Smelly issues - the anal glands

Djammy

Hi everyone,
I’m curious, if others here have any experience with this.
When Djamila was little, at times she would twitch and try to reach her back a few times as if something was bothering her there. Not excessively, she did not slide on her butt or anything like that. But in addition I noticed a horrible fishy smell.

I found some interesting information about anal gland problems in dogs - did not know about that before.
The tips on how to help oneself with this issue are pretty comprehensive and I am now frequently checking and expressing occasionally - not exactly “all peaches and strawberries” that much is clear.

Many reports pin the issue on the nutrition. And it seems to have decreased a little since we’ve started feeding raw. However, it’s not completely gone, although her stools most of the time are firm and should be able to clear her glands “naturally”. To me this seems to be her blind spot.

Every now and then we still find “smelly surprises” on our furniture or clothes indicating that she has probably lost a drop.
My question is: Has anyone any experience of warning signs other than lunging for her back and lifting the tail sideways?

I keep her clean around her back to avoid bacteria invading and when I watch her twitch I can do something about it. But she never shows any other signs. Sometimes the “stink” seemingly happens without warning. No soiling, it’s obviously just that one drop she looses now and then.

At the moment it does not seem to be a seriously bothering issue for her, more for us because of the occasional smell - which is powerful! I’m just curios, if others have any experience on what signs to look out for to take action in time and avoid that she involuntarily looses drops around the house.

LokiLostCoast

You can take her to the vet to have her glands expressed. A lot of groomers provide the service as well but I've heard that vets are more thorough.

philsergeant

All those symptoms are very normal for a female Bullie, made especially worse if the vet did not such a tidy, careful job on the spaying. You can try manually expressing, but Bullies are typically very resistant to more than superficial pressure, and you don't get terribly much out with limited pressure.  I find easing off on the salmon oil quantity helps a little bit.  I believe there is surgery that can be done to remove the gland... but one wonders whether the inconvenience is worth the risk of surgery. We mostly give Isabella a frequent brisk rub with a few medicated wipes to keep the build up low... Without that, if it builds, you can receive a horrific squirt.  We add Origanum to her food as it tends to provide ruffage and stiffens the stool which "takes some of it along with it" each time she goes.... anything to safely stiffen the stool.  The "twitching" you mention is because the discharge stings like crazy.

Djammy

Thank you guys for the input. We're actually good concerning the expression. I was wondering how common this issue is - obviously very much.
Djamila is not spayed and we're not planning on having that done unless medical reasons demand it. If the smell is the price we have to pay for that, that's ok for us as long as she does not have persisting pain. That would also be the only reason for me to consider having those glands removed. I do not want her to undergo unnecessary surgery.
I am frequently cleaning, checking and expressing her to avoid buildup. And it has been a long while since I've last seen that disgusting brown discharge during the process. I watch, if she is setting her mark after every number two outside. In 99% it's happening and usually clear. So, all in all the mechanisms seem to work. It's also been a while since I've last watched her twitch and lunge for her back.
But as I said, every now and then we notice that smell, like she is leaky and lost a drop - which is sufficient to produce this horrible stink.
Usually when I try to relieve her then nothing happens although I know how to do it.

Looks like this is something I should just get used to. Well, things could be worse.
However, I'll consider that Origanum. Also read a lot of other good things about it. I was also thinking about maybe some pumpkin added for her stools. But as I said, overall the stools are firm and should be sufficient to "do the job".

@Philsergeant, why did you suggest to cut back a little on the fish oil? Is that related to the smell or did you mean that the oil could possibly be making her stools too soft? 

