Tear stains - YorkieTalk.com Forums

ashk · 06-17-2014, 07:01 PM

Huey, who will be turning 1 in a few weeks, has had stubborn tear stains since we got him at 8 weeks old.

I am so thankful for YT and have tried everything I can find on the forums, but nothing seems to be helping.

Here's what we've done so far.

- Filtered water, nursery water, bottled water
- Plain yogurt (about a teaspoon a day for several weeks)
- Tried different foods - Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diet, Royal Canin, Wellness Core (still on Wellness Core - have yet to try Blue Buffalo or Solid Gold)
- Angel Eyes - made him vomit despite using half the dose for his weight
- Burt's Bees topical tear stain remover - waste of $

Vet and groomer are clueless - they both think something else made him sick and suggest trying Angel Eyes again but I'm leery. He's so little so I worry about him being dehydrated - last time he threw up four or five times!

He has all his permanent teeth so I'm assuming it's not due to teething.

Please help!

Wylie's Mom · 06-18-2014, 04:22 AM

It's not the worst idea to try Angel Eyes again, even if just once - to see if it upsets the tummy. I know it's not ideal, but might be worth a try. His past tummy issues could've been a bout of gastritis.

Have you been to a Vet Ophthalmalogist? They're not cheap, but I wonder if this is the next step for you if you think the tearing is 2ndary to something else going on. Have you tried using moistening eye drops yet?

ashk · 06-18-2014, 07:01 AM

No, we have not been to a vet ophthalmologist as we do not have one in our area.

What kind of eye drops would you suggest?

Wylie's Mom · 06-18-2014, 08:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ashk

No, we have not been to a vet ophthalmologist as we do not have one in our area.

What kind of eye drops would you suggest?

Soothe XP is a nice one - but any of them would be worth a try -- there are some that are supposed to provide relief for 8 hours, so that may be what you want to look for so you don't have to give drops so often. Thera Tears, Systane, etc are other ones. Another gal recommends another one too, I'll see if I can find out what it is...

Brielle189 · 06-18-2014, 08:45 AM

My 2 year old MALSHI had horrible stains and the ONLY thing that worked was Angel eyes. He loved the beef flavor made from 100% beef liver. They do make different formulations though that you can try. I used to see a discharge with tearing but it has diminished. I'm an ophthalmic tech and do not understand how beef liver worked, but it did! Good luck!

ashk · 06-19-2014, 01:37 PM

Those are human eye drops, right? I don't know if I'd feel comfortable using those without asking my vet.

I should probably clarify. He doesn't have much staining but his face is usually wet, with some eye boogies every now and then. The groomer does trim the hair between his eyes but from what I can see, it's not poking his eyes.

The Angel Eyes he tried was sweet potato - debating whether to try again this weekend.

Normally he doesn't have too delicate of a stomach, and has only thrown up after eating too much Caesar (the breeder had told us to feed him that as a supplement to dry food; we now know better) and after eating a whole pig ear chew (he's a bit of a piggy himself and has to be monitored with treats).

Batgirl38 · 06-19-2014, 04:35 PM

I have a maltese that's a year and a half so I've been going through it with tear stains since I had him. I've tried and read EVERYTHING to try a get rid of the stains and let me tell you that NOTHING WORKS. finally after talking to a vet I was told that in maltese dogs the tear ducts are sometimes small and it come from breeding down to a specific kind of look. Told me that Maltese were breed down to an only white dog and that why they have this problem. But I really don't know what to believe as I've heard so many diff stories. I heard it was a yeast problem and to put a little apple vinegar to the water. I've tried only bottled water, foods with no dyes, angle eyes, cleaning pads and some other stuff that had a power with it. Waste of money. I just have them to cut as much out as possible when I get him groomed.

janeno · 06-19-2014, 05:22 PM

I think that it's natural for yorkies to have tear stains. All you can do is clean them daily (I use Burt's bees eye solution for dogs) and wash face weekly (I use Espree plum facial), and then ask groomers to cut those areas off. Tears serve purpose of removing foreign particles from the eyes - I would not worry too much about it unless you have excessive tearing and staining. Plus, most yorkies have brown/golden face so it should not be that obvious. I am not a proponent of angels eyes as I really don't see a necessity in it - why would you put some chemical in your dog's food unless it's a completely serious case of staining?

