Stank beard.
 

About once every one or two weeks, when Bella has an empty stomach, she will hawk up some clear stomach juices. It's not a problem to clean up the floor or carpet, but some of the juices get caught in her beard, resulting in a strong sour smell that I call "stank beard." Two questions:

(1) Does anyone think that infrequent vomiting of clear liquid could be a sign of a health problem, and if so, what? She doesn't seem in any pain otherwise, and goes about her daily business--eating, playing, pooping, etc.

(2) Are there any good remedies for the sour smell that gets stuck in her beard in between baths? I can't seem to get the smell out without giving her a full bath. I've tried washing her face with a wet towel, but that doesn't seem to help much, and once it's dry, the smell is set until she gets a complete bath.

I just called my vet and got a preliminary answer to question 1. The vet thinks it is because her stomach is empty, and that causes mild stomach upset. The vet suggested that I make sure that Bella has a snack before bedtime so her stomach stays full all night, and see if that relieves her symptoms. (She usually vomits in the morning, before she's eaten.)

If that doesn't work, I am to call back in three weeks and discuss giving her omeprazole (generic prilosec). I think if that's the case, I will bring her in for a checkup, just to be sure nothing else is wrong. (Right now, her vomiting is very infrequent.)

I still need an answer to my question about what to do about "stank beard." I've read other threads where people talk about the beard smelling like a sour dirty dish towel, and that is accurate. None of the threads discussed how to get rid of the smell, though.

While I'm waiting for replies about how to treat Bella's "stank beard," I have a question about what high value, yet healthy, snack I can give to Bella before bedtime that will keep her full and not upset her stomach. She currently eats Wellness Core grain free dry dog food for small breeds. The vet recommended I give her a tasty wet dog food at bedtime. Wellness Core makes a grain free wet dog food. Has anyone had experience with that, and do you think that would make a good bedtime snack for Bella? Here is a link: https://www.chewy.com/dog/wellness-c...urkey/dp/34387

We have this problem too. There is nothing to clean the stink except a bath. I have tried everything and nothing gets rid of the small but a bath. I hate that smell. Even a beard wash does not clean the smell. I think it gets on their leg hair too.

I leave dog food out for ours. Although Anna is slightly over weight, she hasn't gained any weight in more than a year. The other two do not have weight problems even with food available at all times. Willie also gets clear vomit if he goes without eating. Free feeding seems to have remedied this. As for the stink, not sure. Baby wipes?

I tried baby wipes- doesn't make a dent in the stink. I even tried Natures Miracle and that did nothing. I tell little Zoey, "your face stinks more than your butt."

As long as you say that in a nicey nicey sweet voice, it's all good:).

Of course I say it in a nice voice. I wouldn't want to hurt her little heart.

Not sure which face wash you guys tried but I use the Plum Perfect facial cleaner by espree that I got from toplinepet.com. I use it when Zoey's face become stinky and does a good job for her.

How about wiping her down completely and not just the beard? I also use the waterless shampoo for those "in-between" bath times. I absolutely love it!

Oh, we know all too well of the "stank beard". Toto is the master of it. He barfs up the yellow foamy bile fairly often (at least a few times a month) and we have to make sure he gets enough to eat at night bc we tend to sleep in in the mornings, while he wakes up bright and early and just sits there waiting for us to get up. We've tried waterless bath spray, wipes, but yeah nothing really gets it out other than a full bath. We try just a beard bath too but that ends up in nearly 75% of his tiny body wet anyway from him fighting the water.

We already free feed Bella, and she has good weight. The problem seems to be her waking up hungry.

Stinky Bella :(
 

Apart from wipes I have no solution apart from stopping the throwing up events!
From this site, it seems fairly common for some dogs to throw up foamy liquid when their stomachs are empty. It is probably GERD, as humans get.
My dog occasionally had this happen, especially in the early morning, and my vet prescribed Pepcid. My dog is 10 lbs and I give him 2.5 mg of a 10 mg tablet with his last small meal before bed, at 8 PM. I feed the normal kibble/ chicken / rice meal mix, but only about a quarter of the usual meal quantity. I do this rather than treats and snacks. After a short post dinner walk he sleeps from 8 PM to 6 am and is fine the next morning. I usually feed him on waking. Should he have a bad stomach I give him 5 mg at night and then again with breakfast if he needs it. This drug seems well tolerated and has worked well so far.
I think it is milder than Prilosec but your vet would better advise on the right antacid and dose for your dog.
Hope you find the right meds and that this nasty habit goes away and she no longer has the stinky face.
By the way, nothing was found on testing, just an acidy stomach!

I'll look into the Plum Perfect cleaner. Waterless shampoo doesn't seem to work for her beard smell, and wiping her down completely would be practically the same as giving her a bath. I found Plum Perfect on amazon:

Amazon

Thanks for the advice!!! Bella's beard stinks only after she throws up, so I think the key is prevention. I will work on my vet's bedtime snack advice, and if that doesn't work, I'll take her in for a checkup just in case, and try the prilosec under the vet's direction. I'm relieved to hear that this is not an unusual problem.

