Ahhhh, darn anal glands!

Submitted by Katie and Tucker on April 27, 2012 - 1:39pm

Go Back to Bulldog Medical Health

Hello everyone!

Now I know this question has been posted before but i'm frustrated about what to do with the anal gland issue. Tucker has to get them expressed every other month or so, sometimes sooner. Other than having than having them expressed he suggested giving Tucker some wheat germ to make his poop harder. Well that doesn't make much sense when we have him on a grain free diet. It also doesn't work at all and makes a mess all over the floor. He does expel the, sorry for this but "bum juice" but it's not when he poops which I understand is how it's supposed to be expelled. For instance he was just on the couch and I smelled that lovely smell(those people who have this issue with their dogs know what i'm talking about). I went over, wiped his bum and the couch(THANK the lord we have leather couches). When we don't smell it right away like when we're gone or out of the room he licks the heck out of where he was sitting. Now I hate having to bring him to the vet to have them expressed because he hates it! When we go into the main office he's fine but when he sees the vet he tries his best to get the heck out of the office. We have to use like 10 treats to get him in there. I feel so bad for him cuz who wants fingers up their butt??? I find even when we bring him back home after having them expressed he still scoots. Could that be just because him bum is sore?? Has anyone else found anything that works for this issue??? ANY ideas would be helpful. I know you can have the glands taken out. Has anyone done that???

Thanks and sorry for the long post!

__________________

Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"

Have you tried giving him pumpkin?

Submitted by Céline and Ange... on April 27, 2012 - 1:48pm.

I know that helped firm up Stella's poop - and it's grain free. Might help... my girl loved it!! About 1 tbsp per a couple times a day.

Anal Glands..

Submitted by farleysmom on April 27, 2012 - 2:01pm.

Sometimes even with normal stools some dogs can't express them. Farley has super deep anal glands, and he can't express them himself. I have to do it for him once a month. When I do it's not like doing other dogs with "normal" glands, his are deep and hooked to the left. You can try fiber to make the stool firmer. If they scoot after doing the glands they may not have expressed them enough or his bottom could be irritated.

This may be a weird question...

Submitted by buddies1220 on April 27, 2012 - 2:25pm.

But how do you know if they need to be expressed?

First sign is dragging their behind on the floor

Submitted by onslowsmom on April 27, 2012 - 2:27pm.

sometimes air licking. (for Onslow anyway)

__________________

Each dog is different..

Submitted by farleysmom on April 27, 2012 - 4:40pm.

Farley does what we call the "itchy butt dance" where we wiggles on his tail...some times he will "leak" and that usually freaks him out jut a bit! Then I know it's time to pull out the gloves and lube and give him a good squeeze.

You just described Onslow to a "T'

Submitted by onslowsmom on April 27, 2012 - 2:26pm.

I was told to give him fiber, and like you - I didn't want to because he does well "grain free". He can't stand pumpkin so that isn't an option for us. He doesn't express them in the house really, but I know some comes out when he starts scooting on the rug because like yours, he licks. It grosses me out! LOL!

The best advice I can give you is to learn to express them at home, yourself. I would be taking Onslow in every 2 weeks if we weren't doing it for him and it would end up costing a fortune. This is new for him, he never needed it done once until he turned 5. Now he needs it every other week and his stools are very firm!

I'm sorry I don't have a better suggestion but that is how we are dealing with it. We watched the vet do it a few times and then watched an informational youtube video. Its easier to do regularly (every other week at home) because if it doesn't get done, one gland gets clogged up. They also say a warm compress on the glands before expression will help ease it out and make it him feel a little better.

__________________

Thanks!

Submitted by Katie and Tucker on April 27, 2012 - 3:35pm.

Thanks for all of the suggestions. After seeing the vet do it i'm not sure i'd be able to stomach it. It has been happening since he was about one and he'll be 2 next month. I'll try the pumpkin and maybe i'll just have to buck up and do it. My husband would puke(no joke) if I tried to get him to do it. Even when the vet does it he can't even look. I just feel bad for my boy. Like I said who wants fingers up their butt and it's toatlly nasty! I assume the scooting after he has them done is just because his butt is sore.

Once again, thanks for all of the advice.

__________________

Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"

Forgot to say......

Submitted by Katie and Tucker on April 27, 2012 - 3:39pm.

if your dog doesn't have this issue thank the lord. It's not something you ever want to deal with. Blah!

__________________

Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"

LOL

Submitted by farleysmom on April 27, 2012 - 4:42pm.

At the clinic and home we don't "look" while we are doing the expressing because anal gland material to the face is just NASTY. I usually just hold a paper towel up to his anus and the glands dump into it and then I toss it tied inside one of the gloves because the smell is horrible!

thats what we do too

Submitted by onslowsmom on April 27, 2012 - 4:46pm.

I don't do it, my bf does while I hold Onslow's front and rear up. My bf is also usually a "gagger" but he has been ok to do it. the smell is horrendous. lol I dont with it on anyone either.

__________________

Sweet Potato

Submitted by Deb and MacKenz... on April 27, 2012 - 6:31pm.

might be another option to try instead of pumpkin. Mine also have an occassional leak, usually Ester. Yucky! When she gets bathed I do hers externally. Have never tried the internal method.

How?

Submitted by Katie and Tucker on April 29, 2012 - 6:56pm.

So, we've seen our vet do it internally(he shows us the stuff after, blah) but how is it done externally??

__________________

Katie & Tucker a.k.a "Porkchop"

poor Sophie has been dealing with this, too.....just recently

Submitted by ArchimedesMommy on April 27, 2012 - 10:27pm.

poor baby, and she wasn't even quite one yet when it started several weeks ago. I started adding freshly cooked brown rice and a little flax seed to both her and Meaty's kibble to add more fiber......didn't help. I also wondered if the scooting could be due to vulva issues, but we ruled that out....Our vet said he thinks there is a part of Sophie's tail that partially blocks her anus, but he didn't seem sure. I am more than willing to learn how to empty them properly....I HATE taking her to the vet for it, she is VERY scared now and it breaks my heart....so far the vet has emptied them twice, and it's always just the one gland that's full.....

...I'm going to try the pumpkin.....I only knew to use that for diarrhea, so I'm glad I read this here! And, I have done LOTS of reading about

this!!! .....

.....

...only thing I am concerned about is accidentally rupturing or otherwise hurting her.... :-( Thank goodness, MEaty is 3 and has never

had this issue....God Luck.....sounds like it can be a chronic thing....

__________________

Our sweet Archimedes "MEATY" Bones (or as we say...boneSHHH!) ---born 11/28/08---- our first bullllyyyy!!!

And SOPHIE Bubbles *Rapscallion* (LOL!) ---born 4/3/11----our second bulllllyyyy!!!!