# Infected anal glands



## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Would you consider raw? I have heard that dogs fed this way has fewer anal gland issues.

Dog Anal Glands - How To Avoid Anal Gland Problems In Your Dog | Know Better Pet Food


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## N2Mischief (Dec 3, 2012)

Sometimes if you add a tablespoon of canned pumpkin (not pie filling) to their meals it can help both with the soft stool and also with the anal glands. My moms miniature schnauzer had anal gland problems and they stopped when she added the pumpkin.


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## pinkteaji (Dec 7, 2012)

How do you know if your dog has infected anal glands? 

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## carlee (Feb 12, 2013)

CT Girl said:


> Would you consider raw? I have heard that dogs fed this way has fewer anal gland issues.
> 
> Dog Anal Glands - How To Avoid Anal Gland Problems In Your Dog | Know Better Pet Food


I was actually thinking of doing the cooked diet and looked at this website.


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## carlee (Feb 12, 2013)

pinkteaji said:


> How do you know if your dog has infected anal glands?
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


The first time his butt was so red and swollen it looked like a baboon's butt. This time I could smell it and when he pooped it had blood on it. When the vet expressed them they were bloody.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

carlee said:


> The first time his butt was so red and swollen it looked like a baboon's butt. This time I could smell it and when he pooped it had blood on it. When the vet expressed them they were bloody.


Ouch! Your poor baby.


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## pinkteaji (Dec 7, 2012)

carlee said:


> The first time his butt was so red and swollen it looked like a baboon's butt. This time I could smell it and when he pooped it had blood on it. When the vet expressed them they were bloody.


Ooooh poor baby  I hope he gets better 

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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

I think that there is a difference between anal glands getting over-full because they are not being normally expressed when the dog poops (which definitely can be due to the soft stools), and them getting infected (which is bacterial).
Here is the experience that I had, and you be the judge as to if it applies in your babies situation or not, because of course every one is unique!

Tangee, now 11 years old has never, ever had a problem with overfull anal glands (you can tell if they are too full if you lift their tail up over their back, and feel the area on the sides of their rectum - if they are too full, you will feel large lumps). I do her grooming, and I never have expressed her glands.

Twice, when she was young, she had anal gland ruptures - once, I found her licking, and there was nothing but a big hole - looked like she suddenly grew another rectum - brought her to the Vet, and he told me what it was. He did not advise doing anything different, said that sometimes the bacteria just gets backed up in there and gets infected. And there after, whenever he saw her, he always confirmed that her anal glands looked fine and were not over-full, and she never did scoot or act uncomfortable with them. But, a couple of years later, I was home with the flu, when I noticed that she had this huge, infected looking lump on her backside, was throwing my coat on to rush her to the Vet, she started jumping around excited to go out, and bam the thing ruptured right then and there! Well, then it dawned on me - both times that it happened, I was late in giving her a bath (first time, I was in the middle of moving, and the second time I was sick), so from there I resolved to never do that again - the longest that she goes between baths, is 10 or 11 days, but usually more often, and it has never happened again (7 or 8 years since the last one).
So, the question is, how often are is he being bathed, and whatever it is, I would say that it really may be worth trying to do it more frequently.
And in case you are thinking "but I always heard that it's bad to bath a dog too often" - the doggie dermatologist told me that's an "old wives tale" - you can do it every day if needed, as long as it's a mild shampoo! Anyhow, I can't promise that it will help, I can't even tell you for sure that it was why it never happened again to Tangee, but it sure would be worth a try!


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

Oh, and by the way, the first time when we were discussing this, I did ask about the surgery to remove the glands, just in case the problem continued, and I do remember the Vet saying, only as a last resort, because it is a delicate areas to work on, full of nerves, and you run the risk of causing fecal incontinence...


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## carlee (Feb 12, 2013)

Tiny Poodles said:


> I think that there is a difference between anal glands getting over-full because they are not being normally expressed when the dog poops (which definitely can be due to the soft stools), and them getting infected (which is bacterial).
> Here is the experience that I had, and you be the judge as to if it applies in your babies situation or not, because of course every one is unique!
> 
> Tangee, now 11 years old has never, ever had a problem with overfull anal glands (you can tell if they are too full if you lift their tail up over their back, and feel the area on the sides of their rectum - if they are too full, you will feel large lumps). I do her grooming, and I never have expressed her glands.
> ...


Thanks for that info! I have thought about it though just because of the way he sits (straight on his butt) whereas my doxies sit lopsided on their hips. I was thinking that he could easily get dirt/bacteria etc. by the way he sits. He got his first professional haircut about 3 weeks ago and I just bathed him a couple of days ago. So it's something I will definitely try (at least once a week).


