I have finally figured out how to clean Rockwell's ears - I can't believe it takes me this long, sometimes, to figure things out. First, I lured him into the bathroom and shut the door. Now I have a captive audience. Then I soaked a cotton ball in the diluted vinegar solution. This way, I don't have liquid spraying all around AND I can warm up the solution a little because I am holding onto the cotton ball. I put the cotton ball in the entrance of the ear canal and just gently massage the ear from the inside. This way, the vinegar goes into the ear canal but is unnoticed by the dog. After a minute, I pull the cotton ball out and it is covered in dirty ear wax. No pain, no fuss, no vinegar anywhere but where I want it. Oh Rockwell still flung himself to the floor and tried to hide but I wasn't trying to dribble liquid from a squeezy bottle into his ears so the process was far simpler.