TUMS..... Sorry long, but your opinions will help..

[stewiedog]

I had a new Bichon puppy come in today for her first groom (puppy groom bath and trim) . She is 3 months old, and good as gold. Great owners I have been talking to them since they got her at 9 weeks.
She has BAD staining around her eyes and mouth. They have her on Wellness puppy, no canned just dry per our suggestion. The breeder had her on Eagle Holistic Select which we sell, but I just think Wellness offers a better puppy food.
Anyway they got her from a responsible breeder breeding nice pets with health checks and all, she does show in obediance, rally, agility and all that stuff, just not conformation.

To get with the story (I get off topic easy sorry)

The breeder told her to give the puppy a Tums everyday to sop the staining, that it will cut down the stomach acids that cause the tearing. I know some staining can be caused by an acidic stomach, but this puppy had horrible stains around her eyes, and muzzle. She gets water from a Brita filter, and only treats are the soft Wellness puppy jerky type, or Canidae snap biscuits she is also offered natures variety raw bones once a week. These are really good parents.
They are listening to the breeder though and giving her 1 Tums extra(or whatever they are called) with 750 of calcium.
I asked if they asked the vet about giving a growing puppy extra calcium. I remember being told when I bought a powder puff, not to supplement her calcium to get her ears up, because it might affect her growth.

Has anyone heard of Tums, lessing staining? I have never heard of this. I tried to talk them into "Eye Envy", or Blueberry facial scrub ( they do bathe at home, but are brushing daily GREAT MOM and DAD not even a "pin matt"in the baby).

Please let me know what your thoughts are on the Tums for such a baby puppy. I have given them to adult dogs, my vet said it was OK, but it was just when I thought they might have bad tummies. Never heard of this for staining.

[SharPeiMom]

I have never done it but have heard of it. I believe that this has been discussed on here before so you could probably look it up. I believe that the people that was discussing it said that they gave a tums everyday to help neutralize the acids in the mouth for those that lick their paws and such to keep them from staining their coat. I don't remember seeing anything about the tear staining. I bet someone else on here knows more about it than me though. I'll be interested in the responses as well.

[SPCABev]

Should really see a vet

Hi Stewiedog, we deal a lot with tear stains as the majority of the dogs we do are Shih Tzus or poox up here.

If the staining has been a problem for the puppy for as long as you say, they really need to have her see a vet. It could be something like blocked tear ducts or a problem with the structure of the eye or eyelid. It could also be a sign of parasites or bacterial infections, such as the "red yeast". It could also be that she is tearing a lot while she is teething.

Using Tums to mask the symptoms isn't going to help the puppy in the long run. Additionally, you need to be careful about overfeeding calcium during puppyhood as it can lead to bone problems in the future. (I realize it isn't as much of a problem in a Bichon as in, say, a GSD, but I've seen some pretty hefty Bichons... )

We ourselves see a relationship between allergies and staining, whether its saliva-chewing-staining on the feet or facial stains; there just seems to be a greater likelihood that the dog who has stains has allergies. Or is it that the dog who has allergies has stains? Whichever it is, it is something for the owners to consider as possible culprits.

Best of luck!

[Smart-n-Pretty]

Recommend they use Bausch & Laumb sterile saline to scrub under the eyes and around the mouth. It is made to remove proteins.

[Smart-n-Pretty]

Apparently long term use can damage the kidneys: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Can_dogs_take_tums

[toomie]

I have never heard of Tums to lessen staining.

On a small side note, however, I was told at my local feed mill that Wellness and Eagle Pack have merged and the packaging on both is going to change. Don`t know what that means for the quality of the food. I hope they don`t change the Wellness formula in the canned variety because it`s the only thing my cats can eat without barfing.

I`d be curious to see if the Tums thing actually works.

[Debbiedogs]

Yes

Apparently show people have used Tums for reducing staining for a loooong time. However, I did not really read all the threads on it. You can look them up here, and maybe do an internet search, too.

