The stuff I read said to add to drinking water --1 tsp to gall. or add to rinse water.. I don't know about cleaning the eye area with it. I would like to know if that is a possibility -- willing to try if it is.

NO! Do not clean the eyes with vinegar! The only thing to use on the eyes are products made specifically for the eyes, and labled 'for opthalmic use'.

The reference to using vinegar in this thread was only as an additive to the drinking water. I would never use vinegar in any eyes, ever!

It's just from what I've seen personally. I don't think there's enough evidence to prove what ingredients may or may not cause tear staining. Like I said, Jackson got terrible eye boogers on Fromm and Wellness, both of which are high quality foods, so maybe there was one little ingredient in there that bothered him. MAYBE it wasn't the food at all, but just environmental and it being a coincidence I just happened to be feeding it or something. Also, I think small dogs in general are more prone to them (as I think you said) so comparing big dogs vs. little dogs probably isn't a good comparison. Sometimes I think it's just genetics over food or environment.

I'm a dogsitter/walker and basically all my relatives have dogs too. I only know three dogs who eat "high quality" foods (A Rottie on TOTW, a Lab on Natural Balance, and a Beagle mix on Orijen). Maybe by pure coincidence, but those 3 dogs are in GREAT physical shape, their energy is awesome, their coats are sooo shiny and soft (it's especially noticeable on the Rottie and the Lab), and just in fantastic shape in general. Compared to, say, my aunts Rottweiler (who was 3yrs old when she rehomed him) who had dandruff galore, his skin was terrible, his breath/teeth were horrible, he always had ear infections, he was constantly itching/scratching, and was on "grocery store brands" his whole life. My grandma's Lab is the same way... she seems healthy, to a normal person who doesn't necessarily pay attention to dogs like I do, LOL, but I see an overweight dog, one who itches constantly, terrible gross teeth, dull coat, shedding like crazy, etc. All looked at as "normal dog stuff" by most. Oh, not to mention, they all poop a TON. I watch 2 Boxers on Science Diet, and I have never in my life seen dogs that poop as much as they do, and as big and smelly. SD-fed dogs in my experience all have this problem. The Rottie on TOTW has poops that aren't all that much bigger than Jackson's and they're easy to pick up.

*shrugs* I don't know... who knows really! Sometimes I second guess myself too. Is it really worth it? Who really knows. There hasn't been any good studies proving one either which way. I mean, I've been living off terrible foods for most of my life (pizza, fast food, sodas, etc) and I'm surprisingly healthy besides being a bit overweight. But I've recently made a huge change in my diet and I've already noticed my face clearing up, my energy levels are up, I'm more motivated in general, etc. Do I look any different to anyone else on the outside? Probably not. But I know it's healthier for me. Could Jackson survive and live a good life on Purina? Probably. But why NOT do better? If hard times came on, I wouldn't hesitate to feed a food like that. But I can afford more right now, so I might as well, I suppose.

Argh -- I just went on a total tangent and half of it had nothing to do with eye boogers. :rolleyes: I'm being a blabber mouth. Sorry, I've got a lot of opinions, hahaha. I commend anyone who just read all that.

Cold weather seems to be contributing to Max and Teddy's eye boogers. When we are out in the cold, I can see their eyes start to tear and when we return home, they have a good amount of black sludge in the corners of their eyes. I have been cleaning them thoroughly every evening and it seems to help keep the staining to a minimum.

I noticed that, too. When he runs around in the cold, his eyes tend to run more. In general, though, he really has no eye goop in the past 6 months. He usually wakes up with a little "crusty" as I call it, pick it out, he's good for the day, LOL.

Called my vet today about tear stains and gunk in eyes. This is what they told me: "Purchase Angel Eyes". :eek: Honestly, I felt like they didn't think it was that important. I am really picky about what Rosie eats and what I give her. Maybe I'll just deal with the tear stains and gunk. Who knows!!!!!???????

Yes, ditzy me! I realized that after I posted. ;)

I enjoy reading your post whether or not I always agree with them..:) They are generally very informative. I just wish that I could find that "miracle food" that all 4 of my dogs could eat. Ive been through so many different brands and had trouble with the food one way or another. As a repsonisble pet owner my dogs will eat the better food, but like I said before it just makes me wonder why some dogs have no trouble what so ever on any food fed to them but my dogs havso many issues .:cool: oh well another one of life's mysteries..lol..

