Tear Staining And Teething

[Bellalucas]

I have a 16 week old apricot toy poodle with very bad tear staining. She did not have it when I first purchased her but it has gradually got worse. I have just read on another post that it may be caused by teething. The vet told me that she is now getting her adult teeth on her check up last week. She is fed a diet of Eukanubra puppy (excuse the spelling) and lamb off cuts. Will the staining improve once her teeth have come through or should I look for other reasons for the staining. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[poodlefan]

Bella one theory about tear staining is that it's symptomatic of a depressed immune system. Something like teething could create that.

However, check what you're feeding for artificial colours and preservatives - there seems to be a link there too.

Keep the hair nice and short under her eyes and get some Kojo eye treatment - this is very effective for removing stains.

[Bellalucas]

Thanks Poodlefan for your advice!!!

[poodlefan]

Thanks Poodlefan for your advice!!!

My pleasure... we poodle folk gotta stick together

[Poodle wrangler]

My apricot standard pup had some tear staining when I first got him, though none was evident at the breeders and I asked about it as I've not had one of the lighter colours before. I basically didn't want an apricot if they had tear staining. One of the local kids asked why his eyes were "bleeding" :D .

My understanding is that the staining is caused by bacteria/yeasts thriving in the fur in a moist environment.

I don't know the cause, but a change in diet seemed to have the best effect- to include more raw foods- and it resolved itself within a couple of weeks.

I cleaned his eyes with warm water about 3 times a day (keeping it clean), clipped the fur very close, but my impression was the diet did it. It's possible that he had a mild allergy to something different in the garden, he simply grew out of it, who knows? I could not see that teething was involved (about 10-13 weeks old).

The vet can also check whether or not the tear ducts are working properly by using a dye. Human babies often get sticky eyes and "tear duct massage" used to be part of the treatment (don't know if it's an old wives tale or not). I wouldn't do it until asking the vet as it might do more harm than good.

I'd remove sleep from eyes maybe twice a day if I'm home all day, but no tear staining. I've also noticed that the mini poodle will clean the standard's eyes in the morning. The little one's the boss .

Can we have a pic, please ?

About the lamb offcuts: Do you mean the fatty bits you wouldn't eat? Just be cautious as too much can cause tummy upsets, predispose to pancreatitis due to high fat. A toy pup is so little, a small amount to us is a lot to them. You'll find much disagreement about best diet/ kibble etc., best to stick with whatever works well. To me, it makes sense that raw meat and bones should be part of a dog's diet, not exclusively dry food that 'keeps' in a bag for months on end.

Edited June 27, 2007 by Poodle wrangler