Anal Glands..Advice Required.

[Phoebe]

Hello folks,
I have a six month old puppy, she scoots about on her bum for a couple of seconds but only about once a day. Is it normal for all dogs to scoot a tiny bit? I am aware that a lot of Cavs require their glands emptying (please don't anyone suggest I do this myself!)
So, do I have her checked at the vets during her six month health check, or....and forgive me for being cynical, will the vet just see this as a money making opportunity, as I have been lead to believe that once started, the glands will need emptying every 3-4 months for the rest of her life.
If she requires this, obviously I wouldn't hesitate to take her regularly, I just don't want to be ripped off!
Phoebe Bo's mum

[CavyMom]

Have your vet teach you how to do this, it's not a pleasent process, but it can be done at home once you know how I actually know quite a few cavaliers that don't have anal gland problems that like to scoot their butts, but I would definatly have the vet take a look while she's in there anyway

[Karlin]

Small breed dogs tend to have more problems with anal glands because the opening is a lot smaller.

This breed does tend to scoot anyway and worms van often cause scooting too-- and puppies are prone to worm infestations.

Learning to empty glands yourself would save you from the fear of vets looking for money. Otherwise if she looks uncomfortable you will need to do occasional trips to have this done. Alternatively groomers usually will also do glands.

[Kelly]

I have Chester's anal glands cleaned every three months when we go to the Vet to get his worming tablet. This was on the Vets advice & when we went back over the weekend, she said they were quite full but nothing to worry about. She said it's only if they need doing more than every 3 months that they start to talk about taking them out.

All that said though, he still scoots whether he has just had them done or whether he had them done a month ago. He only ever does it on the carpet & I think he must just like the sensation - yes, he is slightly quirky! ;o)

It costs just under £20 but I dont really like the idea of doing it myself to be honest, also he wriggles quite a lot and that would scare me.

[Ste]

Learning to empty glands yourself would save you from the fear of vets looking for money.

I asked my vet to show me how to do this and she said "no way, it's disgusting and not something you want to be doing to your pet", she's right, the smell is

I simply bring Cody to the clinic with me anytime I have one of the others in and they'll give her a quick check up and squeeze if needed. Abs doesn't appear to have any problems, and only scoots out of frustration when Gavin or Cody have something she wants and won't surrender to her (if Abs could talk her only word would be ''Mine")

[merlinsmum]

Try giving your little one a little bran (not too much) with their food I have noticed that if I put a little too much wet food on top of the boys kibble then it makes their poo softer. The softer the poo the less the glands are emptied. So a firmer poo should sort the problem

Oakley boot scoot boogied this morning, but is poo was nice and firm - he just wanted to show off his little trick! (or perhaps that it was way past walkie time as I have this dreaded lurgy that has been going around lateley.)

[Barbara Nixon]

Izzy had frequent gland problems, but I found his easy to empty myself. However, that is not the case with Teddy and Joly. I have only had joly's done by the vet once though, as I've found feeding bran and giving a couple of extra large dinners has caused large stools which solved the problem.

[cy1266]

I would like to learn how to do this since Miles tends to scoot sometimes. He has had them emptied by his vet twice (he's almost 10 months old), but I wouldn't want to bring him all the way to the vet if it's something I can do myself. One of my best friends is a vet tech and she told me she would show me how to do it, but if any of you have any helpful tips that would be great! He does get some bran daily, which I know is supposed to help, but he continues to scoot every few days...

Thanks!
Carrie

[Phoebe]

Thank you all very much for your replies. I will try the bran in her diet but I will ask the vet to check her glands when we visit. I really don't think this is something I want to do myself, as it does sound pretty gross!
My teenagers think it's absolutely hysterical when Phoebe "scoot boogies,"
....that said, it's not so cute when she does it on cream coloured sofas!
She''s on a bit of a hunger strike today because she is teething big time, funny how she suddenly discovered her apetite when she spotted us eating cream cakes though?!
Kind regards to you all and for those of you with horrid winter colds and bugs, get well soon. Phoebe Bo's mum.

[Daisy's Mom]

The last time we were at the vet, he asked me if Daisy was scooting and I said "A little bit, no more than normal for her." He said he thought her glands were full and he expressed them right in the room with me. One went pretty quickly, but the other one must have been kind of plugged or something because he really had to squeeze and Daisy cried! I know I could never do it. A lot of liquid came out and yes, it did stink!

I also heard that once you squeeze them out, they are more likely to need that repeatedly, so I hope that's not the case with Daisy. She's had them done twice in her life (she's 20 months old). She did scoot quite a bit right after she had them expressed. The vet told me if I wanted to avoid a problem with them, to feed her some green beans every day -- anyone else ever heard that? I've been doing it most days.