposed to | | | | well down into the canal, not sit on the surface of the |
| these conditions during your pregnancy, or even if you | | | | external ear. Treatment must be repeated several |
| suspect hearing impairment. | | | | times at regular intervals to kill all the mites. The length |
| To maintain healthy ears, avoid loud noise | | | | of the intervals will depend on the specific medication. If |
| concentrated at the ear canal such as listening to very | | | | there are either cats or dogs in the same area as the |
| loud music from earphones. Decreasing background | | | | ferret, treat all of them for mites or the ferret will |
| noises is very helpful. When using loud machinery, lawn | | | | become reinfested very soon. |
| mowers, grass trimmers or industrial equipment, | | | | |