I don't know if I would give such a young pup ANYTHING for staining. The immune system is not developed, plus the owners are probably starting puppy shots (all the new stuff in pup's system may contribute to reactions/staining, I don't know), so I would be hesitant to start adding something else. Then it will be time for surgery (spaying), so her system will be under plenty of stresses. I'd probably wait for a while if it was my pup, I think.

Of course it would be best if she wasn't staining, and I have seen dozens of good pups from breeders that do NOT have staining. so I suspect that the parents of this pup also have this problem.

Also, I would want to read more about staining - maybe sometimes Tums can eliminate it, maybe sometimes you need the yeast-eating antibiotics in the eye treatments on the market now.

If pup is getting spayed in a few months, she may be put on antibiotics which will temporarily reduce/eliminate her staining.

[SpikeyTheYorkie]

Years ago, I tool an excellent biology class. The professor talked about people who took Tums / Antacids on a regular basis. I do not recall exactly what problem this could cause, but I DO remember that people who took them regularly could start having stomach issues, or it could have the opposite effect they wanted...something like that. Wish I could recall exactly.

If a human or dog has an ongoing problem that needs Tums, then the symptoms are being treated, and not the actually problem.

I would rather go for Angels Eyes or something like that. Or, like Debbiedogs said, when she is spayed, she will be given anti-biotics. They really should speak with a veterinarian.

Tammy in Utah

[YorkieGal]

i have heard this

And some of my clients DO give their dogs over 8 mos. old a fruit-flavored tums every other day. Can't give Rolaids as they contain aluminum. But I also sell eye-munity from Happy Tails which is not an antibiotic and facial scrub. I was also told that a drop of lemon juice daily in their water or apple cider vinegar helps with 'dry eye' in dogs. I tell them to check with a vet though always.

[Dawn125]

I don't know if this is pertinent but my mother is a tums addict. She's overweight and always has heartburn so for a long time she was popping tums all day and eventually ended up in the hospital with pancreatitis that was eventually attributed to an excess of calcium in her body from the tums. Obviously she was taking in way more than this puppy but she is also much larger. I would be concerned about using it long term for a small dog.

[stewiedog]

I have never heard of Tums to lessen staining.

On a small side note, however, I was told at my local feed mill that Wellness and Eagle Pack have merged and the packaging on both is going to change. Don`t know what that means for the quality of the food. I hope they don`t change the Wellness formula in the canned variety because it`s the only thing my cats can eat without barfing.

I`d be curious to see if the Tums thing actually works.

Yes Eagle bgs have already changed (just the holistic select) they made some changes... Took out salt, added a puppy formula... A few others, I don't have the sheet here its at work. Haven't heard Wellness changing anything, they just changed their bags about a year ago.


Also thanx everyone, I knew it didn't sound right to give them daily esp to such a young puppy

[odette]

alot of the bulldog people here swear by nupro vitamins for help with staining, don't know why but they claim it works, i use it for other reasons, vet first then siggest this.

[gr8danlvr1]

It also wouldn't hurt to add probiotics to the dogs food. Some of that staining could be an over-growth of red yeast. The probiotics eat the yeasts, keeping them under control.

[ColleenT]

yes i was advised to give my CC powder puffs tums to help with tear staining. but my adopted rescue has allergies which make her stains very strong. We just had a serum made up for her allergies and the vet thinks this will help. i won't know until the serum is done, and not sure how long it will take. Probably a few months, but the Show people did recommend the tums for tear staining. I have also used Tylan, or Tylosin. That is the main ingredient in Angels eyes. it is an antibiotic and should be used with care.

[pooh13]

I can't say if giving tums daily to your dog is safe or not I went to tums web site for ingredients and its gives more or less a sidetracking statement of obviously often asked questions.such as lead content, gluten,and the main ingredient being made from limestone. http://www.tums.com/faq_tums.aspx#tums

Consumers who use antacids only once in a while, and as directed, are unlikely to experience significant side effects.

But antacids may not always be necessary, and they can have serious consequences if used improperly. Frequent and prolonged use can cause irreparable harm to your heart, kidneys, or bones. Even if used occasionally and in moderation, antacids can cause problems for people with special medical conditions.

http://gerd.emedtv.com/antacids/antacids.html