Tear Stains - Our Top Tips and Tricks
How do you get rid of tear stains? - This is such a common question we are asked, so we have put together our best tips and tricks on how to finally get rid of tear stains and prevent them from coming back! We also rounded up our favorite, tried and true tear stain products including blueberry facials (Yes, I said facial ;) and more! Hope you guys find this helpful :)
One of the key words here is PREVENT. The best tip we can give is to prevent tears from becoming tear stains because tear stains themselves are more difficult to remove once they have "stained/dyed" the hair.
How to PREVENT tear stains...
1. DIET DIET DIET. Tear stains and over production of tears can be caused by diet. Making sure your dog's diet fits their own personal needs is MAJOR KEY. Beauty comes from the inside, no? I will list some great foods/brands in the next blog post to try if you are in search of a new food to help with the tear stains. It may take a few tries to find the the right food that best suites your pup, but definitely worth it- not only for tears stains but for the overall health of your child (I mean dog ;)
2. KEEP IT CLEAN. - and D R Y ! This is crucial to the prevention process. If you see a boogy, wipe it off ASAP. The longer the hair around the eye stays damp, the higher the chance of the tears/boogy staining the actual hair follicles. -just like dying your own hair. I like to keep these products handy for wiping and preventing stains.
Best products to TREAT already existing tear stains...
1. TropiClean SPA Blueberry Lavish Tear Stain Remover Facial Cleanser - A yummy blueberry facial :)
How/when to use: We recommend using 1-2Xs every 2 weeks as needed.
Ingredients: Water (Aqua), Mild Coconut Cleanser, Vanilla Planifolia (Vanilla), Vaccinium Cyanococcus (Blueberry), Actinidia Chinesis (Kiwi), Vitamin E, Avena Sativa (Oatmeal), Camellia Sinensis (White Tea), Zingiber Officinale (Ginger).
How/when to use: Anytime you need to clean or wipe off the eye area.
Ingredients: Purified water, aloe vera, sodium chloride, boric acid, witch hazel, natragem, citric acid, vitamin E, natural preservatives.
3. Natural Dog Company Wrinkle Balm -We love the travel stick because its small (the size of a human chapstick) and its size allows you to easily apply the balm directly from the stick itself - no fingers or wipes required = less mess.
How/when to use: Apply to creases and folds between skin throughout the day when the area you are applying it to is clean and dry.
Ingredients: ORGANIC HEMPSEED OIL, ORGANIC SHEA NUT BUTTER, ORGANIC COCONUT OIL, ORGANIC AVOCADO OIL, ORGANIC JOJOBA OIL, CANDELILLA WAX, ORGANIC OLIVE LEAF EXTRACT, CALENDULA EXTRACT, NIAOULI, ROSEMARY EXTRACT, NATURAL VITAMIN E
We hope these tips work for you! Please comment below if you have any tips of your own to share! We would greatly appreciate it! As always, make sure to check with your vet prior to trying these tips!
product photo cred: amazon.com
Comments
Aaron said:
I have a white frenchie and I had tried EVERYTHING: Wipes, Desitin, Witch hazel, filtered water. Just recently the tears finally went away and it was DIET. We switched him to Grandma Lucy’s raw food, the pork recipe and now the stains and excessive tears have disappeared.
Andrea said:
I started using 1/4 tsp of Organic Apple Cider Vinegar w/ the mother, mixed in with his dog food, twice a day (he weights 25lbs). He eats dehydrated food so I have to add plenty of water to rehydrate, which mellows out the vinegar. This works like magic.
Rebekah Castano said:
Thanks for the blog post and reminder on Facebook today! Great read! Always looking for more info but for now this worked for us too for those hoping to find other tricks: vet recommended filtered water as sometimes tap water can be a major cause. We have a filter on our faucet, but he said Brita works just fine! We changed to Merricks puppy food, too. He loves it and it came highly recommended by our vet! Lastly, we saw on another breeders site (and got it approved by our vet) for Triple Paste diaper rash. Avoiding the eyes directly, we wipe the area clean & rub a little of this paste on there. It’s white and just like what it does for a babies bottom (aka preventing infection and nasty skin), it does the same for our pup. Saw a difference within 2 days!! Hope this helps someone as it helped me!
