Dogs Anal Glands (sorry!!!!)

fuzyfelt

Hi,

Our dog does this occasionally - he's 5 years old.

Noticed first a few years ago, and asked at the vet when he went for his annual injections a few weeks later - the vet had a look and squeezed out some stuff and said it looked normal, so no infection or build up.

Lately, I've noticed he's doing it when he has a poo and some gets stuck around the fur around his bum, or if he's in a new place with dog smells around - think maybe he's marking with smells, not sure though.

Doesnt seem like anything major to me - he's due injections soon, so i'll ask the vet again to check. Maybe depends on the vet, but ours just charged the normal amount for a yearly check up - around £20 i think plus the cost of injections.

BTW, that's not a pic of me, thats sam the dog. This discussion must be putting off potential dog owners...

Andy

pboae

That will be the best £27 you've ever spent. If they aren't emptying naturally and you don't get them done you've got two possible outcomes, either they will become impacted and infected, and it'll cost you a lot more than £27, or he will empty them whilst scooting, and you'll never get rid of the smell.

As as been said though, once they have been emptied look at his diet, it shouldn't happen regularly. I'd also be speaking to the vet about worms as well.

marybishop

So does anyone think it could be the Naturediet I'm feeding my dog that's not helping as it is 'wet' food. Would a complete dry food be better do you think?

katiep_2

It seems a bit steep to me! It costs £9.50 at my practice, and that's with the vet, not a nurse!

queensway_boy

We have a jack russell who suffers from this quite a lot,i take him to the vets who i can make an appointment with a nurse rather than the vet and they empty them for about £6 but i imagine you have to have been registered with the vet for a while,what i mean you can't just phone up if you never use the vets and ask for a nurses appointment to do it.

imported_goldie

This is something that cannot be left. I didnt know my dog(golden retriever) had blocked anal glands until i smelt "the fishy" smell. By this time he had a bad infection (caused by the dog licking the stuff from his anal glands and then his fur)- it cost a LOT to cure the infection. Since then his glands needed doing every 3 to 4 weeks for over a year until I changed to the Burns food and now its only every four months. Burns is more expensive but it actually works out the same for me as I am not spending so much at the vets. You will i'm afraid have to take him to the vet and then consider changing his diet?

adandem

Anal gland problems can sometimes be alleviated by diet. My dog is on BARF (bones and raw food), he therefore has raw fresh meat, so far we have had no problems.
Wet food can be a cause I think.

pboae

katiep wrote: »

It seems a bit steep to me! It costs £9.50 at my practice, and that's with the vet, not a nurse!

Wow, wish that was the case at my vet. £9.50 wouldn't even get you into the waiting room. :-\

marybishop wrote: »

So does anyone think it could be the Naturediet I'm feeding my dog that's not helping as it is 'wet' food. Would a complete dry food be better do you think?

It depends, Naturediet is a good food, and it shouldn't cause this problem. It may just be a one off, but if it is happening regularly you might need to look at either adding more fibre to his diet or changing his food.

Firefly

Why not try giving him a raw chicken wing twice a week. That should do the trick. NEVER cooked of course, always raw. Mine crunch them like we do celery! Totally agree with getting the vet to empty the glands, or at least show you how to do them the first time.

affordmylife

Thank you all for your lovely tips and replies.

He has a totally dry diet.

The nurse at our surgery does not do it so it has to be the vet.

And yes yes yes to the fishy smell so I guess its an appointment for me then.

I did wonder about the local college they do a small animal care course (but i wondered if that was just rabbits and things) or i know that if you take your dog to the !!!!!! the do the wash, nails and glands. Any comments on this anyone.

Many many thanks again.