Tear Staining

1065 Views 10 Replies 10 Participants Last post by jodublin, Jul 28, 2010

furevermy2luvs

Discussion Starter · Jul 27, 2010

I'm sure you all have had this question asked a thousand times. What to do about tear stains? I have read all kinds of things about it and I know there is a product called Angel Eyes but have been reluctant to use it. When Buddy was little I kept them cut out with scissors but as he has gotten older he will not let me come near him with scissors. I wash his face every day. I have heard not to give them food with red dye in it. I have heard to put white vinegar in their drinking water. EEWWW, I can't imagine a dog drinking that! I have heard to give them plain yogurt. I am just wondering what your experiences have been with it and what worked for you.

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spookiesmom

· #2 · Jul 27, 2010

I used Angle Eyes with Spookie when she was a baby. My vet said it was ok for her. Her eyes clears up and it hasn't come back. Most here don't won't use it. I'd say it's up to you.

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Cheri

· #3 · Jul 27, 2010

For me it was a diet change to a better quality food

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iheartbisou

· #4 · Jul 27, 2010

This has been probably discussed more than any other topic. Angel Eyes contains tylosin, an antibiotic but in Angel Eyes the amount of the antibiotic is not disclosed. You could give Tylan (tylosin) directly so you would know how much you're actually giving. It's up to you though, some do and some don't..it's your call. With Tylan, you give it for 10-14 days and then stop..the Angel Eyes is probably much more expensive, has extra additives and I believe you give it for longer. All this being said, if I were to give it, I'd just go for the Tylan itself..not the Angel Eye's. But to each their own type thing.

As for food, I would pick a high quality food without a bunch of extra fillers, dye etc..and this applies to treats too.

Good luck!

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Snowbody

· #5 · Jul 27, 2010

Tyler's had bad tear staining despite the filtered water, right food, etc, etc. I went to the vet about Tyler's tear stains when he was about 11 months old (I think) and she gave me Tylan for him. Used it for three weeks and it didn't do anything for the tear stains. I do get his hair cut short near his eyes because he had tons of hairs poking into them and both the vet and breeder said that caused a lot. Since I keep it cut it's quite a bit less. I use Spa Lavish to wash his face, B&L type eye drops and I have been using Eye Envy which is external to clean the area when the above two didn't work. I know a lot of people don't recommend it but it's helped quite a bit. You just have to stay on top of it all. It's a battle for us.

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Johita

· #6 · Jul 27, 2010

Vinegar in water - what the heck! Never heard of that and sounds yucky! I agree, change his diet - maybe remove chicken as some of our fluffs can slight allergies to chicken and see if that helps, but make sure it's a high quality food you aregiving him. You may want to just let his hair grow out around his eyes if he doesn't let you get near them with a scissor anymore, but warning you'll just have to be a little patient with the tear staining as the hair grows. Good luck

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iheartbisou

· #7 · Jul 27, 2010

I've used Eye Envy too..for removing the stains from the fur (it's only meant for this, not for stopping the internal cause of the staining) and it's worked for us. I use both the liquid and the powder. I've read many times it hasn't worked for some..but it has for us..like said above, you've got to stick with it and apply everyday type thing.

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daryl

· #8 · Jul 27, 2010

My boys didn't like the vinegar option but the science behind it is sound, ie. make the tears acidic and the bacteria can't metabolise the iron.

To be fair it is much better than feeding Tums to your dog- now that looks like a recipe for future trouble (IMO).

I am firmly in the diet camp- grain free and no cheap bulking agents. It wont work 100% but it should help the majority of dogs to a degree. For me it was about 80% successful (i am guessing here!).

I also use one of the many natural tear stain supplements and that with the better food means no stains and no need to "wipe on wipe off".

I would never go back to using the antibiotic based products- if you want to then fair enough but none of them are FDA approved so there are risks involved. My solutions are more expensive than straight Tylan and a tad slower but wont increase the risk of resistance in bacteria, something that will harm not only our little ones but potentially us as well.

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Nikki's Mom

· #9 · Jul 27, 2010

Vinegar in water can damage tooth enamel.

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yeagerbum

· #10 · Jul 27, 2010

Tear staining was a nightmare and I'm so glad Yeager's over that phase. I think it was the food change that fixed it. I noticed that his staining stopped after I changed to Orijen puppy instead of castor pollux organix.