When I took Tucker in last year for his year old check up, I asked his vet what I could do about his eyes and she said that smaller toy dogs are more prone to eye tearing than larger dogs, to clean them on a daily basis with a warm wash cloth.. exactly what Ive been doing and it doesnt work..:cool:

Ha ha! I really thought you were going to say it did work! Lol

Thank you -- I always look forward to your posts too. I'm a nerd who is interested in dog nutrition so I do like hearing and arguing both sides. :p

When I first got Jackson, I was very "well, all our dogs growing up did perfectly fine eating Kibbles n Bits!" But then I looked back and saw how unhealthy they actually were. Once I started doing research, I definitely completely changed my opinions! I let Jackson eat my family members dogs food if we go visit, it's never affected his stomach or anything, but with him not eating it on a daily basis, I can't really judge on one night of eating crappy food, ya know? He also gets Cesar wet food once a week as a 'treat'.

I'm sorry you've had so much trouble w/ food. :( What breeds are all your dogs? I know Tucker is a yorkiepoo.

Ziva's left eye was always twice as "gunky" as the right, now that we have switched to TOTW (pacific stream) the right eye is perfect the left 50 % better,I think the left has more hair growing towards it and am starting to think the food and hair growth are both involved.
BTW Brit I love your posts!-my wheaten looks great on the TOTW(3 months so far), even tho she was always on premium foods this one beats them all, The probiotics are great!

Lexee is my 4 pound toy poodle, Toby is my elder sheltie, and Abby is a beagle..

As best as I can discern (thanks for the Google reference, Kathy), the eye gunk/diet relationship remains anecdotal. Unless your pet has a medical issue, eye gunk is just annoying and diet change may or may not improve it. Just like Jackson's mom is always saying, what works for one may not work for another. What does seem clear to me (no pun, here :)) is we must keep our furbutt's eyes clean and dry to prevent bacterial infection from setting in. It all comes back to warm water, a cotton ball and consistency.

Lexie's at that stage of the wild eye hair and I'm sure that's a big part of why they water so much. After a rough play she'll look up at me all smiles with a bunch of hairs poking her in her eyes, poor thing lol. I'm feeding her the best food so I'm hoping it stops once her hair grows out. Till then I just do the warm washcloth

I had a nightmare about that... and went back to check and saw someone else caught it. THANK YOU.. I tend to be too soft in my warnings

I did find some references online about vinegar in eyewash.. but they said it stung. After some thought

oops -- sorry hit the wrong button lol

I question the people who used it at all and would not want to change hurting Remy. But I will say it has help with the stains on my white Shih Tuz

Good luck
Shinja

sorry guys.. I am not having a good posting day:( I mean adding to drinking water has helped Bailey!!! Just want to be clear:p

Ha! You're cracking me up!

And I think you meant 'chance hurting Remy' instead of 'change hurting Remy'... hehe. :eek:

I had bad dreams too... just thinking of putting ...I'm not even going to say it.... I have seen where people will read up to a certain point in a thread, and do whatever it says! Please always read further, in case someone else posts a warning or negative about a certain thing... sometimes people make typos and stuff too... always triple check and ask someone, or post... (that is why I made it big and bold)

Plus I kept wondering how many people had read that she was going to do it, and were as worried as me about it! Talk about relief! :D

Yeah, totally agree. I really think it's because they're short. I mean, even well-manicured grass hits them in the chest, and they're always putting they're faces in places they shouldn't. Even in the house, they're closer to the carpet than anything, sniffing and rubbing on everything, and that's where most of the dirt and allergens end up.

My bigger (taller) Yorkie gets more of a crusty, sand-like discharge that is very easy to just get out with a finger. She's 2-3 inches taller than my other 3. Big difference in how her eyes are though.

And the rain and snow just gather particulates out of the sky as they fall to earth.... again more crap on the ground the pups have access to.... :D

typos.. who me???? NEVER!!

But your points are well stated. As always:p

I can only share my own experience.
I agree that the most common cause of eye gunk is yeast. An imbalance of the flora in the intestines and gut.
Although diet can have a contributing factor.

When I got my dog, she was 15mnths old. She was somewhat of a rescue. She was in really bad shape but i will just speak on the eye factor. I was given Roxy along with a bag of Purina Puppy Chow. I tossed that right away and started cooking for Roxy, in addition to her still eating a higher quality of kibble.

