Tear Staining

Sophie's Mom asks:

My 4 month old Bichon, "Sophie" has developed tear stains.
Although I remove the crust daily from around her eyes, I cannot remove the stains on her fur. Any suggestions??? Products? etc.

Jean responds:

Tear stains are usually caused by allergy or most likely those beef jerky snacks or commercial dog food (like grocery store types) with the dyes in them.

Lisa responds:

I agree with Jean...I had heard that the type of food will cause the stains...My Bichon has never had that problem and he eats Nutro lamb and rice dry, with wet lamb and rice. And he usually only eats Nutros lamb and Rice sticks, and once in a great while, Puparoni....but not very often....
He used to scratch alot...and the vet changed his diet a few times, and the lamb and rice based products have helped...He hardly ever scratches now...It seemed to solve the problem...I remove "pookies" daily as we call them...When we got him at 8 weeks, he had the stains and they were feeding Purina One and when we switched his food to a vet recommended brand, once his stained fur grew out, it never came back.

Paula responds:

In my research on tear stains, I discovered that the stains are caused by a chemical reaction between the between the fluid from the eye and the "hair" on the face.
There are numerous Tear Stain Removal treatments at any pet store.
Consistent cleanliness and use of one of these solutions should eliminate the stain problem.
I have also found that keeping the coat groomed and trimmed, especially around the eye area, makes a big difference in the eye drainage problem. I hope this is helpful. Paula

Sophie's Mom responds:

Thanks everyone for the advice. Sophie has been eating Nutro Max since the day we brought her home and she gets high quality treats (Mother Hubbard). I don't think it is her diet that is causing the stains. I'll check into the allergy thing. I have noticed that the professional grooming works wonders - she goes once/month.

AbbiesMom responds:

Tear stains can be nearly eliminated with 25mg per day of tetracycline. It neutralizes the pH in the tears. You vet will prescribe. The amount is small and will create any problems. It has worked very well for our Abbie.