Saturday, June 7, 2008

The Beard Saga

I have been trying to clean Carmen's beard. It has always been icky since the texture of her fur just sops up water. Lately it has gotten super disgusting.

The beard in question....

A few weeks ago I tried a baking soda paste with some results. Bear in mind I already use a whitening shampoo that Eliza (with three very white Samoyeds) recommended to no avail. So, I have been diligently researching beard whitening techniques. Some OES (Old English Sheepdog) people recommend equal parts hydrogen peroxide and milk of magnesia with corn starch added to thicken it. I tried this last night. The directions I found said to leave the paste on for 10 minutes.

Poor Carmen!!

The results.....

Definately cleaner looking, but yellowish. The yellow stain is definately a combination of dirt, food, and the enzymes in her mouth. So, I think we will be shortening her beard and waiting for the ick to grow out - and after that just trying to stay on top of it and buy even more expensive whitening shampoo - Chris Christensen here we come.

10 comments:

Debbie said...

I don't have "bearded" dogs, but I used a similar concoction when showing a dog who constantly licked her paws, turning them pink. I used the strong type of Hydrogen Peroxide that hairdressers use. You can get it maybe at a beauty supply shop, or like I did, ask your hairdresser for some.

Cat, Tessie, & Strata said...

The lifelong discoloration Tess had around her mouth from age 16wks to 6 years went away when I switched her off of Iams.

Basically, it's been my experience that food allergies = silly muzzles. If you go to my agility team website and look at the bottom picture on Tessie's page, you can clearly see the blood red markings on the edges of her lips which are now gone. It used to be all over her chin too.

Coolen's sells a couple of under-eye discoloration fixers. I do not know if they are appropriate for beards, but you could certainly check the label. If I remember when I am in on Tuesday, I will check for you.

Jules said...

Thanks, Deb. I might try a piece of her beard and see how it comes out. We have a beauty supply place in the next town over.

Cat: What's scary is I switched Carmen off of Nature's Variety a while ago after discovering she is allergic to the dreaded chicken. Now the only thing left to consider if going grain-less. I am going to write down the ingredients of the two Pinnacle kibbles I am currently feed her and take them with me when I see Dr. Anne this Wednesday. Maybe she can give me a quick answer.

I would be curious what eye-discoloration stuff Coolen's has and if they might work. I tried Angle Eyes last summer when Carmie stayed with me for 3 weeks and it did not work. I have a bottle of Diamond Eyes that I used on Evil-Joey before I discovered that he is also allergic to chicken and that was what was causing his disgusting eyes. Anything is worth a shot.

Of course, if my in-laws would switch her to raw we wouldn't have this problem, would we! ;-P And it is all just aesthetics anyway, right? ;D

Blue said...

Poor Carmen! She does not look happy in that third pic. I like Deb's idea of hydrogen peroxide. It sounds like you need something that's going to almost bleach it out instead of just cleaning it out. When I was bleaching (and coloring) my hair, the hydrogen peroxide bleach would really dry out my hair. I'd get a good conditioner to use afterwards.

Cat, Tessie, & Strata said...

I am almost positive Coolen's has Diamond Eyes. Angel Eyes is typically more specialty-catalog.

Right now there is a mail-in rebate deal on Wellness CORE if you want to try grain free -- we have the cards in the store, out on the shelf by CORE. You can also get $10 off manufacturer's coupons from Wellness if you sign up for the Well Pet Club and do their silly surveys from time to time.

Innova EVO is also an option, and I know we have sample bags of the small bites right now in store, so you can grab some for her. (We -should- have CORE samples at this point, but that doesn't mean we -do-.) I know that is primarily red meat but do not know off the top of my head if it is chicken free; ditto for CORE.

Blue said...

I know CORE original formula has chicken and turkey. They do have a fish formula that I'm pretty sure is chicken free.

Unknown said...

I know that some Dal people swear by WOW! Whitener. It's an equine enzymatic whitener that is supposed to work wonders. It's sold by SmartPak.

Jules said...

Thanks, Lindsay! Smartpak is right on my way to the chiropratcor and not too far from work. I will have to pick some up.

Adorkable Wonderboy said...

hi. i found your blog through google.

i have a 1 year old salt & pepper mini schnauzer who licks paws and now they're red. i live in the philippines where MOM is not available. would you know if MAALOX (Aluminium hydroxide and Magnesium hydroxide( which is the alternative to MOM here would be just as effective?

also, there are different types of hydrogen peroxide. what percent/part should i use? is the one for bleaching hair still the best option?

thanks

Jules said...

Hi JP, If your dog is licking his paws than I would guess a food allergy is the cause of the staining. I would try switching to a food that contains different ingredients (if you are feeding chicken switch to beef, etc). Since this post I have been happiest with Squire whitener - it is a horse shampoo. Actually, it is now called: Gold Nugget Super Whitening Shampoo. I did just buy some Chris Christensen White on White to try as I have heard rave reviews. Hope this helps!