Nikki said:
Angel Eyes didn’t work for us either. After getting advice from Henri’s groomers (Henri is a fawn colored frenchie) I was told to change his diet- NO grain NOR chicken. At the same time we moved to a different state, so I think combined with the new tap water he was receiving as well as his new diet, cleared up after a month!
Gina said:
My 6mo Frenchie has tear stains snd very watery eyes and stomache issues…his vet recommended Taste Of The Wild Salmon for puppies but I see no change can you please recommend a brand of food ??
Gina said:
My 6mo Frenchie has tear stains snd very watery eyes and stomache issues…his vet recommended Taste Of The Wild Salmon for puppies but I see no change can you please recommend a brand of food ??
Amy said:
I switched my English bulldog to vegetarian food, and his stains decreased by over 50%. Then I switched him to a vegan diet from. V-Dog and it’s incredible how much that made a difference. He hardly ever gets them now. Also his yeast infrections in his ears also decreased teumendisouly! People think I’m crazy when they hear he’s a vegan until I show them before and after pictures. I highly recommend giving it a try! He loves the food and didn’t lose any weight on it.
Gwen said:
I also have a white Frenchie. He has terrible tear stains. I have tried a lot of different tips and suggestions. Will try the Desitin. Stephanie how do you apply the powdered buttermilk?
Brooklyn said:
Our vet mentioned that Chicken as an ingredient can sometimes cause the stains so we do a grain free, non chicken food and no stains!
Hannah said:
My frenchie and I swear by desitin!!!
Alexandra Nolan said:
My breeder said using stainless steal dish bowls can cause tear stains. That it is better to use ceramic or hard plastic.
Nikki said:
I’ve use desitin and cornstarch. Cornstarch keeps the area dry and desitin helps the tears glide off. It’s difficult and you have to keep up with it atleast twice a day. I won’t give my pet anything orally because KIDNEYS. My Frenchie is on grain free food and still gets tear staining. So I’m excited to try this blueberry facial. Thanks for the tips!!
John Prochaska said:
Please do provide some great foods/brands to try to help with the tear stains. My little Frenchie, Bruno, is now 29 weeks old and I’ve been feeding him Orijen Puppy food since he was 10 weeks old. Thank you in advance for your suggestions… John
Kristyn said:
Our vet told us something in the tap water can cause it. We switched to giving them bottled or filtered water and it cleared right up. We got new food that requires water be added, I forgot and was using tap water sure enough it came back then I realized I had been using tap instead of bottle when making their food!
Melissa said:
One of my breeders (white poodle) suggested grain free food to avoid tear stains. Never had a problem with her. I love the spa blueberry facial wash, I use it on my four pound yorkie’s face and he loves it, no tears or burning.
Stephanie said:
I have a white Frenchie and he had horribly tear stains as a puppy. I then used Angel’s Eyes—and stopped after learning how bad it is for him. I know use powdered buttermilk after receiving this tip for a local rescue agency, and it’s a miracle solution! And a natural one at that! I use Bob’s Red Mill, you can find it on Amazon or in your local Whole Foods or similar grocer.
https://www.amazon.com/Bobs-Red-Mill-Powder-Buttermilk/dp/B016B86TF4/ref=sr_1_3_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1491247608&sr=8-3&keywords=bob%27s+red+mill+powdered+milk
Hamilton said:
Thanks for sharing! My vet also recommended using Desitin (baby diaper rash ointment) on the eyes to help with stains that are already there. We’ve been using it for over a year now and combined with great diet, keeping it dry, and using the Desitin it’s completed solved the tear stain issue for us.
Svetlana said:
Tried EarthBath wipes – they don’t work, unfortunately:( hoping that blueberry facial will work. Did you notice any specific food or ingredient that triggers stain tears? Thank you in advance!