Eye goobers

[Cynthia Shoe]

Hi folks, 

Does anyone have advice for eye goobers? Lambeau gets them all them time. I feel like as soon as I pick one off, he has more. Could his food be causing extra discharge or is it normal? 

Thanks!

[Tracey & Spike]

Spike had them all the time. The thing that worked wonders for us? Canned pure pumpkin. Not the pie filling. Just pure pumpkin. He gets a tablespoon several times a week. It took a while for it to really help. But we hardly get them anymore. And no more staining either! It's a trick I read about on here actually

[Cynthia Shoe]

That is a good idea! I have lots of canned pumpkin, as it is one of my favorite things to cook with - chili, pasta sauce, pancakes! It is amazing how many things you can add it to for protein and it doesn't change the flavor! 

So it would be easy for me to throw a dollop at him every few days! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

This is really beside the point, but just FYI, pumpkin is primarily carbohydrate, not protein. You generally add it to a dog's diet for fiber, but whatever the reason, it does nothing to increase protein. 

[Cynthia Shoe]

As a migrainer, I have to count my protein pretty carefully. What I have in my cabinet shows: 1/2 c. of canned pumpkin adds fiber (5 grams), protein (2 grams), and many other vitamins. I am talking for myself and not my pup on this one. When I need to cram protein, it is an easy way to sneak a little in. Smoothies, oatmeal, sauces,and soups are all great places to add a 1/2 cup. And it makes things nice and smooth! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

All organic matter contains some protein, but the protein acquired from plant foods is not complete protein, for dogs or for humans. It does not contain all of the essential amino acids (those that the body cannot make itself and must get from food). I'm not familiar with the relationship between protein and migraines, but from a nutritional standpoint, pumpkin (and all plant foods) provides carbohydrates, not protein. The actual macronutrient breakdown of canned pumpkin is 83% carbohydrate, 7% fat and only 8% protein. Just providing the info so that someone who is told to add protein to their dog's diet (or their own) understands that pumpkin would not be a great way to do that. :) 

http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/vegetables-and-vegetable-produc...

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Contrary to popular beliefs, it really has nothing to do with food. I think it's pretty common. All of my dogs have had this. As long as it isn't a huge amount, isn't green and  doesn't have an odor, I wouldn;t worry about it.  I know I have debris in the corners of my eyes when I wake up every day, lol. 

[Lori, Winnie, Bob and Indie]

How old is Lambeau? Winnie went through a period of time when she was teething that she constantly had a lot of wet eye goobers. Once she was done teething, it went back to a more "normal" amount- i.e. "pick them out occasionally" amount.

[Cynthia Shoe]

Ohh that is good to know! Lambeau is 5 months and just lost his canine teeth! Yay! He is right in the middle of teething. I do feel like it has been worse this past month. I can clean him up in the morning and he is all goobery again in the afternoon. 

[Jenny and Cooper]

Happy New Year! Cooper had a lot of eye discharge when he was about 9 months old. I thought he had eye infection. I didn't take him to the vet. It just went away on its own after a few weeks. Now he just has it in the morning like usual. Throughout the day he might get some too. Anyway, I was worried at one point just like you. I think it was probably because he stuck his head into the bushes a lot. Lol prob got them dirty.

[Cynthia Shoe]

Ha! Lambeau lives in the bushes! Anything that has wood, or is made from wood, is his friend! Maybe that is part of it. 

[Kate, Mel, Tenley & Harper]

Helps quite a bit to keep their hair shorter between their eyes. My groomer takes it down very short and it helps considerably, especially for removal of the boogers. My three don't have much eye discharge at all, but what they do have is crusty more than it is "boogers". They're professionally groomed every 4 weeks so they are always very clean and tidy-- I imagine that helps too.

[Carol Fowler]

My Caz has had constant eye goobers in his right eye since we brought him home at 8 weeks. He's 11 weeks now. Our vet checked his eye with an anesthetic and dye drops during a visit on Wednesday. He had no scratches or physical problems and determined that he has a plugged tear duct in that eye. That nostril does not run like the left does when his eyes get watery. 

We did switch to Orijen/Acana kibble diet with canned pumpkin and Greek yogurt added in to help settle his puppy belly and support him through de-worming. We have noticed that he wheezes while on Purina Pro. We also use World's Best cat litter instead of a clay-based litter to help reduce the chances of that irritating him.

That's our experiences so far. Best of luck to you!