What to do... anal gland issues... STILL!

[Kendra K. Rhoton]

Okay, I know I have posted several topics on this issue myself, as well and read other discussions over it, and even emailed specific people about it, but I'm at my wits end and just sooooo FRUSTRATED!

Since about 6 months of age Remington has been having his anal glands expressed monthly by a vet.  Every time the glands were full!  We're talking disgustingly full!  I have done everything that I can think of to try to clear the problem up.  I'm talking feeding him pumpkin, green beans, completely switching food, meds, etc.  NOTHING helps!  May 27th will be about the time he needs them done again, so I was not all that surprised when he leaked some anal gland juice on my bed sheets while laying in bed with me last night!  However, I being the clean freak I am freaked out!  YUCK!  I know that I can just change the sheets and wash them no big deal... but still... it is sooooo gross and something that I have to deal with ALLLL the time!  We have even gone to the point of having the vet teach us how to express them ourselves so we don't have to pay the $25 each month to get it done.  We are getting better at it, but still it is difficult for an untrained person to do it properly and not worry that they are doing something wrong, you know?

I guess I'm just asking for any other suggestions on stuff that can help this situation!  Stuff we haven't tried, stuff that you have heard about, easy ways to express the glands, how to make sure you got it all out, etc.  It makes me upset to think about dealing with this for the rest of Remington's life.  Don't get me wrong... I would seriously go to the ends of the world for this dog, but it is soooooo frustrating to have to deal with this EVERY month.

Any other Doodle Mom's or Dad's out there that deal with anal gland issues... if so please help!

Sincerely,

At There Wits End  

[Kendra K. Rhoton]

No we have not had antibiotics because of them... just expressing them often. I pray they don't get infected! I do worry about it though. I also worry about damaging one when we do it ourselves. We are not good at it and I've heard that you could rupture one if done incorrectly? I dunno. Thanks for the price range!

[Christina and Cooper plus Benny]

You can make it worse by expressing them, especially from the outside, I am pretty sure. I think that was what started Murphy's infections....
The surgery is a tough call. I also had Murphy's teeth cleaned at the same time, so I killed two birds with one stone. I would say keep trying to deal with them unless or until they get infected, and then probably have the surgery done? Of course, Murphy's surgery was a bit more complicated because the duct was messed up, so maybe waiting makes it worse? I guess I would just talk to your vet and find out what all of your options are....
Maybe the changes in diet will help too! You never know, you could get lucky! I feel bad looking back now, because Murphy had Eukanuba her whole life, and I would never feed a dog that now. But back then, that was the premium food....we have come so far!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The fiber content in the Wellness formula you're feeding looks good, but the feeding recommendations for adult dogs of Remington's weight are 2.5-3 cups per day. However, I doubt that less food will help. The guidelines need to be adjusted up or down for the individual dog & Remington may just need more food.
I'd start feeding him twice a day instead of three times. If you can get some ground flax seed, you might try adding a little bit to his food to boost the fiber even more. Start giving him the fatty acids, too, and make sure he's drinking a good amount of water. I hope some of this helps.

[Kendra K. Rhoton]

Karen, I went out on my lunch hour and picked up some fish oil. I will start giving him one a day. I will also start feeding twice a day instead of 3. We are taking him to the vet this afternoon to get the glands expressed. We tried ourselves last night and couldn't get anything out. Hopefully these suggestions help! I appreciate you looking into this for me :)

[Leslie J]

Cocoa is about 10 months old. She started having problems when she was 3 months old and continued until recently. I notice that she still gets some swelling and strains when her stools are soft, so I have to watch her intake of foods that tend to soften her stools (for her, too much leftover chicken or salmon). I hope that things get easier for Remington!

[shelly]

I have noticed that when Tori eats mostly canned food, she has more of a problem ,,, when I added more dry she does better. So I now use the kibble as treats that fill her kong and kong ball. Hope Remington feels better!

[Leanne]

Hello All,
Well I'm up bright & early after my 3 year old golden doodle pup is having anal gland issues again. Thought I would check to see if anyone had any advice here for me (as I'm a new member & not sure of the site yet). Thank you - will try some of your ideas after the vet today.....
For some history - At about, a year & a half, Miss Patsy yelped at the end of our bed at 5 a.m. Unsure of what was wrong, I got up to check her, not noticing anything obvious (but not sure what I was looking for either) I took her outside, where on the way down the hall, I could see she had a bloody substance on her butt. I cleaned it up as best I could - she was sensitive to touching.
After a visit to the vet - turns her anal gland had burst/ruptured. We had no idea - she didn't have any symptoms of scoots at all. After a few medications, as it just wasn't getting better - the vet says this hardly ever happens, where it bursts. Thing is, I had just taken her in for annual checkup - I had thought that this would have been something the vet would have looked at, as a standard procedure.
The vet had also said surgery was a possibility but not the way to go so early in the treatment, when original medicine wasn't working. I really don't want to have surgery for fear of all the issues that could happen later.
I have since taken her back, 6 months after it all cleared up & the vet had said not too bad when excreting.
Now when I go to vet for anything - I ask them to do it for me - she's so good, they'll do it right there on the table instead of taking her to the back.
I just took her May 27th for her annual checkup & they expressed the glands - nothing awful, but not alot there - and one a little irregular (consistency-wise). And now, not a month later, she is having issues - licking her butt obsessively, is how I noticed. Knowing she was in pain, we tried expressing them to see if it would help last night - after 1 little cry, we stopped as we've only seen it done, not ever done it ourselves. I held a couple hot compresses on her bum and then took her for a walk as she had also just eaten prior. Unfortunatley she didn't poop, but did pee about 3 times - on my way back I could see that something had excreted itself, probably from the hot compress & maybe peeing/maybe she tried to poop. She's still sensitive & I think I can still feel something in the gland. Anyways, just took her out - peed, but no poop again. I'll see if she wants to eat again & try a walk again. I just leave her food out - and she has when she wants. Maybe as someone else says, her poops aren't large enough to allow her to excrete herself.
She has been on the same high quality kibble all her life "tlc pet food" found in Ontario, Canada. She gets lots of exercise in our large backyard as she runs like crazy. Even last night she was tearing around the backyard - surprisingly.
I will certainly try pumpkin right away. Having such an irregular/inconsistent issue with this, doesn't tell me that I'll be able to see what's working, a year really.
Glad to be able to talk to you all & share experiences. I think its a great community where we can share ideas/issues and find any commonality to solve our problems.
Thank you!
Leanne & Patsy