HiI have a schitzu. He often...

Question
Hi
I have a schitzu. He often gets alot of eye "crusties" around both his eyes. When it gets quite bad, it's very difficult to clean this off. We usually put him in a bath, muzzle him & try to wash around his eyes. This gets very difficult. Any suggestions on how to clean this.
Thanks

Answer
Hello Steph,  I understand your problem.  They have many eye wash products on the market, but honestly what I will tell you works best.  First Trim the hair just under the eye near the inside corner. (where the crusties collect) With the hair gone, the crusties will have nothing to collect on.  Next 1 to 3 times dialy, depending on the amount of tearing, using a cotton ball wet with warm water, wipe the eye area.  Use a cotton ball instead of a paper towel, wash cloth or guaze pad.  A cotton ball will not scratch the cornia as the other items would.  And using clear warm water will not irritate the eyes.  If crusties are already there let the warm water on the cotton ball soak them until they come off without pealing them off as this would be similar to removing a scab and will leave the area raw.  Do this daily for bet results.  I do this for my poodle and it works wonders not to mention sparing her from having terrible, ugly dark tear stains.  Good Luck, Cindy Lou :)