Can I ask about anal glands?

[Sue and Cash]

Sorry not the most pleasant topics on this special Irish day but.....

Cash had this fishy smell coming from his back end on the way home from the dog park yesterday.

I noticed it once or twice before but didn't realize it was him!  He was so muddy those other times I just thought it was dog park smells and bathed him.  But yesterday it was really strong and after smelling him all over, I figured out where it was coming from.  My last setter Dub didnt' ever have anal gland problems.  But the one before him, Casey, sure did.  He had to get them purged every month and loved to get the vet no matter how hard he tried to avoid the spray.  But Casey scooted and licked and you could tell it was a different smell.  Vile yes, but not fishy.  Cash was for sure fishy.  He has never scooted and doesn't lick there either.  It seems to have gone away today and I did wash him off there last night.  I was reading that in puppies it can come from anxiety or excitement.  They sort of leak a bit more than what is normally secreate with pooping.  Does this seem right?  Should he see the vet?  I hate to have anyone mess with his anal glands if it isn't needed since it can cause them to need it more often won't it?  He does get so excited to play with his friends there and does get more activity there than anywhere else.  Everything looks healthy and normal down there.  And I should add he never had loose stools.  Never!  He has a perfectly formed again healthy looking poop three times daily.  So what should I do?  Leave it be?  I need your experiences and advice please.  Thanks!

[Nicky Vangalis]

Maybe if you're not sure take him to your vet, my vet will do the anal glands as I find it a bit gross to do! It's easily enough sorted and if it's not that then they can identify what the issue is :-)

[Elizabeth Ball]

Hi Susan, I am absolutely no expert on this one but we had a similar odour from Bella when she was about 4 months old, combined with a lot of liking around her rear ( regularly wormed, no scooting and normal healthy poos) so I rang my vet and said that I was concerned that she seemed to be ferreting around her bum a lot and it smelt of fish (nice!) and whilst I was aware that dogs lick their bottoms I was unsure what a normal amount was as she was my first pup. They advised I nip her in and the vet gave her a good check over, everything felt normal with her tummy and her bottom looked fine so he checked her anal glands and sure enough they were full so he emptied them, he was surprised when I said that she had just done her business before we left home. He said that sometimes with pups they can fill and for some reason not empty with normal bowel movements, he likened it to when you blow up a balloon and pull the opening tight to let air out slowly but I didn't entirely follow the analogy. Anyway she has been absolutely fine since, no odour or excessive licking, and he said we had no reason to be concerned at this point that it was going to be a problem for life. He also didn't advise us that once you start down the road of manual intervention then it will be required more later on so I am intrigued by your comment on that and hope it isn't the case and that it was a one-off for us as Bella seemed a little unimpressed with the procedure!

[Mary Davies]

If it is anal gland problems then I would suggest that you change his diet. I found that when i fed my dogs on James Wellbeloved they had blocked anal glands very regularly, so I used to add another cheaper food to it, this seemed to stop the problem.Its not a problem any more as it has become too expensive to feed, so they are now on a diferent diet and have had no problems since.

[Sue and Cash]

Well we just returned from our hike in the woods and his romp with the other dogs and he isn't smelly. Just to be sure I will do as adviced by you and take him in to be looked at for peace of mind if anything. Thank you so much.

[Sue and Cash]

Cash saw the vet and he did have to have his anals expressed. After a good washing he smells sweet again. Very unusual for a puppy at 4 months to have filled glands they told me. We will have to watch for how often this happens again. He always has a perfectly formed movement so I am not changing his diet. We will just wait and if it happens again and how often. The breeder said maybe his glands didn't grow at the same rate as the rest of him or something like that and it might resolve itself from here on out. Fingers crossed it isn't an issue down the road.

[Sue and Cash]

I had to dig up my old post to check the date, because Cash a.k.a. fish butt has for sure anal problems again.
He reeks so badly of fish and I have an appt for his ear recheck tomorrow and will have to have them empty those out yet again. Maybe I should change his diet. He is not on a food I like anyway but his poop was always so firm and perfect on it. He get Eukanuba Large Breed Puppy but it has corn gluten in it which I don't like in my dogs food. I just am staying with the breeders program since her dogs are so gorgeous and healthy. What do you looke for when they say a higher fiber diet for anal glands. Is that more grains? Don't like that idea at all but can't live with fish butt, it is killer nasty. Setter owners in the US what food do you feed your puppies and adults?

[Ossian]

Susan = dont chew me out! For the sake of "fish butt" if nothing else!

If your vet hasnt identified anything else in a health check try looking at his diet. I think manual expression of the glands over a period of time can mean that you have to keep doing it. You want them to try to work naturally

Look at more vegetables in the diet perhaps some fresh raw beef and I know it isnt always easy but a marrow bone is a great help. That makes a very firm stool which - when being pushed through - will usually free those smelly glands.

