Dogs Anal glands

Brompton28 I have a bichion and like you have mine done regular

I've always had dogs - but never have they had that problem, thank Heavens! I suppose 'normal' commercial dog food is just too soft?

I have 2 bichions, Marley has had his glands emptied 3 times and Maizey once. Our vet charges £10 .

As an ex groomer I used to clear them as part of the bathing routine. The stink of some!!!

The glands are territory markers that get impacted because of a domestic diet.

Have you ever seen a wolf drag it’s bottom???? ??

Some dog breeds are particularly susceptible to problems with anal glands. A vet nurse usually can empty them but if they keep leaking, then the vet can perform an operation to remove them completely. I have had 3 dogs where the glands had to be removed due to infections and continual emptying onto their dog beds etc. The smell is just disgusting and I have to say my dogs health all improved after the op. Currently my youngest one needs hers emptied occasionally but I bought prebiotic pellets online from amazon (see pic) and mix a scoop into her dried food. It seems to be working well. No scooting and no trip to vet for ages good luck x

Our poodle has the same problem and I believe a lot of small breeds do. Sometimes she would sit on your knee and if she was really relaxed when you were stroking her her glands would 'go'. So smelly. We were advised to add Protexin pro fibre to her diet. I think there has been a bit of an improvement but in lockdown I spotted her scooting along the ground and as she is regularly wormed thought it must be the gland issue. She went to the vet and they cleared them out. I have tried in the past to do the external clearing but without a huge success I believe the vets clear them internally so have a better result. I now take her regularly and the vet nurse at Vets for Pets clears them for her. Not a pleasant job as the poor girl came out last time with stinky mess all down her tunic but still managed to smile.

Cat owners know this problem too, although it is less common in cats than in dogs.

I would definitely let the vet attend to it, and ask his or her advice about preventing it as far as possible.

An early warning sign is the dog or cat pressing their bottom firmly onto the floor or ground then sliding forwards. This is an attempt to clear the glands themselves, but it usually does not work.

In my experience the earlier you deal with the problem the less smelly it is and perhaps doesn't re-ocur as fast.

My spaniel's anal glands have to be expressed regularly by the vet. I add about a tablespoon of bran to his food, and give him carrots for extra fibre. The glands can be removed if they often become infected.

Vet nurses do it at my vets, see if they do it at yours.

£17 per dog, so no consultation fee.

The glands are at 8 o’clock and 4 o’clock inside the dogs rectum, squeeze gently towards each other and upward, from the outside, use a tissue over the anus. This is if you want to do it yourself, I looked on YouTube how to do it.

If they are infected there will be a pus discharge too along with the fishy brown stuff that comes out. If that’s the case they will need to see vet for antibiotics.

I just see the vet nurse these days tbh.

Groomers in my area will do it.

The vet showed me how to do this as our first dog had this problem.
Yes, I was strong stomached enough. Our spaniel didn't seem to mind, perhaps he knew it would be a relief..

Everyone will have a mask handy these days too and disposable gloves are handy.

I know my dog gets a bit stinky sometimes, so perhaps hers are full as well. I will start adding raw carrot to her dinner. I also read that pumpkin is good as well to add fibre to stool.

My dog has a carrot every day, which the breeder recommended as she used them for her dogs. He absolutely loves it, and it does seem to add the necessary roughage to his diet. Might be worth a try for yours.

You need to take your dog to the vet's and get the anal glands emptied. It doesn't take long and the dog will be very much more comfortable.

Cats also get this problem sometimes, something I hadn't known, until a few years ago, when one of my cats had the symptoms

I've heard about this before but thank God our 2 border collies never suffered from it.
I remember reading that it's caused by the dogs eating a diet that doesn't make their bowels work hard to process their food.
We always fed our dogs raw, and supplemented this with lots of bones.
Their faeces were always dry, hard and white.
Unless they'd eaten or drank anything really horrible!

I think this a job I would leave to the vet. Some breeds do seem more prone to this problem.
We did have to catheterise our JR twice a day for a while but at least that didn't smell.

I used to take my parson Russell to the vet when her anal glands were blocked. I was never confident enough to do it myself.

Really helpful advice muffinthemule thank you very much will ask vets to show me but probably pay for it to be done.

*ready mashed, excuse the typo!!

This is not uncommon in Bichons.

The vet can either squeeze them to empty them, or you can do it yourself. I would suggest you take him to the vet to have the vet be sure there is no infection and to show you how to do this properly.

You will either need someone to hold the dog for you or possibly muzzle him to do it if you do it at home. I have done all our Bichons for my mum but I had to muzzle the first one as she was a biter. Essentially you get a large clean wad of cotton wool or kitchen roll or similar, place it over the glands and press firmly either side of the bum until the discharge comes out. You will probably have to squeeze more than once. Open a window nearby when you do this, the smell is appalling. Fairly obviously most dogs are not up for a firm bum squeeze which is another reason to have the vet do it. I have always done it as I am confident to do it and it saves a vet trip.

Once you have got it emptied, you need to look at putting more fibre into your little guy’s diet. It won’t completely stop the glands refilling, but you should find they need emptied less over. Mashed swede/turnip/carrot is a good choice. You can get it ready ,ashes and it will mix in easily with his dog food.

Good luck. The discharge really does smell abominable and full glands are very uncomfortable for him.

The vet charges @ £40 a time. I am not sure if a groomer could do it, if you have one ask them? I think these small breeds are quite prone to them becoming blocked?

I don't think I could stomach it either fwiw, my friend said the vet offered to show her and she said she would rather pay them

I wasn't sure if the vets do it or maybe a dog groomer
I dont think I could attempt it as the smell is so bad
Thank you for reply Janejudge

You need to take it to the vet to have them emptied. The vet can show you how to do it at home if you are strong stomached enough