Dog ear infection causing accidents

A dog with an ear infection losing their balance and missing the litter box — that's a really specific and frustrating situation, and it's worth saying upfront: the accidents aren't behavioural, they're neurological, so scolding won't help and the priority is keeping the area genuinely clean. The only products that permanently eliminate pet odours are enzyme-based cleaners — anything else just masks the smell, which means your dog will keep returning to the same spot because they can still detect it. To point you to the right one: what surface are you dealing with (carpet, hard floor, sofa), and are these stains fresh or have some of them had time to set in?

Got it — a mix of fresh and set-in on carpet is the most common scenario and the most important one to get right, because set-in urine bonds with carpet fibres and the backing underneath. Before I give you my recommendation, one quick question: how large is the affected area roughly? A concentrated patch around the litter box entry, or has it spread across a wider section of carpet?

That's a manageable area. For carpet with a mix of fresh and set-in dog urine, my recommendation is Simple Solution Extreme Pet Stain and Odour Remover. It's a professional-strength enzyme formula specifically designed for dog urine, it's widely trusted and well-reviewed, and it works by breaking down the uric acid crystals that standard cleaners leave behind — those crystals are exactly what your dog's nose is picking up and drawing him back. For the set-in stains, saturate the area properly, cover it with a damp cloth and leave it for 10–15 minutes so the enzymes have time to work. Don't use any steam cleaner before or after — heat sets the proteins and makes the smell permanent. One bottle will comfortably cover your half-metre area with enough left over for ongoing accidents while his ear infection is being treated.

Yes — and it's worth doing alongside the cleaning rather than waiting. Swap to a low-entry litter tray or an open flat tray temporarily. Standard litter boxes have a raised lip that's easy to misjudge when a dog has vestibular issues from an ear infection. A flat tray placed on a non-slip mat gives him a much better chance of getting in correctly while his balance is off. You can go back to the regular setup once the infection is resolved. The Simple Solution will handle the odour side; reducing the chance of future misses is just as important while you're working through the vet treatment.

Good plan. One last tip: once you've treated the stained areas and they've dried fully, give them a sniff at nose level — if you can still detect anything, reapply and leave longer. Enzyme cleaners occasionally need a second pass on older stains. Hope your Cocker Spaniel's ear clears up quickly — once the infection is treated, the accidents should stop entirely on their own.