# Dogs with white beards



## Guest (Jan 1, 2013)

Does your dog have a stained beard?

Kenzie's is quite brown - not dirty but stained I guess. I assume that if I cleaned and dried her face after every meal and drink it would stay whiter, but I've never done this. 

Is there any way to clean her beard if its already stained?


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## AmberNero (Jun 6, 2010)

Not sure about cleaning, but this time of year there'll be plenty of fake Santa beards for her to borrow :ihih: 

Seriously though, is it bolidly fluids staining it, because angel tears are the same colour, arent they?

ETA: I love your sig pic!


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## babycham2002 (Oct 18, 2009)

Bombers comes up nicer after a proper bath










I trim the worst off of it,I'd say the best way to get rid of it properly would be to wash it after meals and trim regularly to remove the discoloured beard permanently

In theory you could use white chalk in it for a temporary solution for say a photo shoot or something.


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## missRV (Nov 9, 2012)

It will be bodily fluids. We'd sorted Rosie's tear stains out with a product from pets at home (called tear stain remover) and diamond eyes, but they've got worse with her teething she now has a bright pink T Zone... luckily her colouring is white and apricot so it looks like part of her fur... it does go under her mouth though. This pic was taken 2 days ago, the day after a bath.


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## Guest (Jan 1, 2013)

I think the darker brown bits at the corners of her mouth are bodily fluid caused, but I think the general brown that goes all the way under her chin is more likely to be from when she gets a wet beard from drinking. I'll try trimming it and cleaning her mouth more often


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## SixStar (Dec 8, 2009)

Red stains, particularly around the beard, and paws on dogs who chew/lick at their feet, are saliva stains.

It seems to be extremely common in Westies, but I must admit, I don't like seeing it. I wipe Alfie's mouth after he's had a drink - I always have a slobber cloth on my belt loop because of the big lads! - but I don't clean it as such, just wipe it relatively dry, and that seems to keep the staining away. Nothing will remove the staining once it's got very dark, if you want rid of it you will have to cut it out, and as it grows through again, start again with it


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## AmberNero (Jun 6, 2010)

Very weird! I wonder what it is in the saliva which makes it turn brown, I know humans saliva can leave patches- like on pillows, but babies are the most dribbly things on the planet and they don't stain :lol: Must be some kind of enzyme?

Since Nibs has had his teeth out his muzzle has turned a red-brown, but as he is brindled it doesn't really notice. Will do if he goes grey in the classic 'mask' way though.


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## Reverie (Mar 26, 2012)

I have struggled and struggled with the dreaded 'beard stain', and NOTHING I have done has helped.  Tried wiping it clean after every meal, tried using 'diamond eyes' on it, tried giving her filtered drinking water, tried giving ACV. I feed raw so it's not diet related, it's all made bugger all difference.  I therefore think that a lot of the time the amount of staining is genetic. It mostly just gets left now, but still wiped after she's eaten. I've accepted it will never be snowy white .


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## Guest (Jan 9, 2013)

Just an update on this - I've been wiping McKenzie's face as often as possible and it's definitely made a difference to the colouring around her mouth :thumbsup:


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## lols82 (Oct 14, 2012)

McKenzie said:


> Does your dog have a stained beard?
> 
> Kenzie's is quite brown - not dirty but stained I guess. I assume that if I cleaned and dried her face after every meal and drink it would stay whiter, but I've never done this.
> 
> Is there any way to clean her beard if its already stained?


Yes. My little dog is white and I go 'Spa Lavish face wash' from Amazon, it was around £11 but it will last absolute ages and smells lovely. I got it mainly for his tear stains and around his mouth and it's working a treat.

EDIT:

This is Sammy now, he had really bad tear stains due to his teething, his mouth looks a wee bit browny as he just had his face in his water bowl before this was taken...


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## Howl (Apr 10, 2012)

Ours usually come up white after a good wash but I cut out the very dark brown area. Hair type makes a big difference Doris has this teflon like coat nothing stains or sticks to after a walk her mud dries falls off and she is clean. Elsie stains and holds mud until bath time.

snow white 









mucky chops


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## MyMillie (Jun 17, 2012)

Reverie said:


> I have struggled and struggled with the dreaded 'beard stain', and NOTHING I have done has helped.  Tried wiping it clean after every meal, tried using 'diamond eyes' on it, tried giving her filtered drinking water, tried giving ACV. I feed raw so it's not diet related, it's all made bugger all difference.  I therefore think that a lot of the time the amount of staining is genetic. It mostly just gets left now, but still wiped after she's eaten. I've accepted it will never be snowy white .


