Weekends for most people at this time of year mean barbecues, trips to the beach and hours spent applying sun-cream to children but for vets on call it means something else – grass seeds.

These innocent looking bits of plant have a habit of getting stuck in dogs.

Between the toes of spaniels is a favourite place, but my colleague Alex recently had a weekend full of dogs with grass seeds in their ears.

So how do you know if your dog has a grass seed in its ear? These dogs tend to shake their heads or scratch at their ears like crazy.

The irritation will start all of a sudden and owners will often find it starts after a walk when the dog has run through long grass.

Chances are you will not be able to see down the ear canal far enough to see the seed and I would always recommend you bring these dogs into the vets to be examined with an otoscope.

If we can see the seed in the ear we can sometimes remove the seed with the dog conscious but often these are painful ears and if the seed is deep in the ear canal we need to sedate the dog.

If these seeds are not treated they can rupture the ear drum causing major damage to the ear and a lot of pain in the process so it is always worth getting them checked out.