Why Does My Dog Have Tear Stains? What the Reddish-Brown Actually Is

By the MIRANEST Research TeamUpdated on 8/2026

If your dog has a rust-coloured mark running down from the inner corner of each eye, that colour is porphyrin — and it arrives in the tears. Here is what it is, why some dogs get it, when it is worth a vet visit, and what actually helps.

What tear stains actually are

Those reddish-brown marks run from the inner corner of the eye down the muzzle. On a white coat they are impossible to miss; on a dark one they are easy to overlook entirely, even when they are there.

They matter for three reasons, and only one is cosmetic. They can point to an underlying eye problem. Left damp and uncleaned, the skin underneath can get infected. And yes — most owners simply do not like the look of them.

Dogs most likely to develop them have a short nose, a flat face, large eyes, pale fur, or a tear duct that formed differently from birth.

It runs from the inner corner, down the muzzle.

Tears are meant to drain inward, not spill over.

What causes them

In dogs and people alike, tears drain from the eye into the nose through the nasolacrimal duct. It is the same plumbing that makes your nose run when your eyes water.

Dogs have those ducts too. Tear staining usually starts when the eyelid structure lets tears run out over the lid and onto the face instead of reaching that duct.

A physically blocked duct happens, but it is uncommon, and dogs that genuinely overproduce tears are rarer still. Most of the time this is the shape of the face, not an illness.

The colour itself is porphyrin — an iron-rich molecule the body sheds when it breaks down old red blood cells, and passes out in tears, saliva and urine. Iron is why the mark is rust-coloured, and why it darkens as it sits.

How to remove them

There is no single method that works on every dog, and it usually takes some trial and error to find the one that suits yours.

Before anything else, have a medical cause ruled out — particularly if the staining is new. If your vet finds something, follow their plan rather than treating it cosmetically.

Keep the hair around the eyes trimmed short. Clean around them at least twice a day with a slightly damp cloth or cotton ball, and dry afterwards. Eye wipes and washes made for dogs are fine; contact-lens solution containing boric acid can be used around the eye — never in it.

Fur that is already stained stays stained — the pigment is in the hair shaft. What you are changing is the hair that grows in next.

Short hair, a dry face, twice a day.

One stick a day, working from the inside.

Support from within

MIRANEST is a daily jelly built on swiftlet’s nest. Its glyconutrients support healthy cell function, comfortable skin and normal shedding — working from the inside rather than on top of the coat.

Tear staining often travels with the rest of that picture: watery eyes alongside itching, redness and licking. When owners settle the skin, the staining tends to settle with it — which is what the next section shows.

One case, thirty days

A Maltese from our monitor programme, photographed against the same day count. Same dog, same corner of the same face.

Day 0

Day 16

Day 30

A single monitored case. Individual results vary, and staining driven by eyelid shape will not respond this way.

Common questions

Will the stain ever come out of the fur?

Stained hair stays stained — the pigment is in the shaft. What changes is the hair that grows in after. Keep the area short and dry and the new growth comes in clean.

Do tear stains hurt my dog?

The mark itself doesn’t. Persistently damp skin can become sore, which is the real reason to keep the area dry. Squinting, redness or pawing at the face are separate signs and worth a vet visit.

Is it caused by his food or our tap water?

You will read this constantly. We are not going to repeat it, because the veterinary sources we work from do not support it. The causes that are established are about tear drainage and face shape.

Can I use peroxide or a whitening product?

Not near an eye. Use something made for the purpose — a dog eye wipe or wash — and ask your vet before trying anything else.

My dog suddenly has stains he never had before.

Call your vet. New staining is the one version of this worth investigating properly before treating it as cosmetic.

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Tear stains, in their words

“She used to have tears stain, and I notice the stain is less.”
Irene Wong · verified review

“It definitely has done a great job in eliminating tear stains.”
Marilyn Murphy · verified review

“For two years, my French Bulldog struggled with tear stains, red, itchy paws and constant paw licking… By 30 days, her tear stains were gone, her paws were no longer red or irritated, and the constant licking had stopped.”
Shannon Dye · verified review

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