BulliesofNC

Luckily I have not had any need for anal gland expression on any of our Bullies. However,  one the our Club members Bullies requires it often. She is spayed and started requiring anal glad expression when she was about a year and half old.
I can only image that either diet or genetics causes the problem. With many dogs that suffer from infected anal glands they usually do not require surgery if they are being expressed on a routine basis. I think thee need for the surgical removal of the gland would depend on the frequency for expression and/or the discomfort the individual dog is experiencing. Unfortunately the problem can get worse and the sacs can get so infected and enlarged that they would mandate removal.
Some believe anal glad disease is caused by a diet low in fiber. I wish I could provide validity on whether or not fiber deficiency is a cause but again I have not experienced any of my Bullies that have anal gland issues. I don't think it would hurt to bump up her fiber intake and see if it helps.

philsergeant

@Djammy.... I suspect that, if you serve a little too much Salmon Oil.... It ends up in that sack.

mbgood

Murphy is spayed and occasionally gets "the stink" requiring a brisk butt-washing, but it is infrequent and not overwhelming. She does not seem to have any behavior changes ahead of these small drips and fiber does help, as others have mentioned. I do not use Salmon Oil as a supplement; besides her grain-free kibble and raw food, she gets a spoon of coconut oil as a treat, a spoon of ACV, and her NuVet (the best treat ever for her, I just say, "Want a wafer?!!" and she goes nuts).

My last bully (Piggy) was a different story though. She had far more fishy episodes and later in life even had her anal sacs get impacted. It was horrible and uncomfortable for her and I had terrible guilt that I hadn't noticed the several days of symptoms leading up to it. I was not well-informed; I won't make that mistake again (sorry, Piggy...). For her, after aforementioned episode, I did some research and I changed her food to Natural Balance Synergy formula, which was much better than what I had been feeding her. Firming up her stools was a good preemptive. Eventually, giving her ever-increasingly better quality food made the fish leaks rare.

Live and learn, I have been much better informed about proper feeding for Murphy--thanks in great part to this forum and its members--and Murf has had excellent nutrition for all of her two years, and she is so much healthier for it. 

philsergeant

@mbgood .. Aww I miss Piggy too.. Do you have any photos?  Yes, when you get them "in-the-groove" food& intake-wise, they do a lot better all around... Takes a lot of fine tuning though.

Djammy

Thank you all for your answers. This discussion has brought up some very helpful information for future readers.
Djamila is on a great nutrition and supplements already since we have her, including fiber rich veggies.
However, there are some options left, such as the pumpkin, origanum and cutting back a little on the fish oil.
Thank you for the suggestions.
I am glad that it's not a critical condition right now and hope I'll be able to keep it that way.

@mbgood
I am sharing the same feeling of regret towards our former dog Fancy about one or the other thing I just did not know better in the past. But I know she still had a wonderful and long life with us and got all the love and care she deserved. She herself has taught me a lot about the breed. Live and learn - it's so true.

philsergeant

Oh yes Djammy,,,,!!!! Bullies teach us much more in life than their, comparatively, mere human counterparts.... Mostly they teach us that love is totally unconditional and without restriction...

fullofbull

Hannah's having a bit of anal smell now and then.  How much pumpkin do you give and how often?  She eats twice a day.

Djammy

Just to be sure: The pumpkin is intended to firm softer stools, which are considered to cause the smell, because the glands cannot be expressed enough during defecation when stools are too soft.

I am just saying that, because if despite the smell your dog's stools are fine and firm already, I don't see any need to feed something to firm the stools.

As I read with pumpkin (and fibers in general) it's a fine line between diarrhea and constipation - fibers allegedly can easily cause both, varying by amount and type of fiber.

I have actually not yet tried the pumpkin myself with Djamila.

But I've read this recommendation about the dosage:

1 tbsp. per day for smaller dogs, 2 tbsp. per day for larger dogs (no actual weights given).

With my 47 lb dog, I'd probably first try one tbsp. and see where things go from there. Yet, I am currently thinking about a pumpkin dog cookie recipe in order to use all of the pumpkin in one can before it decays, instead of feeding the purree as it is off the can.

But I have not quite figured that out yet.

Another useful tip I read was to freeze the canned pumpkin purree in an ice cube tray and just thaw as many as needed at a time. Neat idea!