22/09/2024
As ๐ก๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป๐ฎ๐น ๐ฃ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ต ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ช๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ธ draws to a close, one final condition to bring to you, tear staining. We hope you have found this week's posts informative. Remember to speak to your Vet if you have any concerns about your pet's eyes.
๐ง๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ ๐ฆ๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด
Tear stains are those reddish-brown marks that can appear on the fur around your petโs eyes. These stains can be unsightly and noticeable, especially on pale fur.
Dog and cat tears naturally contain high amounts of porphyrins โ these are iron containing compounds derived from red blood cell breakdown in the body. When tears sit on the skin the porphyrin staining will intensify in the presence of light.
Not only that, when tears sit on the skin around the eye, they make it damp which favours local bacterial growth โ some bacteria can produce their own porphyrins therefore contributing to tear staining.
Tear staining is more likely to occur in certain breeds where tears find their way onto the face more easily, rather than draining normally down the tear ducts. For instance, this may be due to the shape of the face, abnormalities of the tear ducts, or small hairs around the corners of the eye that wick tears onto the face.
In most cases tear staining is largely a cosmetic problem and your pet will lead an otherwise normal life, however some patients with tear stains may have underlying eye problems which mean they overproduce tears due to ocular irritation. These tears can then spill over onto the face resulting in tear staining. It is important to ensure underlying reasons for tear staining have been ruled out by a vet as, if ignored, the underlying problem may progress and be harder to treat.
Some breeds that can be more prone to tear stains:
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