Dog Health and Anal Glands - Dealing With Impactions

Perhaps one of the least talked about aspects of dog health is dealing with impactions of the anal glands. Dogs with these glandular impactions typically engage is some easy to spot behaviors that include excessive licking of the region under the tail plus the very annoying behavior of "scooting" across different surfaces. Favorite items to rub their bottom against tend to be things like your living room carpet, your bedspread or just out in the middle of your front lawn while you are talking to the neighbors.

While some people will mistakenly believe that this scooting behavior is a sign of worms, in reality this dog health issue is the result of a blocking of the ducts of the anal glands that are located on the bottom sides of the anus. These glands secrete a mucous like material that lubricates the area as well as may have had some marking function in the early development of the canine species. The opening of these two glands can become blocked and the glands swell and become irritated, which is why the dog rubs his or her bottom to try to relieve the pressure and clear the ducts.

Dog Anal Gland Emptying - The Process

Dog's health issues such as anal glands and their impactions can usually be dealt with at home with just some warm water, latex medical gloves and a bit of patience and perseverance on the part of the owner. The actual steps to unblocking your dog's anal glands includes:

• Hold the dog facing away from you, tail raised to expose the anus.
• Use a damp, warm cloth to soak the anal area, which may help to soften any material that may have dried and is acting like a plug. Sometimes in very mild impactions this is all that is necessary. If the plug does soften and come out, you will notice a thick, rather strong smelling substance on the edge of the anus.
• Wearing the latex gloves, very gently position your thumb and index finger of one hand at the bottom part of the anus, approximately at the five and seven positions on a clock. You will feel the glands, they will be hard, pea shaped or smaller glands just under the surface of the skin. Very gently squeeze towards the center and out, which should remove the plug. Again the mucous like discharge will be obvious when the ducts are free from any obstruction.
• If this doesn't work, repeat steps 2 and 3 one or two more times, but only squeeze very gently, you can cause ruptures with too much pressure.

If the glands do not clear after one or two attempts, make an appointment with your vet or groomer to have them cleared and emptied as part of routine dog health management. Most groomers will include anal gland cleaning as part of the overall dog grooming and dog's health services offered with a basic grooming session.