# Recent change in tear staining



## zurismom (Jul 28, 2009)

Hey all you wise Maltese owners! I need help with a recent change that has occured with my baby. She is just two years old and has not had any tear staining until all of a sudden in January she started having trouble with severe staining. I did not change anything in her diet or grooming. I have tried to wash her face every morning with saline. She has also started to have saliva staining around her mouth and vulva. I tried using probiotics and that hasn't helped. She eats Stella and chewys freeze dried raw. And she drinks dasani bottled water.
I intend to get her checked for plugged tear ducts, but meanwhile do any of you wise people have any experience with this happening? Any help or advise would be greatly appreciated!


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

My girl London went through the same thing last year. I suspected either a developed food allergy or environmental allergy. London's started developing the symptoms around November. She started chewing on her paws and got a nailbed infection. We went through topical and oral antibiotics to clear it up and it took about 3 months. Eventually she stopped staining and has been fine ever since. I think it was either due to an infection or seasonal allergies.


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

That's why staining is so difficult to address. Looks like you are doing everything right, but it can still crop up. What works on one does not always work on another. What type of probiotics did you try? Often people think just giving yogurt is the same thing. But there is dairy and sugar in yogurt which can make things worse. If the probiotic you are using is animal based, it has dairy in it...which can make staining worse. Is it one that needs to be refrigerated? The one I've had the best results with is Animal Essentials. But often people don't realize it needs to be refrigerated once it's been opened. But again, what works for some may not always work for another. I've had a couple people tell me AE probiotics did not help their baby. Could be other reasons that it didn't help but I've never really pursued some of the more detailed questions I really would like to have asked. So far I've just chalked it up to what works for some, doesn't always work for another.

You may want to check her teeth. I've noticed a bad tooth or low grade infection in the mouth can cause staining. It most likely won't be something you'll be able to see yourself so have your vet check. Also have your vet check the ears.

To me, it sounds like there might be a yeast problem. But I don't know how that can happen since you are feeding a grain free food. Do you feed treats that have grain? Or are you giving a new kind of treat?

Could also be a seasonal or environmental allergy. It's just soooo difficult and sooooo frustrating I know.


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## zurismom (Jul 28, 2009)

Thanks for the quick replies and help!
No new treats have been used. I feed her freeze dried chicken treats. (no additives or other ingredients) She is a very, very picky eater and her favorite protein is chicken, and she has taken to the Stella and chewys chicken the best. So I would hate to have to try to get her to eat a different flavor. Anyway, I used the Iams probiotic called prostora. I followed their protocol for tear staining. No change and I feel like her staining is getting worse over time. She just had her teeth cleaned and checked in late december, ironically just a week or two prior to this starting so I was concerned that the sedation could have started it off? But I would think since it's been almost three months since the cleaning that things would start calming down by now. I will have the teeth checked when I have the tear ducts checked. This is so frustrating!


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

zurismom said:


> Thanks for the quick replies and help!
> No new treats have been used. I feed her freeze dried chicken treats. (no additives or other ingredients) She is a very, very picky eater and her favorite protein is chicken, and she has taken to the Stella and chewys chicken the best. So I would hate to have to try to get her to eat a different flavor. Anyway, I used the Iams probiotic called prostora. I followed their protocol for tear staining. No change and I feel like her staining is getting worse over time. She just had her teeth cleaned and checked in late december, ironically just a week or two prior to this starting so I was concerned that the sedation could have started it off? But I would think since it's been almost three months since the cleaning that things would start calming down by now. I will have the teeth checked when I have the tear ducts checked. This is so frustrating!



I've just done a quick search on Iam's Prostora. No where on any site, even Iams, does it give ingredients or a guaranteed analysis. It only mentions one strain of the probiotic family,  Bifidobacterium. I would encourage you to try another type of probiotic. One that specifically says it is plant based, rich in lipase & digestive enzymes, and contains as many strains of the probiotic family as possible. It's important that the product has live active cultures.

I'm wondering if the stress of having the dental could have triggered this? Some babies are more sensitive then others. Or maybe you just need to build her immune system back up. Stress can do damage to the immune system. The high quality food and treats you are giving are great. You may want to check into some Colostrum to help build her immune system back up.


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

Oh just wanted to add that chicken seems to be the most common allergies in dogs. Many holistic vets encourage rotating proteins to help prevent allergies from developing. Also, we get different things from chicken as we do fish, lamb, beef etc... So it's a good idea to rotate. Perhaps she's developed an allergy to chicken. This could be very difficult since you said she's a picky eater and does best on chicken. And this may not be it at all. Just wanted to mention it though.


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## zurismom (Jul 28, 2009)

I was wondering about the stress, too. Where do you get the animal essentials and the colostrum from? Online or local?
Why do you suppose her fur of her mustache area is also staining? I was reading about different waters and how the water source is usually the cause of staining around the mouth but i have always used Dasani. So now i am worried dasani changed something in their water or the bottle. I also wonder a lot about the plastic in the water bottles. Since I know that plastic dishes can cause allergic reactions what about the water bottles?


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

zurismom said:


> I was wondering about the stress, too. Where do you get the animal essentials and the colostrum from? Online or local?
> Why do you suppose her fur of her mustache area is also staining? I was reading about different waters and how the water source is usually the cause of staining around the mouth but i have always used Dasani. So now i am worried dasani changed something in their water or the bottle. I also wonder a lot about the plastic in the water bottles. Since I know that plastic dishes can cause allergic reactions what about the water bottles?



I sell Animal Essential Products in my store. I always encourage people to support their local specialty pet boutiques so check with one of them first. I'm researching myself which brand of Colostrum I think is best and will be bringing that in as well. I don't sell that yet.

I'm not a huge fan of bottled water. You are never guaranteed it's source is really that pure and I worry it can be missing some vital minerals needed. I'm also not a huge fan of all those plastic bottles. I like to use reverse osmosis water.


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