Certainly with you on this ... Millies is the same , but up to about 3 months ago hers was lovely and white, she was on raw then, but for some strange reason she stopped eating it, wouldn't touch it at all? I was worried sick and vet said I had no choice but to try her on kibble, I gave her Origen and she loved it...the little bugger  and that's when her beard started going a ginger colour....so I put it down to the kibble causing the change in her saliva???....could be totally wrong with that though....

we just call her "ginger chops" now


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## ballybee (Aug 25, 2010)

Dan is a nightmare!!! I am always at his beard, have tried a few products but as spinones have jowls they domdrool so it's impossible to keep it White 

Once a month I shampoo his beard to get as much out as possible, then I just scrub his beard everytime he has a drink or if he's really hot/excited and drooling. His muzzle has an orange tint to it so it's not horrendously obvious that he has a stained beard


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## Reverie (Mar 26, 2012)

MyMillie said:


> Certainly with you on this ... Millies is the same , but up to about 3 months ago hers was lovely and white, she was on raw then, but for some strange reason she stopped eating it, wouldn't touch it at all? I was worried sick and vet said I had no choice but to try her on kibble, I gave her Origen and she loved it...the little bugger  and that's when her beard started going a ginger colour....so I put it down to the kibble causing the change in her saliva???....could be totally wrong with that though....
> 
> we just call her "ginger chops" now


See I feed raw and I thought that would make a difference but it didn't 

The problem with Buffy is she licks her beard constantly, she's always done it, so it's always kind of damp, therefore I doubt it will ever be snowy white. 

I've just started using 'Eye Envy' which is natural, non toxic, topical stuff to see if that makes a difference to the beard... I doubt it but I thought I'd try one last thing before giving in to the ginger chops.


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## Howl (Apr 10, 2012)

Buffy come live with me, my OH has ginger in his beard he won't mind!! :001_wub:


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## Reverie (Mar 26, 2012)

Howl said:


> Buffy come live with me, my OH has ginger in his beard he won't mind!! :001_wub:


Does that mean I can have your girlies for a trial run then? :001_tt1:


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## toffee44 (Oct 21, 2011)

Well at the moment with all the mud and water about Buster a the all new Brown and Blue Old English Sheepdog.

I trim his beard alot but unfortunately he is a very dribbly Old English Sheepdog so stains quickly.


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## lozzibear (Feb 5, 2010)

This thread reminds me about a conversation I had with my neighbour... he was telling me about how he saw a Westie with pinky red paws, and that he didn't know they came in that colour... I asked if he was sure it wasn't just the skin through the fur or staining, and he said 'no, it was pink fur. Looked very interesting' :lol:


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## missnaomi (Jun 4, 2010)

I feel terrible saying this...but this is something which actually puts me off dogs with white or pale beards. My MIL has a standard schnauzer - I find his beard really disconcerting!! I'd be far more likely to own a scottie or a cairn than a westie or sealyham for purely beard based reasons. And I really like OES but the beardyness puts me off...

I think I have some sort of beard issues


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## Reverie (Mar 26, 2012)

missnaomi said:


> I feel terrible saying this...but this is something which actually puts me off dogs with white or pale beards. My MIL has a standard schnauzer - I find his beard really disconcerting!! I'd be far more likely to own a scottie or a cairn than a westie or sealyham for purely beard based reasons. And I really like OES but the beardyness puts me off...
> 
> I think I have some sort of beard issues


I always said this too, I told my OH that we could get a schnauzer as long as we did everything we could to keep the beard white... Little did I know how difficult it would be. :laugh: It doesn't bother me too much any more, I love my girly just the same, but I'm thinking my next schnauzer will be black. 

I love a beardy dog though. :001_wub:


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## lols82 (Oct 14, 2012)

Reverie said:


> I always said this too, I told my OH that we could get a schnauzer as long as we did everything we could to keep the beard white... Little did I know how difficult it would be. :laugh: It doesn't bother me too much any more, I love my girly just the same, but I'm thinking my next schnauzer will be black.
> 
> I love a beardy dog though. :001_wub:


It's not the easiest Sammy needs washed after every walk and his face gets washed almost daily but it's worth it to keep them looking white.


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## MyMillie (Jun 17, 2012)

Reverie said:


> See I feed raw and I thought that would make a difference but it didn't
> 
> The problem with Buffy is she licks her beard constantly, she's always done it, so it's always kind of damp, therefore I doubt it will ever be snowy white.
> 
> I've just started using 'Eye Envy' which is natural, non toxic, topical stuff to see if that makes a difference to the beard... I doubt it but I thought I'd try one last thing before giving in to the ginger chops.


I think I will give this a try too  I will take pics of her beard at different stages to see if it works and we could compare the gingers


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## Reverie (Mar 26, 2012)

MyMillie said:


> I think I will give this a try too  I will take pics of her beard at different stages to see if it works and we could compare the gingers


That's a great idea! The Ginger Beard Diary.


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## beris (Aug 30, 2010)

My Samoyed developed tear stains and brown around her ruff, I was advised to change her food and watch for tomatoes in her dog food. She was fed Burns food and they add tomatoes so I changed her To 'Natures Menue' wet and all the brown disappeared over a couple of months.

That was three years ago. She has now got staining coming again on her ruff, I have put this down to the medication she is on for her arthritis as this is the only change in her diet.


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## babycham2002 (Oct 18, 2009)

McKenzie said:


> Just an update on this - I've been wiping McKenzie's face as often as possible and it's definitely made a difference to the colouring around her mouth :thumbsup:


fab news :thumbup:


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