Her eyes started clearing immediately.

Fast track three years later.

Roxy has no staining what so ever.
What I have noticed in the past few years is that having her glands extracted was a common every four mnths and always full. I noticed that her eyes would not be as bad afterward and for months until it came time to have her glands done again. They I would notice, especially in the morning, her eyes were getting goopy again.
I wash her face several times a day and keep her eyes clear of gunk and hairs, hairs away from her eyes.

In this past year, I again have changed her diet. The first thing I did was cut out the higher glycemic foods in the home cooked meals. I feed 25% vegetable and 75% Animal protein. So I also Increased the quality animal protein. I also changed her kibble, to one that has a low glycemic factor.

The reason I allow Roxy to still eat kibble and making sure she eats at least 50% or more of kibble to that which I feed her is because I am not supplementing with calcium etc. Which one MUST do if you are feeding more than 50% home cooked and kibble or 100% home cooked. Nutrients are essential when feeding an all cooked diet with no kibble.

I have noticed that not only have her glands not filled again and is over the four month mark but her eyes are way better.

I truly believe that diet has a big factor to the eye gunk. Be it due to a yeast problem or otherwise. Some say that it can be hereditary. I do not believe that. We are what we eat.

I have notice with Roxy that when I increased the animal protein and lessened the type of high glycemic vegetables and in place use lower glycemic ones, her coat became softer but also the gunk in her eyes has lessened a lot.

This is only my own experience.

I have also heard that gunky eyes can be a blocked tear duts. To check it means putting the dog out so unless the dog is scheduled for surgery or dental and requires anesthetic, I wouldn't bother getting the dog put out to simply check tear ducts.

Lastly, I met a woman with a couple Maltese dogs. White and who had had tear stain. She said she started feeding her dogs a tsp of plain whole fat yogurt with active bacteria in it, with there food in the morning and claimed that it helped a great deal with the teary eye problem.

I forgot that I had heard about giving them yogurt to stop eye staining. My pups will love that so I'll give it a try.

I do know there is something weird in certain brands of food that affects all 4 of mine. They go from moderate thin tears to big goopy eye boogies. I also feed hi grade kibble and partial homecooked food.

If wellness food is causing teary eye stain why not stop feeding them that brand of food?
Why use chemicals to try and combat the staining?

Doesn't make sense to me.

When I got my dog she was on a low grade purina puppy chow food. Her eyes were totally bad as well as other things.
I ditched that food immediately.
Here eyes started to clear.

I out my dog on a high quality kibble that was in the 28% protein range. I keep her in the 20's as far as protein content goes but also because I cook for her 50% in addition to 50% kibble.

We had a bit of an issue before Christmas. I took all of the higher glycemic foods out of her diet, that included yams, peas and carrots. I also put her on a low glycemic kibble; Go Natural Salmon Formula.
When I feed her cooked food I use two Cruciferous vegetables, portioned equally. Boiled, drained well and mashed. A good quality protein, chicken bot white and brown meat, turkey or beef, all boiled lightly but cooked through. Mince or grind. Add to vegies at a ratio of 25% veg 75% protein.
The Go natural Salmon formula kibble is mediocre in size. Some kibbles are very hard and concerns me so I do tend to moisten with some warm water.
We brush teeth daily so isn't really an issue. She does eat some kibble without any moistening.
Results are that there is barely any gunk in her eyes, her glands haven't been filling up and ... her coat is Way softer.
Overall a much happier girl.
No Chemicals, ever. Either filtered or distilled water, fresh daily.

I met a lady with a couple Maltese dogs once. She had a problem with staining. She began feeding a tsp of whole fat yogurt with active bacteria in the ingredients once a day and the stain cleared.

Please stop using chemicals on the dogs, especially around the eyes, It Is Not Necessary! Probably adds to the problem.

I battles the teary eye and the staining for the past couple years. (Only got my dog August 2008) and we do not have that problem any more. Bottom line here is Diet!
In fact I was using way too many vegetables in her diet before. When I cut them back and added more animal protein, the results were amazing! I also took her off of Roycal Canin 28 and is on Go Naturals Salmon Formula.

We have found paradise! Working like a charm, in more ways than one.
Sometimes, I will add a tsp of whole fat yogurt to her home cooked portion of her meal(s).

Shampoo I use is Vet's Best Oatmeal and Vanilla. Have used it since day one.
We sometimes use Tropiclean. Like twice.

