Tear staining is the reddish-brown mark left where fur stays damp under the eye, and it shows most on white and cream coats and on flat-faced breeds whose tear ducts drain poorly. It is a cosmetic problem rather than a painful one, but the crust that builds in the inner corner is worth clearing away whether or not the colour bothers you.

What ships here is a powder rather than a liquid or a wipe. You work it into the stained fur with a damp cotton pad, keeping it below the eye and never in it, then repeat daily until the mark lifts and as needed after that to stay on top of it. A powder is slower than a solvent-style liquid, which is rather the point: the thin skin under the eye does not take kindly to anything harsh.

• Tear stain powder, 20g per pot
• Available as a single pot or a pack of two
• Applied with a damp cotton pad, which you supply
• For the fur below the eye on cats and dogs
• Aimed at reddish-brown staining and dried crust
• Most useful on light and pale-coated breeds

Keep it out of the eye itself. The older description on this page mentioned wipes. What actually arrives is powder, so please do not order expecting a tub of pre-soaked pads. Staining that appears suddenly, or comes with squinting, swelling or a discharge that is not clear, is a vet matter rather than a grooming one, because blocked ducts, entropion and infections all present as a permanently wet face.

What the options mean. Sold as 1PCS at £12.99, or 2PCS at £21.99.

Who it's for: Owners of white or pale-coated dogs and cats with settled tear marks who want to tidy the fur between grooming appointments.