Oh, one more thing we'll try is a shorter beard the next time she's at the groomer. At her last grooming, they left her facial hair too long. I was watching a TV show the other day where one woman held another woman's hair while she was throwing up after a drinking binge. I immediately thought of Bella, but there's no practical way to do that with a dog. I'm sure I'd scare her, LOL!

I use Plum Perfect and love it,its tearless as well.

I forgot to mention that I give Zoey 1/4 Pepcid pill every night with her small dinner. This has helped a lot but she still barfs occasionally.

Pip used to throw up, whenever she was stressed or had an empty tummy. It was happening several times a week. (She's been checked by the vet)
What's worked for her is leaving dry mix out, in our bedroom, we hear her eating it usually around 3am. She also has access all day, but barely touches it. She gets chicken everyday, otherwise she'd be under weight.
In the morning, and last thing at night she gets- Pet Munchies 100% natural dog treats,duck breast fillets cut into a tiny amount, like three slithers/pieces the size of my finger nail. It seems to stop the sickness. Works when she's excited/anxious also. (Perhaps you could get something similar, if they don't do it in the US)
We thought as she got older, we could cut it out, but no luck so far, if we do, she wakes up, throwing up in the night.
We've tried veg treats, which she gets during the day, but they've not worked as well.

Good luck finding what works for your little one.

We tried cutting his beard a few months ago. It just made it easier for it to get in his mouth, and since he needs a dental, his breath stinks so it made his beard stink too. The longer hair lays flatter and doesn't get in his mouth as easily. Longer works better for us.

I have to give my boy a bedtime snack or he will also vomit in the morning... I love the fresh pet roll of dog food... It's pretty low fat and it keeps well in the fridge and I just slice a small piece and cut it up into bite size pieces and it's a fav! Also cooked sweet potato cut into small pieces. And the stank beard is very familiar to me!! I have to wash his little face bc it's so offensive.

We call this "stink face". Her fave toy is called "stink baby". The saliva causes the smell.

I figured out a high value treat for Bella. It turns out that if I put her regular kibble in my hand, she thinks I'm giving her something special and gobbles it right up out of my hand. She's a simple, trusting soul, LOL! That's how I gave her her bedtime snack last night, and started her on breakfast first thing this morning. I'll keep everyone posted on her progress.

Bella update...
 

Just a quick update on Bella's condition. Since I've been more conscientious about making sure that she eats at key times of the day, Bella has not thrown up, so it looks like she was throwing up because of any empty stomach. We make sure that she eats (1) first thing in the morning, (2) when I get home from work at 3 PM, and (3) just before bedtime. She is allowed to free feed at all other times during the day, but she usually doesn't eat at other times. I can usually trick her into eating by either giving her regular food (Wellness Core Grain Free Small Breed) kibbles out of my hand, or by throwing them onto the floor in front of her. She seems to think that those kibbles are more special, and after she's eaten a few, she will continue to eat them out of her regular food bowl. If the kibble trick doesn't work, I prime her appetite by giving her her second favorite treat, Pet Botanics Mini Training Rewards, Beef Flavor. After she's eaten a couple, she will usually eat regular kibbles out of my hand. If the Pet Botanics treats don't work, then I pull out her all time favorite treat, thawed frozen peas. She will attack me to get at those, LOL! Five or six peas will usually get her appetite primed enough to eat food kibbles out of my hand.

We took her to the groomer yesterday, and they cut her beard shorter for just in case. She looks quite nice. I'll post photos later.

I think you hit on the answer. If this does not stop the puking try giving her 1/4 Pepcid pill with her evening meal. My vet recommended this and others on the board also give the pill. Stink face is just the pits!

Sounds like you've got it under control!

Many dogs will vomit bile if they have an empty belly. It's very normal and a management issue to remedy. Break up meals closer together or offer snacks, and that usually resolves it.

Bella with a shorter beard...
 

Here is a photo of Bella with her shorter beard. Her knees are NOT bald--that's a trick of the light. It's so hard to get a perfect photo, even if she's a perfect dog :).

Gorgeous!!! And she knows it too! I love the cut

Bella is adorable! Glad you found what works for her. Teddy had the same problem when he was younger, vomiting bile in the morning. He has a fast metabolism, so he always needs a little something in his belly. We use kibble too.

We give a couple kibble at a time as rewards for various things all the way up to bedtime, and then I feed him breakfast at 5 am. I've kept him on the 3 meals per day plan.

We give treats like baby carrots at night. The dogs love them and the dense fiberous carrots seem to keep them happy until morning.

You can clean the beard easily with one of the wet wipes that they sell for dogs. Or there are water-less shampoos that you could use.

If my dog was throwing up that frequently I would be looking into a different food. There is something in the digestive system that is not agreeing with the baby.