Ok, so..I know we talk about poo a lot on the board! Over the last two or three days, I noticed Orion licking his rear excessively, biting at it, and sitting down at random times and sort of wriggling in place. So we phoned the vet and she said to bring him in tomorrow as he likely needs anal glands expressed. I googled this (best advice? "Make sure the dog's rear is pointed away from your face"!!) and it seems it's not uncommon and the vet said she'd teach me how to do it ... He does have two puffy spots on his rear so I'm sure the vet is right, but she wants to confirm. Anyone ever had to do this?
Re: Anal glands No, thank goodness. But on a couple of occasions Obi has randomly, spontaneously and inconveniently expressed his...which really wasn't a pleasant experience for anyone in the immediate area. It smells like thousand year old, fermenting anchovies. But worse.
Re: Anal glands We are thankful not so far to have had that problem. I think it is common in dogs with softer poops. I think the passage of firm stool on a regular basis "massages" the anal glands naturally and helps prevent the build up in the glands. Or so I was led to believe. "a carrot a day keeps the vet away....."
Re: Anal glands Sounds like anal glands to me. I try to avoid as much as possible any human intervention in expressing annual glands but I would still recommend you visit your vet this time to ensure it is the problem and that there isn't any infection. Both my dogs have had their anal glands expressed by humans but only when it has become clear that they are full and they are just not emptying on their own. I prefer to try let it happen naturally as I feel that intervention can make their glands lazy - not sure if anyone else thinks this ? Softer stools are definitely the cause of mine having full anal glands. At the moment my lab is eating too many pears from the garden : Chloe
Re: Anal glands One of my kennel dogs ended up with badly infected anal glands after having stress colitis for weeks because of the kennel environment - she had to have them emptied regularly for a while. It was not pleasant. From all I've read I agree that softer poo can cause the anal glands not to empty themselves naturally so if this becomes a recurring problem it may be worth having a look at your dogs diet and seeing if there are any improvements you can make. As it's just the once at the moment I wouldn't worry too much - I'm sure most dogs need a little help on occasion, but it's definitely something I would not want to do myself. I know some groomers offer the service but there really is no need for it unless there is a problem. And if there is a problem I would rather a vet do it than a groomer (even though I know some lovely ones who are also qualified vet nurses).
Re: Anal glands I never had to do it to my old lab, but I had a friend with a pit bull mix and she had regular appointments with her vet to have it done on her dog. Gross!!!
Re: Anal glands gross is right... it's done (and he was NOT HAPPY ABOUT IT, let me just say that)..... the theory is that it might have set in a bit when he had giardia a couple of months ago (very runny diarrhea for 4-5 days until the meds firmed it back up)... and that it just never quite fully emptied after that. he's currently sound asleep beside me, one paw on my leg.
Re: Anal glands Is this a problem common to just Labs or all dogs? I only ask as I have had dogs in the past & not ever heard of it.
Re: Anal glands [quote author=Oberon link=topic=8104.msg114425#msg114425 date=1412296310] It smells like thousand year old, fermenting anchovies. But worse. [/quote] Laughed,laughed,laughed! I'm sorry but if my vet offered to teach me how to do this,I would thank her very much and make sure to book an appointment the next time it needed doing My Mums spaniels had to have it done so it's not just labs and I think dogs that have looser stools are more prone to it x
Re: Anal glands My poor old dog Billy got it when he was very old.. It was awful as I didn't realize it until his anal glands were badly infected... He also had two badly rotten teeth right at the back, that the vet hadn't seen despite giving him a check up shortly before... I changed vets once I realized the problem, his anal glands were sorted and his rotten teeth extracted and he was much happier and pain free for the last year of his life. I felt terrible though that I hadn't realized the problems. I guess it's important to know about issues that can occur at both ends of your dog!