If the food is causing problems, look at the ingredients. Likely there is sweet potato, peas, carrots, rice, wheat and corn in there! Don't feed kibble with those ingredients.

Good post... Islandcanine... I , too, prefer using a more natural approach. Angeleyes is Tylan , an antibiotic. Also, all the comercial products made for removing eye stains state not to get the product in the eye. Anything put that close to the eye will end up in the eye at some point.

I don't agree with cutting the hair around the eyes either, I believe it can cause more irritation, especially to the delicate skin in that area.

I have found that use of Sterile Saline Solution cuts through the gunk and the antibiotic opthalmic ointment handles the bacteria, both in and around the eye. After even one good cleaning, any eyes will look better.

It will take repeated applications for a total fix, but I'd rather use safe, gentle products than risk damage to an eye from being in a hurry. Most dogs with problems have had it for quite a long time, so to expect to fix it overnight is a bit much. Even diet changes take time.

I use probiotics rather than yogurt for mine. Helps with sensitive tummies too, less bouts of unexplained vomiting and diarrhea. Actually, mine have only had 1 occurence of diarrhea in the two years I've been using the probiotics. Before use, it was 3-4 times a year we'd be off to the vet's for treatment, like clockwork!

Also, as the cause may be different for each dog, so may be the cure. But there are many things one can try to eliminate or at least minimize the effects of tear staing and eye goop.

I have found the eye stain removing products don't work for Rosie. I just switched foods and changed to Instinct which has probiotics in it. I am also giving one teaspoon full of yogurt to help with the tear stains. Either I am crazy or something is working. Her tear stains are not gone yet; however, they appear to be getting better. Don't know if it is the change in food, the probiotics, or the yogurt or the combination. But something seems to be working. Another thing about Angel Eyes is it seems pretty expensive to me. However, I will say that my vet recommended it which surprised me a little. Where I get my dog food sells it and they wanted $75 for the larger bottle. I think it was $35 for the small. Seemed a little steep to me.

I remember when I switched Jackson to NV Instinct, his tear stains basically disappeared after about a week of being on the food. He had been on Wellness previously. That was like our first 'miracle' food, and it was also the first food I remember him LOVING!! He was on it for about 6 months, I can't remember why I stopped. I think I just wanted to try Orijen/Acana. I still feed the Instinct canned food. :thumbup: Glad you are starting to see improvement!!

Rosie loves it too! I can't believe how well she does. And I only feed her a little bit. It is 1 3/4 cup for 50 pounds. Since she is 5 lb she don't get very much. But she sure enjoys what she is getting. :) Do you think it could be the probiotics in the food helping with the tear stains?

We Are What We Eat
 

It is probably due to what ISN'T in the food than what is in it.
Compare ingredients.
BTW, this is remarkable and am happy to read of such improvements.
I believe we all are what we eat, including our dogs.

May I please ask, what does the NV stand for in this particular food? I am not sure that I have heard of it before.
Thanks.

Natural Yogurt for Tear Stain
 

A teaspoon of whole milk Natural yogurt with active bacteria, added to our dogs food in the mornings has been reported to help with tear stain.
My dog has no staining, at all. Can't even say she has teary eyes either and she has yogurt at least four if not five times a week.
I do not feed her any Junk Foods, right no no grains at all and all low glycemic and not too many vegetables, boiled not steamed. (I cook 50% for her). I have her on the Go Naturals Salmon Formula (other 50% of her diet and which does have oatmeal but a small cost to pay in exchange for no fillers, no chemical preservatives or additives and No High Glycemic Vegetables).
Prior to that she was getting gunk in her eyes but still no staining, as I have always fed her yogurt.
When I cut out the high glycemic vegetables, boiled all vegetables and drained well before mashing to mix with her lightly boiled but cooked through protein and changed her kibble to the Go formula that we are using, the changes we pretty much overnight.
Not even one drop of gunk in her eyes the next morning. I am still amazed.
I had also decreased the ratio I was using for cooked vegetables and increased the animal protein. Again, amazing results!
I believe the eye gunk has something to do with the assimilation of foods.
Getting the right balance allows for better use of the nutrients perhaps. .?
Not sure but this is what is working for us to accomplish Zero gunk in the eyes at all.
For the past couple years I have been feeding yogurt and Roxy has never had tear stain after that. Dhe did have some when I first got her.

Huge difference.