06-17-2014, 07:01 PM	#1
ashk Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Midwest Posts: 31	Tear stains Huey, who will be turning 1 in a few weeks, has had stubborn tear stains since we got him at 8 weeks old. I am so thankful for YT and have tried everything I can find on the forums, but nothing seems to be helping. Here's what we've done so far. - Filtered water, nursery water, bottled water - Plain yogurt (about a teaspoon a day for several weeks) - Tried different foods - Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diet, Royal Canin, Wellness Core (still on Wellness Core - have yet to try Blue Buffalo or Solid Gold) - Angel Eyes - made him vomit despite using half the dose for his weight - Burt's Bees topical tear stain remover - waste of $ Vet and groomer are clueless - they both think something else made him sick and suggest trying Angel Eyes again but I'm leery. He's so little so I worry about him being dehydrated - last time he threw up four or five times! He has all his permanent teeth so I'm assuming it's not due to teething. Please help!

06-18-2014, 04:22 AM	#2
Wylie's Mom Furbutts = LOVE Donating Member Moderator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Phoenix, AZ Posts: 35,889 Blog Entries: 2	It's not the worst idea to try Angel Eyes again, even if just once - to see if it upsets the tummy. I know it's not ideal, but might be worth a try. His past tummy issues could've been a bout of gastritis. Have you been to a Vet Ophthalmalogist? They're not cheap, but I wonder if this is the next step for you if you think the tearing is 2ndary to something else going on. Have you tried using moistening eye drops yet? __________________ ~ A friend told me I was delusional. I nearly fell off my unicorn. ~ °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨° Ann \| Pfeiffer \| Marcel Verdel Purcell \| Wylie \| Artie °¨¨¨°ºOº°¨¨¨°

06-19-2014, 04:35 PM	#7
Batgirl38 YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Apr 2014 Location: Saint Petersburg, Fl Posts: 518 Blog Entries: 1	Tear stains I have a maltese that's a year and a half so I've been going through it with tear stains since I had him. I've tried and read EVERYTHING to try a get rid of the stains and let me tell you that NOTHING WORKS. finally after talking to a vet I was told that in maltese dogs the tear ducts are sometimes small and it come from breeding down to a specific kind of look. Told me that Maltese were breed down to an only white dog and that why they have this problem. But I really don't know what to believe as I've heard so many diff stories. I heard it was a yeast problem and to put a little apple vinegar to the water. I've tried only bottled water, foods with no dyes, angle eyes, cleaning pads and some other stuff that had a power with it. Waste of money. I just have them to cut as much out as possible when I get him groomed. Attached Thumbnails

06-18-2014, 07:01 AM	#3
ashk Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Midwest Posts: 31	No, we have not been to a vet ophthalmologist as we do not have one in our area. What kind of eye drops would you suggest?

06-18-2014, 08:45 AM	#5
Brielle189 Yorkie Talker Join Date: May 2014 Location: Butler, NJ, USA Posts: 17	My 2 year old MALSHI had horrible stains and the ONLY thing that worked was Angel eyes. He loved the beef flavor made from 100% beef liver. They do make different formulations though that you can try. I used to see a discharge with tearing but it has diminished. I'm an ophthalmic tech and do not understand how beef liver worked, but it did! Good luck!

06-19-2014, 01:37 PM	#6
ashk Yorkie Yakker Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Midwest Posts: 31	Those are human eye drops, right? I don't know if I'd feel comfortable using those without asking my vet. I should probably clarify. He doesn't have much staining but his face is usually wet, with some eye boogies every now and then. The groomer does trim the hair between his eyes but from what I can see, it's not poking his eyes. The Angel Eyes he tried was sweet potato - debating whether to try again this weekend. Normally he doesn't have too delicate of a stomach, and has only thrown up after eating too much Caesar (the breeder had told us to feed him that as a supplement to dry food; we now know better) and after eating a whole pig ear chew (he's a bit of a piggy himself and has to be monitored with treats).

06-19-2014, 05:22 PM	#8
janeno Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: California & Washington states Posts: 118	I think that it's natural for yorkies to have tear stains. All you can do is clean them daily (I use Burt's bees eye solution for dogs) and wash face weekly (I use Espree plum facial), and then ask groomers to cut those areas off. Tears serve purpose of removing foreign particles from the eyes - I would not worry too much about it unless you have excessive tearing and staining. Plus, most yorkies have brown/golden face so it should not be that obvious. I am not a proponent of angels eyes as I really don't see a necessity in it - why would you put some chemical in your dog's food unless it's a completely serious case of staining?