Q: Anal Gland Expression?

Dr. Schaeberle,

My groomer recommended getting my dog’s anal glands expressed. What did she mean by that?

Bruce

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Dear Bruce,

Dogs and cats have scent glands known as anal sacs or anal glands just inside the anus. These glands normally empty when the pet has a bowel movement but may also be emptied or expressed when a cat or dog is nervous or frightened.

In some animals, these glands can become impacted or infected. Impaction means the glands fail to empty in a normal fashion. The exact cause of impaction is unknown, but may be caused by loose stools or a low fiber diet. Obstruction of the duct due to excessive weight or having a small/narrow duct may all be possible reason for an anal sac to become impacted.

In some cases, retained secretions cause local inflammation, and bacteria trapped in the gland can lead to infection and abscess formation.

Pets may have pain when they defecate, may lick at the area or bite at their tails, and may rub or “scoot” their bottoms across the ground. One may also notice a red or swollen area next to the anus or even an open wound or draining pus or blood if the abscess ruptures.

If your pet does not show any of these symptoms, please ask your groomer not to express anal glands when in for grooming.

Treatment of an abscessed anal gland involves having your veterinarian or veterinary nurse express the anal glands if possible to remove impacted material, oral antibiotics for two to four weeks to control infection, and, in many cases, flushing or irrigation of the glands. Warm compresses to encourage drainage and repeated anal gland expression and flushing may be necessary to heal the abscess.

Some pets have recurrent problems with impacted or infected glands. In these cases, expressing the glands every 4-6 weeks to keep them empty and changing to a high fiber diet or adding a fiber supplement may help to keep the glands from becoming impacted. In some cases, if recurrence is frequent or an abscess does not heal, surgical removal of the anal sacs may be necessary.

Thanks,
Thomas Schaeberle, VMD

Question: Anal Glands Part 2

Dear Dr. Schaeberle,

Why does my dog constantly want to lick his hind end area and scoot on the carpet?

Thanks,
Doug

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Doug,

As mentioned in last week’s article, anal glands are two glands that sit just inside the anus that produce a scent unique to the individual dog or cat. So what is the cause of anal gland disease? A study years ago revealed, that dogs who had their anal glands emptied frequently either by a veterinarian or a trained groomer, were more likely to develop chronic anal gland disease. As a result, I do not recommend routinely expressing anal glands. Anal gland disease can also be triggered by skin allergies, and many pets have problems for no discernable reason.

What are the signs of anal gland disease? The classical signs are scooting, licking or an offensive odor. Anal glands can get impacted or infected.

How is anal gland disease treated?

For a dog who is scooting or a cat excessively licking the hind end, we simply empty the glands. If we are suspicious of infection we look at the material from the glands under a microscope. If we notice a large amount of bacteria and/or white blood cells we may elect to pack the anal glands with an antibiotic treatment or prescribe medication.

Infections can be very painful and may result in an abscess. Pets with an abscess are usually sedated, the infected area is opened and then drained.

With chronic disease, I like to partner with the owner to decide if it is time to surgically remove the anal glands. The surgery is typically very successful, with minimal complications.

In York County, only 3 hospitals are certified by the American Animal Hospital Association: Shiloh Veterinary Hospital in Dover, Shiloh Veterinary Hospital East and Patton Veterinary Hospital in Red Lion. AAHA has approximately 3,000 hospitals that voluntarily participate in the evaluation program.

Learn more at our website, www.myshilohvet.com. Go to Resources, click on Pet Health and search on anal glands.

Thanks,
Thomas Schaeberle, V.M.D.

Question: Dog constantly wants to lick hind end?

Dear Dr. Schaeberle,

Why does my dog constantly want to lick his hind end area and scoot on the carpet?

Thanks,
Doug

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Doug,

The most common cause of this problem is a condition we call impacted anal glands. I have elected to write about anal glands both today and next week. In this first article I would like to talk first about the anal gland’s function.

I read a great article years ago in Time magazine that best illustrates the anal gland’s function. The United States Park service wanted to strengthen the wolf population and naively released some wolves thinking they would be welcomed into an established pack. Apparently they were not welcomed as the wolves smelled the scent around the rear end (that scent is produced by two glands that sit just inside the anus), and decided they were not pack members. The pack of wolves then ran off these strange new visitors. You see, they don’t have names like Doug or Tom but rather each gland around the anus produces a distinct odor that can identify that Wolf. Just like wolves, dogs smell each other’s hind ends to identify that dog with a scent.

Dog’s sense of smell is very advanced. When you think about how an Airport Security Narcotics Dog can pinpoint the smell of illegal drugs in a suitcase in the middle of an airport that contains many different smells, it is simply amazing. So their ability to distinguish scents is literally hundreds of times greater than a human being.

Anal gland problems can be treated in a variety of ways, although sometimes surgery is needed in chronic cases. I will go over the cause and treatment of anal gland disease in next week’s issue of the Weekly Record.

Shiloh Veterinary Hospitals in Dover and Manchester, are proudly certified by the American Animal Hospital Association. Joining the Patton Veterinary Hospital in Red Lion, the only other hospital certified in the York area.

Learn more at our website, www.myshilohvet.com. Go to Resources, click on Pet Health and search on anal glands.

Learn more at our website, www.myshilohvet.com.

Thanks,
Thomas Schaeberle, V.M.D.