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

carlee said:


> Thanks for that info! I have thought about it though just because of the way he sits (straight on his butt) whereas my doxies sit lopsided on their hips. I was thinking that he could easily get dirt/bacteria etc. by the way he sits. He got his first professional haircut about 3 weeks ago and I just bathed him a couple of days ago. So it's something I will definitely try (at least once a week).


Great - I hope that the baths, and getting the stools consistently firm through diet does the trick - please let us know!


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

You may have already seen this but it has some good information.

About a Dog's Anal Glands


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## KellyL (Apr 17, 2013)

When I had my sheltie,his anal glands ruptured a few times (I had no idea what had happened. It looked like he had been shot in the behind) It was advised that he should have surgery. I looked online for ways to help without surgery and came across an article suggesting giving fiber supplements. I tried that and he never had a problem again.


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## carlee (Feb 12, 2013)

KellyL said:


> When I had my sheltie,his anal glands ruptured a few times (I had no idea what had happened. It looked like he had been shot in the behind) It was advised that he should have surgery. I looked online for ways to help without surgery and came across an article suggesting giving fiber supplements. I tried that and he never had a problem again.


What exactly did you give him?


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## Petitpie'sDH (Mar 22, 2013)

We have a toy poodle that had frequent anal gland infections in the last year. On the last occasion, the duct was completely obstructed and the vet advised to remove the glands because with the obstruction there would be a continuing problem. I agree that this is a last resort and would hesitate to do it on a young dog unless there was no other alternative. I do believe that finding a diet that gives stools that are firm and with enough bulk to naturally express the anal glands is very important in avoiding problems. We tried a raw diet but it did not seem to be the answer for our poodle. I hope you can find a solution that will not require the surgery to remove the glands, because as some have mentioned, this can cause its own set of problems.


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## Servicepoodlemomma (Jun 22, 2013)

I agree with the raw diet suggestion as well as weekly bathes. 

My Aiyana has had anal gland issues even on raw. Tried the pumpkin thing but it didn't work for her. A friend of mine turned me on to a product made by Honest Kitchen called Perfect Form - she hasn't had a problem since except for the ONE time I dared to not keep a backup canister, and when I went to get more the store I get it at was out - she was off it 2 weeks and BAM, another anal gland infection! She's another I had a vet try to talk me into having surgery done to remove her anal glands - glad I never did it, as this has done the magic trick for her!


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## KellyL (Apr 17, 2013)

carlee said:


> What exactly did you give him?


This was a few years back but I believe it was a walmart brand fiber pill. Google "ruptured anal glands and fiber" and you'll probably be able to come up with better/more information on it.


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## schnauzerpoodle (Apr 21, 2010)

I found this very informative Vets and Groomers, Be Aware of Pet Anal Gland Problems


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## ItzaClip (Dec 1, 2010)

It can't just be "raw", it has to have higher bone content like chicken necks or meaty bones. If you are feeding a prepared brand that has veggies in it or oatmeal it makes stool softer still. Switch to just raw that is just meat/ground bones/organs/tripe for at least one meal.


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## PonkiPoodles (Feb 25, 2009)

pinkteaji said:


> How do you know if your dog has infected anal glands?
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


It doesn't always get red... sometimes a good sign is when they consistently lick or rub the area.


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## pinkteaji (Dec 7, 2012)

Ive seen a lot of ppl talking about baths but do you mean like give them baths often to express their anal glands? Novas been licking/biting or at least trying to. Is it expensive to get anal glands treated? 

Also lots of helpful information here!  

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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Usually your groomer will express anal glands if you ask but I think it best not to have it done unless needed and I have the vet do it. So far so good with Swizzle, one of the benefits of a raw diet.


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## Tiny Poodles (Jun 20, 2013)

pinkteaji said:


> Ive seen a lot of ppl talking about baths but do you mean like give them baths often to express their anal glands? Novas been licking/biting or at least trying to. Is it expensive to get anal glands treated?
> 
> Also lots of helpful information here!
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Can't speak for others, but I just meant a bath to wash away bacteria from the area - I have been doing my dog's grooming for 15 years, and have never expressed an anal gland. To see if your dog's anal glands are over-full, pull the tail up over their back, and feel around the sides of their rectum - if you feel large lumps there, they are over-full, and you should consider talking to your Vet about expressing them.
What gets expensive is if it gets infected/ruptures - middle of the night emergency Vet, wound care (when Tangee went to the emergency Vet, they insisted on sedating her to clean it out, but when it was treated by the regular Vet, he just sent her home with antibiotics, and wound care).
The reason that I think that frequent baths were the key for Tangee, is that she never, ever had over-full glands - they just got infected out of the blue, both times when she was over-due for a bath).


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## pinkteaji (Dec 7, 2012)

Thank you fof the answers! I might go give nova a bath and see if that helps haha 

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