Westie- brown Beard

[tinkerbell23]

Another things ive noticed is his wee face is going a tiny bit brown?

Can we stop that? We keep him on good food and its never happened before, then we changed it to another for a wee treat as we know he loves it, the foods alot more rIcher and since then i think its made his face brown. Hes been groomed since then and bathed at hone also but its still a wee bit brown.....any ideas xxxx

Ta all alwaysngood advice on here xxx

[Ratty2E]

It's one of the perils of a white dog. Some get it round their eyes too, called tear staining. Basically it is caused by tears/saliva and bacterial growth, the moisture is a breeding ground for bacteria which causes a pinky brown stain. Some dogs get it more than others and there is some opinion that it can be down to diet. If he was ok before then i'd change him back to his old food and keep his face clean and dry as best you can. The staining will eventually be cut off with his trims.

[tinkerbell23]

Thank you ratty, the food was a treat (wrong move) so its normal grub again, and i suspected it will go away with trims....so its facecloth in hand now lOl....thanks alot x

[Clanad]

Our Vet gave us good information on the staining you're seeing. Our (actually Mrs. C's) Zuchon is a white coated dog and at the age of about 2 began showing the slightly reddish stains from the eyes, mouth and private parts. The best evidence blames Red Yeast as the culprit. As already stated, the yeast infection can also be invaded by other bacteria... mostly seen in white dogs such as our Bichon Frise cross, but still causing staining in other color dogs... it's just not as visible.
We use a product called Angel Eyes (we're in the U.S.) but the groomer also has good luck with her own concoction of Milk of Magnesia, corn starch (or corn flour) mixed with common hydgrogen peroxide into a paste. We take care around the eyes, of course, but use the paste liberally on the stained areas, let dry and rinse well the next day. She (the groomer) also uses a human hair conditioner following since it can dry the hair. (I refuse to treat the "private parts" though).

[tinkerbell23]

Fab clanad thank u, ive seen a product in the pet shop by "johnstons" for staing, may try it, im aware westies skin is sensitive, but ill check and make sure its ok! As i say its not tooo bad but dont want him to get worse! His eyes are absolutley fine, as is his privates! Just his chin and a tiny but on his front paws, he licks them alot so im convinced its his saliva xxx

[Ratty2E]

I am afraid I do not agree with bleaching around the eyes i know it is a popular remedy among american dog groomers. It it so easy for these things to get into the eyes albeit accidentally and you could end up with a blinded dog in terrible pain. To be honest it's just cosmetic and if you can keep on top of it to stop it getting any worse then I'd just live with it.
My 2 are westie/shih tzu cross and if Pablo's hair grows anything like as fast as theirs then it won't be long before it gets trimmed off anyway.

[tinkerbell23]

Yeah ratty, its not bad so with time it will trim off im sure :0) x

[lankeela]

Try this product, its very good for removing stains around the eyes and face:

http://www.petcetera....emover-118ml-4oz.html