Shih Tzu Odor

[Pixie]

My 1 1/2 yeard old female Shih Tzu has an odor that seems to be coming from her face area. Her beard is always trimmed very short and she only eats dry food. I am not sure if the odor is coming from her tear ducts or her beard. When I bath her I notice tiny dirt particles coming from her beard area. She is groomed on a regular basis and bathed at home in between groomings weekly. This orod can become quite offensive if gone untreated for a week. Can anyone help with this delima.

[Goldenmom]

This is caused by her drooling when eating, drinking, panting. The fur will become a brown tinge and thats where the smell comes from.

I have a new Golden that has this under her chin and it stinks! I wipe it constantly and I put Gold Bond on it to keep it dry.

Heather and her 3 Golden Girls

[Cinnabear]

Well I notice on mine is her tear ducts does emit an odor but not that bad. If it is that bad I would just wipe her hair clean. Do you keep her hair trimmed around the eyes?

If its an extreme odor, please have her eyes checked.

[Cactus Flower]

Have you had her teeth checked? Could it be possible that she has an infected tooth? I don't suppose she would be eating normally with any tooth problem- is she eating normally?

Could the odor be coming from her ears? ( I don't know if the groomer cleans her ears). If she has an ear infection, the odor would lessen some with a proper cleaning, then build up again.

It was good advice to have her checked for an eye infection.

[shihtzulover]

I would say its her drool lines. I keep those trimmed off if I don't my Shih Tzus mouth starts to stink too.

[doggab]

I'm not sure if you have the same problem as I do but my shih tzu's face stinks because he enjoys cleaning himself. In addition to this, he also has inherited the habit of coprophagia (eating feces)...i know, i know, absolutely disgusting. I know another shih tzu owner who's experienced the same problem and everyone does their best to break the awful habit. I usually clean his face with water and a bit of doggie shampoo to get rid of the scent.