Well, you're not inept!!! The ears can be cleaned after she's bathed (since you do it once every couple of weeks), just remember to put cotton balls in her ears during the bath to prevent too much water from entering into the canal. Once she's clean, and dry, you can then gently clean her ears with a mild ear cleanser and a cotton ball, or some tissue wrapped around your index finger. I never brush my dog's teeth either...and none of my dogs have a lot of tartar build-up. I leave the dental stuff to the vet...but brushing their teeth at home is a great habit to develop with one of those finger tooth-brushes made for dogs. HTH!