Taking care of a dog's eyes and ears is an essential duty of a good pet parent. If your dog has unsightly tearstains don't resort to pharmaceuticals to solve a cosmetic issue, especially when there are safer, all natural alternatives available. The same goes for ear health, make sure you use only the safest and most gentle remedies to help prevent ear infections and clean out dirt and wax build up
The five most common reasons for tearstains
If you've ever seen a dog with red or brown marks in the areas around and just under the eyes, you've seen a dog that is suffering from tear staining . The staining can matte around the dog's eyes and leave a gooey, thick mess that is hard to clean. Most people assume that the stains are caused by excessive moisture from the dog's eyes and that they're just a fact of life. In fact though, tear stains have many different causes, and figuring out the root of the problem could end up saving you some work and also improve your dog's life. [read more]
The food your dog eats might be causing ear infections
Food allergies are often the culprit in cases of otitis (ear inflammation). Otitis or conjunctivitis could also be associated with atopy (allergies to inhaled dusts and pollens). In one study, researchers examined 100 dogs with chronic ear problems to try and work out why they kept developing these infections. Of those 100 dogs, 43 of them were found to have underlying allergies that were the primary cause of their otitis. [read more]
Ear Infections and Dogs
Some dogs are prone to ear infections and there are many causes so sometimes it's hard to pinpoint what the problem is. In fact, most ear infections or problems are actually not a primary illness, but are a consequence of another illness, such as allergies to food or air allergens like pollen, dirty moist ears, floppy ear anatomy that traps moisture (after a bath, a swim, or a rainy day), immune suppression or other problems. [read more]
How to treat conjunctivitis in dogs
Conjunctivitis, as the name suggests, affects the conjunctiva, which is the inside of your dog's eyelids. It also affects the sclera, the white of the eye. These become very red, with prominent blood vessels, and there is often a yellowish discharge. Your dog will usually close the affected eye, but he's not winking at you; his eyes hurt ![read more]
Do tearstains only occur on white dogs?
Tear stains occur when tears spill from the eye onto the surrounding hairs. The damp hairs and skin soon become an ideal place for bacterial and yeast organisms to grow, and this quickly leads to staining of the affected area. Typically the fur becomes red-brown discolored because one of the most common yeasts involved is the Red Yeast.[read more]