dog changing color

Question
My dog is a white bichon/toy poodle. He is 8 year and is starting to change color on his paws and his under body coat of hair. It is starting to get brownish. I know that he licks his feet and sometimes his body. Is the change of color normal or not. I know that he had a sister that was very reddish brown. Not sure if I should be worried or should take him in to the vet. Give me your opinion.

Answer
Hello Diane,
That color change is actually staining caused by chemicals in the dogs tears or saliva combining with chemicals in the dogs hair.  The result is a reddish/brown stain on the dogs coat.  When a dog licks themselves or when they have tears that get on their face, it actually stains the coat.  The only way to get it off is to shave the coat.  
There is a product on the market called Show-Eyes or Diamond Eyes, that is suppose to help remove these stains, but it isn't very effective.  
Also, the Whitening Shampoo that you get for white dogs will help a little, but it is made more for brightening the coat, not getting stains out and such.  
Some people with white dogs will use laundry "Bluing" to help keep their dogs coat white, and I have heard that it is somewhat sucessful, but I haven't used it myself.  If you decide to use it, be sure to follow the directions on the bottle as far as diluting it and so forth.

You do have to watch some dog foods because the dyes in them can cause the dogs coat to turn a Reddish color, but this is seen in mostly the cheaper "grocery store" brand dog foods, so if you are feeding a premium brand you should be ok.

I hope this helps you some.  If you have other questions, please feel free to ask.

Thanks for using AllExperts.com,
Kim