Hope that helps

[Sue and Cash]

Thanks Ossain, here is what I am dealing with. It isn't usually normal for a dog who has firm stool to not be expressing them himself as he goes. He does have a nice firm poop. But I don't really want him on the Eukanuba the breeder uses anymore due to the corn in it. He has goopier eyes than I think is normal. I am just ingrained to believe that setters shouldn't have corn or wheat or soy in their diets. Gluten intolerances are well known in the breed as well. So that being said now this anal issue of twice in two months comes up. Yes it might be his anatomy. They way his glands are located, might not be making contact with hs stool enough to force that out. In which case he will need them done way to often and I will have to do it at home due to the cost of it at my vet. Or if it is diet I thought I had just bought him the Acana Wild Prairie food which is so much better but now am a bit nervous second guessing myself and my knowledge of food because of the higher protein levels which the jury seems to be out on whether that is safe for puppies. I sure dont' want to be the test subject for the higher protein debate that seems to be going on everywhere in regards to the organic foods that are all the rage. Plus it does have so many ingredients and I have found a simplier ingredient panel means less chances of something not agreeing with the pup and not knowing which it is with so many fruits and veggies in there. So the new stuff is so expensive before trying it should I not try for an organic diet that does have at least some oatmeal in it? Not grain free but human grade I guess? Any ideas?

[Ossian]

Susan
you are asking a devoted BARF feeder, so its tough for me to advocate anything else. My guys are different sizes, different weight and all ages but they just all do so well.

I am not a fan of Eukanuba and I tend to shy away from all the pre prepared foods for the simple reason that they sound wonderful and never really are completely honest I think about content.

The Acana does seem to be getting a good variety but would you not be safer trying fresh veg.

You can chop it fine raw, cook it al dente or cook it in its own veggie water and blast it in a blender to add to other foods.

Dont get too hung up on protein levels. At this age you see quickly whether its too much because they get "fidgety". Like a couch potato on an athlete's diet.

You know whatever new food you try you should offer a meal which is one third new food and two thirds original to start and take about six weeks to introduce new. In that period you will notice things like gloopy eyes or irritable skin and looser movements.

I am so stuck on BARF for all the hitches that we talk about with youngsters. Intolerances to food, behaviour, high activity level. destructiveness, skin, eyes ears.

When I think back to our labradors 40 years ago they were glorious dogs. the sheen on their black coats was burnished. They had brown wholemeal bread, warm milk and for a treat they had an egg broken into their dish and beaten through. We fed them green tripe when they were working!
Oh crumbs. Gluten, lactose, salmonella.... but they lived and thrived. Dont worry too much and try a little bit of fresh it might surprise you!

[Ossian]

Susan I forgot to say add a chopped clove of fresh garlic to food every day! Really good for blocked anal glands.

You can also google "Silicea" which is the homeopathic remedy for blocked anal glands

[Sue and Cash]

Since I know that BARF is best, my next alternative was to go organic and try to get the best kibble you can get. Orijen is just that made in Canada. Won a ton a awards as well. Acana is their product but has less protein which is more appropriate for young pups. I think it was Fran that said that many of the foods are poison in a bag! I haven't jumped on the holistic band wagon as quick as others but found this amazing place not far from here that does Acupunture, holistic treatments and grain free foods as well as two fabulous indoor swimming pools for therapy for dogs in recovery from ACL surgeries and such. Just great people and they convinced me to try, with a money back guarantee, a fresher diet for Cash. The meats and fishes are caught fresh in Canada and made by Champion each day fresh. Also they sell raw diets frozen to buy too. Not sure I can squeeze in cooking for him, but would if I had as many dogs as many of you do. Hell this crew is lucky I cook their dinners! And eva I do feel I let my dog be a dog. My concerns are really mostly health related which I don't think ever freaked me out till the death of Dublin and Jax. I went through metabolic disease and then with Dub the seizures. I want to be sure to take care of him better because we just love this pup so much and he is such a wonderful dog. Hurray to our breeder for such a lovely litter. I let him be free everyday to be a dog. That is why I am NOT uptight about training. I just let him be. We work on it, but not with the gusto I should perhaps! I am more loving just letting him flush his birds and lay in the sunshine. Dogs like routines and we have one. I do best with routine as well. I am looking up that Silicea now I bet they sell it at the Natural Pet store, they had shelves of homopathic stuff.

[Ilona & Gina]

Anal gland problems? The same here!

Our Anton had anal gland problems when he was about four to six months of age. When then swapped from kibbles to BARF - no fishy smell, no problems. We have a dehydrator to make their meat strip treats ourselves. We do not buy anything at the supermarket or at the pet shop.

All they get is food portions about 2% of their body weight/daily, of which 20% is veg. Plus fish oil, chicken neck, once a week a raw egg, some sardines, salmon, pilchard (no tuna). The result: The vet doesn't have to clean Anton's glands anymore.Anton's and Gina's coats loook glorious. Gina's allergy is not gone, but a lot better. No weight problems, these two guys are full of energy plus. We can't ask for more.

However, althought I swear by BARF, but I won't advocate it. Recently a vet told me that a dog owner had sued a colleague of his for recommending BARF, after which the customer's dog reportedly had contracted worms. That makes you careful about what to say. But then, maybe some people should rather have gold fish than dogs...