My doodle has very bad allergies,

[Karen Morgan]

I am hoping someone out there can help me. I have a 2 year old Labradoodle who has very bad allergies and also needs to have her anal glands removed ( as of 4 days ago) Her glands hold a paste that she can not remove on her own and she it is painful for her to constantly have them drained. Is there anyone out there who has heard of this? I have spent so much $$ at the vets on her, and I am afraid it is going to get worse

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There are lots more discussions, but these three cover all the info you'll need to deal with Molly's allergies. I think you'll find all of these discussions very helpful.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I'd make sure that regular expression of the anal glands would not make it less painful before I'd consider surgery. You can express the glands yourself. Also, I'd certainly get a second opinion and go to someone experienced if you do have the surgery. Her e are some sites you may find helpful.
Anal Sacs 1

Anal Sacs 2

[Karen Morgan]

Thank you for all the info. I so deeply appreciate it. Molly has had 3 doctor's. And they have all said it may come down to this. Her anal fills so quickly ( with in 2 weeks time ) with a thick tan paste,she licks and licks until she is raw, and she cries, she will not even let you go near her or she will ripe your hand off. An usually she is a very sweet dog. There is a specialist who they recommended me to and i will call him tomorrow and discuss this with him. The doctor did say , when it gets to the point when it becomes a thick paste, it makes the dog very uncomfortable and then gets infected. I just can not let her keep suffering, I will let you all know how she makes out.... Happy Thanksgiving to you all. Sincerely, Karen Morgan

[F, Calla & Luca]

I'm sorry to hear she really needs the surgery but it sounds like you've thoroughly checked things out and it's very good that you have a specialist. Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'll tell you, Jane, I am beginning to think that some anal gland problems are linked to the atopy; this is the second case I've heard of this week where a doodle with atopy also has anal gland problems, and Jack had a minor issue with impacted glands recently as well.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Karen, that is an interesting thought. It reminds me of cystic fibrosis somehow with thick secretions , which get infected. I wonder what's out there on this.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I would really be interested in anything you can find; I know you understand so much more about the relationships between the various body systems than I could hope to, and have access to more scholarly info. We have another MD here on DK, Cam & Oski, and she was able to explain so much to me last year after Jack's testing. (See my "All about Allergies" discussion linked above) We are really fortunate to have people here who are willing to use their knowledge to help other doodle owners. It makes all of us feel a little less alone in coping with some of these bewildering issues.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I also was recently told by my vet that for dogs who have problems with this, expressing the glands externally, as the groomers usually do it, can make it worse; he said it should always be done internally, for dogs whose anal glands frequently become impacted.

[F, Calla & Luca]

Here's an explanation of internal and external anal gland expression.
Anal Gland Expression

[shelly]

Hmmm now you guys have MY interest peeked! Tori will leak some of the anal liquid out as she sits... in fact she just did that tonight (and while sitting with us on my couch!) She's on mostly canned food with only a couple of small handfuls of dry mixed in two times a day. I think the dry actually bulks up her 'poop' and makes it firmer (Sorry to be so descriptive) - I noticed that it does usually happen when she has to go to the bathroom and just like a kid- holds it and waits 'till the last minute. She's funny, she runs away when we go to put on her leash and then usually soon after gives in and goes out and does poop???? Sound strange to you????

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'd definitely switch her to dry food.

[shelly]

Did you ever hear of a dog having an intolerance to the preservatives in the dry food (same exact food she eats in the can - just dried).... when she had a bout of vomiting last spring - my vet said that sometimes a dog may not be able to tolerate the dry, and if she's gnawing on nyla-bones it's
fine????? I think her 'episodes' then may just have been bad coincidences....Thanks for your input and help! Other than her whole 'swallowing of the screw' a couple of weeks ago, she really has been fine...