05/07/2021
I was recently asked about eye stains and why it occurs so I hope this article helps.
What Causes Tear Stains on Your Dog's Face?
• Allergies: The allergies can be to food, which is why some dog owners swear changing your dog´s diet will eliminate this problem.
• Diet: Dogs may also be allergic or sensitive to the dyes in some cheap foods, too, so changing the diet makes a lot of sense and does work, sometimes.
• Water: If the water has a high mineral content, it is more likely to cause stains. You can try demineralized water, and you can also train your dog to drink from a water bottle to decrease stains around his mouth.
• Teething: Tear stains may be caused by teething. Since this really is a temporary problem, it will go away without any treatment.
• Blocked tear ducts: Tear staining can be caused by blocked or tiny tear ducts. If the tears are flowing out of the eye and cause the top of the face to remain wet, your dog may develop a yeast infection, making the staining even worse. The ducts will need to be surgically repaired.
• Dust or smoke: Tear stains can also be caused by a dusty or smoky environment. If your dog's eyes are always red and inflamed she is going to tear excessively. The solution? Stop whatever is contaminating your dog's house.
What Are the Best Natural Methods to Control Tear Stains?
1. To prevent most stains from coming back, you can add a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to your dog's water. If the tear staining is caused by cheap dyes in the dog food, blocked tear ducts, or teething, this method may not help.
2. Some stains can be prevented by changing the diet to a more natural one. Even if you are still feeding your dog commercial food, make sure it is not contaminated with dyes, chemical flavour additives, and carbohydrates. Read the label.
3. Start giving your dog filtered (not bottled!) water. This will help in some cases, especially if the water in your tap is hard.
4. If there is excessive smoke in your house from a fireplace, take care of that problem. You and your dogs are going to have more serious health problems than tear staining if you do not fix it.
5. If the condition does not clear up, have your dog examined by your regular vet. There is a chance that the problem is due to very small tear ducts.
Other Solutions
• Cutting the hair around your dog´s eyes is a very temporary solution.
• Antibiotics may also help for a while, but unless you are using them to clear up an infection on your dog´s face I would not recommend them. Tear staining is ugly but it is not life threatening. If your dog is put on antibiotics long-term there are several serious side effects.
• If nothing works, I am afraid we have to live with those stains and try to keep the eyes clean and dry and trimmed and try to stop them getting darker with build up.
all the best.
