Hi, I'm Dr. Fiona Caldwell and I'm a practicing veterinarian at Idaho Veterinary Hospital. I'm answering questions from Pets Best Facebook page today.
The first question comes from Jennifer. "Any recommendations to help clear up tear stains?" Tear staining is really common in the small, white breed dogs. More of the tears actually spill out from the eyes and cause a rust-colored stain on their white fur. Using a product that's meant for tear staining can be effective, something like Angel Eyes, which has an antibiotic in it. It's a mild antibiotic call Tylosin that can be used somewhat long-term and sometimes provides some relief from this.
If you're really careful you can use a really small toothbrush and actually brush the hair. Protecting the fur from the tears would be another thing you can try. If you spray a little hairspray on that toothbrush and then use that to coat the hair, sometimes that can help. Obviously, be sure to avoid getting any products in your pet's eyes.
There is an old wives' tales of using parsley. You could try it. It might not work but it certainly isn't going hurt. You want to use either dried or fresh parsley, probably about a half-teaspoon or so, sprinkled on the food. Some people say that works really well.
The next question comes from Pam, who says, "I have a very spoiled 1½-year-old Border Collie/Lab mix that was diagnosed with a knee problem which resolved, but the anti-inflammatory medications messed up her appetite. I made her human meals using hamburger and grilled chicken to get her to eat and now she refuses her dog food. I've tried several different kinds, wet and dry. Any suggestions?"
This is really common. Dogs are smart, especially Border Collie-type dogs. These guys are really smart and they know that if they refuse their dog food, eventually you're going to cave in and give them people food. What I would I have you do is get your resolve together. She's not going to starve herself. I would put her dog food down and if she doesn't eat, pick it up and feed it to her for dinner. I would do this for at least 48 hours. If she doesn't eat anything in 48 hours, you might contact your veterinarian about what to do next and to make sure that there isn't something else going on with her medication that's causing a serious problem. Most dogs will eat when they're hungry.
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