My shih tzu is 6yrs old and never had any anal gland issues. We have been using EVO and Orijen and for the first time she got compacted glands. Now, she does get canned and home cooked food as well, but for this past month, she's been more kibble than home food. Her poo looks fine, and well formed, so what could be the cause? Reading these other posts, mabie i shuld be giving her more fiber as well?? her 'movements' :-) really never 'look' any different no matter what im feeding, so wondering why now as this isnt the first time on more kibble, but it is the first time on less grain??? Thanks!

When you say compacted, do you mean you went to the vet and they said she had compacted glands? Or is she just stinky? Is she scooting and licking? Have you been to the vet?

If she's just licking and is stinky, you could give extra fiber for a few days and see if that helps. But if the glands are infected, they she needs to get to the vet.

I took her to the vet and they actually lanced it. Awful!! i felt so bad a mommy!!..But in 6 years of life, when at the groomers, they always complimented on her clean 'glands' so it just wasnt on my mind, and being a shih tzu, and a hairy one at that, i didnt see anything, but a scoot the day before. So, will i be able to see something so i know to take her in, or do i just start taking her regularly?? thanks!

I don't know what your groomer does, but the groomers I know only express anal glands from the outside. At the vet's office we actually go inside the rectum and express them that way, which could possibly explain the difference in opinion (I can express a helluva lot more material going inside the rectum than I can just doing it from the outside). If her anal glands have been impacted, that may explain why the groomer tells you that they're clean - it's MUCH harder to express impacted anal gland material, especially if it's being done from the outside. Plus, your groomer may be inexperienced and doesn't really know what to look for *shrugs*

Impacted anal glands are actually very, very common, especially for small breeds. Still, it can't hurt to add more fiber to the diet and see if that helps. My dog REALLY enjoys canned pumpkin (not the pumpkin pie variety, just plain canned pumpkin).

thanks so much.... (dont know how i missed your response earlier, so glad i checked back again...) The groomer just sais that part of the *grooming* is expressing the glands, so i never thought much about it.. I have been doing the grooming for the past year, so guess i'd better do the vet thing. I really appreciate your response. And,,, is the inside thing i can be taught? Not that im sure i want to be, but probably should if it's something a dog owner should know.

I'm quite content not knowing how to express anals. Either my vet or my friend who's a former tech could show me, but it's worth the $10 or so to let my vet do it. I will say that my vet is not at all a fan of groomers doing anals. He didn't say why, but he did tell me that while he doesn't like doing them, he would rather clients come to him for it than ask the groomer to do it. And normally my vet doesn't bad mouth anyone, so he must have run into some problem.

Here is a website that tells you how to express a dog's anal sacs.
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/anal_sacs.html

I actually asked one of the techs at my old vet to show me how to do this for Yogi but I have never done it because I am afraid that I might hurt him. My new vet says that Yogi's anal sacs are much deeper than most dogs and I would probably have a hard time doing them anyway. It is expensive for them to do it though, about $19, I think.
I have tried pumpkin but didn't notice much difference in how often I had to take him to the vet (every six-eight weeks) and Yogi eventually decided that he doesn't like pumpkin and will eat a circle around it!

That's the same thing my vet's office said about Woobie's anal glands. All I can say is THANK DOG for arabinogalactan powder! Haven't had to have them expressed since December. Fiber helps, but without AP, he ends up scooting and biting at his rear and getting gunky ears. With AP, all clear! I love the stuff!

is there something i should see to know if they need expressing again? I am going to be taking her in,but it's 26 dollars here (gonna check around though) and since she's never "~~seemed~~" to need it before, i just wonder if its something to look out for or just DO! Also, my other Tzu has never had it done either and dont want to start something if that was just a freek happening. Had dogs all my life.... not done this.... Was i just lucky, or were my poor pooches suffering quietly??

Some dogs never need it. Indie's never had a problem (knocks on wooden head!). I can tell with Woobie because he starts biting at his bottom and licking ALOT. He also does this thing where he'll be running around and will suddenly drop and start biting hard at his bottom as though something has bitten him.

It can be, but most people find it completely disgusting. Plus, you have to be careful because if you don't realize something is wrong (fluid thickened, ruptured gland, fistulas, etc), you can make it worse (or if the gland isn't ruptured to begin with you can rupture it by squeezing too hard). It definitely takes practice.

A dog's toleration level of anal gland expression varies WIDELY (most aren't too tolerant of it, ESPECIALLY the smaller breeds) so it's most likely going to take at least two people to do it. If the second person you have to help you isn't proficient at restraining (most people aren't as good as they think they are) it's easy to be injured by the dog (or to cause injury to the dog).

I do my own dog's anal glands but I'm a vet tech and have had lots of practice I personally find that going inside the rectum to express the anal glands to be much easier than the outside method (which I cannot do to save my life).

Ask your vet to show you how to check to see if the sacs are full. You can actually tell without going inside the rectum. Just put your thumb and first finger in the 9 and 3 o'clock position on the skin directly outside the anus and kind of push in - you should be able to feel a "lump" on either side (wear gloves). If it's bigger then pea-size (for a small dog), they might need to be expressed. The more you practice, the better you will get a feel for what's full and what's not (you don't want the gland to be completely empty, though).

Like what was mentioned before - some dogs never need their anal sacs expressed. If your dog is not scooting on the ground and not excessively licking his anus, chances are good that he's fine. In my experience it seems to me that the more a dog's anal sacs are expressed, the more they need it. That may or may not be true, but that's my experience. I try not to express my own dog's anal sacs very often (every few months). Usually if she starts scooting, I'll break down and do it.

very!! interesting. Thanks so much for all your help......