Cleaning Your Dogs Face & Eyes

Your dog’s face is full of love and emotion, but sometimes too often it can be full of dirt and debris. Keeping a sensitive area such as their eyes and face clean is crucial in maintaining their lasting health.

Use Gentle Materials and Force

When cleaning a sensitive area of your pup’s face such as their face and eyes, you’ll need to be particular about what materials you’re using. Avoid using towels or napkins, these products easily fall apart, shred and cause irritation. Instead, use a cloth or sponge that is moistened with water at room temperature. Be sure not to over wet the fabric, so you don’t end up soaking your pup’s face and causing them to dread their face being cleaned. Some spots may be harder to clean than others but be careful only to apply as much force as needed. Your furry friend will definitely appreciate several soft strokes compared to 1 or 2 rough swipes.

Pre-Moistened Wipes

An alternative to sponges and clothes are pre-moistened wipes. Many people use them for their convenience which is perfectly fine as long as you check to ensure they use safe ingredients. Many of these products use harsh chemicals you’ll want to avoid. The best way to ensure this is sticking to wipes that are made specifically for canines and not humans.

Using the right products

In most cases, you shouldn’t need anything more than warm water to clean your pup’s face. Always remember to safe human soaps and products for humans, chemicals that may be fine for you could be toxic to Fido. You should be able to find products specifically for canine cleanliness at your local pet store.

What you’ll be cleaning and looking for

When you actually get to the cleaning of your pup’s face and eyes, you’ll probably notice a build-up of gooey like substances that form around their eyes. With your soft cloth or sponge, you’ll want to gently rug those areas to loosen up any dirt. This is a sensitive area for your dog so be sure to approach it with caution as to not startle them or accidentally poke their eye (Ouch!). Also never try to use soap near your pup’s eyes, it can cause irritation and even permanent damage. For smaller areas try using a moistened cotton ball.

Tear Stains

Tear stains also referred to as “poodle eye,” are dark blotchy areas that form under the hair of some dog’s eyes. This is caused by an excessive amount of tears that react to your pup’s fur by forming bacteria. If this is a chronic problem, you notice you’ll want to bring it up with your vet. If pure water doesn’t remove the stains, then you should try products made specifically for this problem, easily found at your local pet store.

Add face cleaning to your dog’s regular bath routine to ensure it’s being completed on a regular basis. Your pup will thank you.