Anal Glands

” Anal gland dog problems occur when the canine anal glands are unable to empty naturally. Symptoms include odor, a dog scooting the rear across the floor and other signs of discomfort. Treatment includes antibiotics for any infection, and manual manipulation of the sacs to drain any fluid. Long term relief is achieved with a higher fiber diet and the addition of a natural remedy to the diet, to name two. The dog anal sacs should be examined as part of regular veterinary care to ensure that they are emptying properly. ”

Anal gland dog sacs are two small glands situated just below and to either side of the anal opening. They manufacture and secrete a fluid that is used to mark territory. When the anal glands are healthy and your dog is bathed regularly, the anal glands do not have much of a smell to humans, although other dogs can smell them well. That’s why dogs like to sniff each other’s behinds – that’s part of how they recognize each other, from the scent of the fluid produced by the anal glands, which is unique to each dog.

Symptoms of anal gland problems usually include a bad smell. The glands can become impacted or infected, causing them to produce a thicker than normal fluid that has a bad odor. Dogs may attempt to lick or bite at the area if they are experiencing discomfort. Your dog may also “scoot” across the floor on his bottom with his tail up (called scooting). If your pet cries when going to the bathroom or shows signs of pain, then the anal glands may have become infected.

Small breeds are more susceptible to anal gland problems than large breeds.

Impacted and infected dog anal sacs are common anal gland dog problems. Your vet will be able to diagnose them just by examining your dog. No special tests will be needed.

Rarely, cancer can develop in the anal sacs. This is more common in females than in males. Cancer of the anal sacs is diagnosed with a biopsy (skin sample). A needle is used to extract some cells from the tumor, and those cells are then examined under a microscope.

Treatment of anal gland problems is usually pretty straight forward. If the glands are impacted (backed up), they can be manually expressed (emptied). Your vet can do this, and he or she can show you how to do it so that you can do it yourself in the future if needed. Your vet will show you how to use your fingers or a thumb and forefinger to gently apply pressure on either side of the anal opening – on the outside of the glands. Press inwards and upwards and you should see the fluid being expressed.

If your dog frequently has problems with his anal glands becoming clogged, your vet may recommend changes to his diet. A high fiber diet may be recommended in order to make his stool more bulky. This will cause his stool to help express the anal glands when he defecates. You might also try Pet Alive AnalGlandz to treat infected anal glands in dogs naturally. It is a 100% natural, safe effective herbal remedy for preventing unpleasant odors and promoting anal gland health.

If the glands are infected, antibiotics will be prescribed for your dog. Infected glands will probably need to be expressed manually until the infection has cleared up.

Cancer usually occurs in only one of the anal sacs. If your dog has cancer of an anal sac, he will need to have the tumor surgically removed. The surgery has a high rate of success at curing the cancer.

* Three very common allergies in dogs include flea allergy dermatitis, food allergies and environmental allergies.
* Treating your dog’s symptoms is only a temporary fix.
* It’s extremely important to find the root cause of an allergic reaction.
* Tips to relieve the suffering of your allergic dog.

If your dog seems to have an allergic condition, it’s important to get an appointment with your veterinarian as soon as you can.

Unlike the vast majority of traditional DVMs, I wholeheartedly disagree your pet should be started right away on a regimen of anti-allergy drugs and antibiotics and/or anti-viral medications.

There are safer ways to relieve your dog’s symptoms than pharmaceuticals while you and your vet work to discover the root cause of the allergic reaction.

Relieving symptoms without addressing the source of the problem is a short term fix to what can become a lifelong health problem. And certain drugs used to stop the allergic cycle have significant, potentially very serious side effects.

Flea Allergy Dermatitis (FAD)

Flea allergy dermatitis, which is actually sensitivity to flea saliva, is a very common condition in dogs. It’s not the bite of the flea that causes most of the itching in dogs with FAD, it’s the saliva.

The saliva causes irritation way out of proportion to the actual number of fleas on the pup.

Lots of dog parents assume if their pet isn’t infested with fleas, the itching can’t be caused by fleas. But if your dog has FAD, the saliva of just one or two fleas can make him miserably itchy and uncomfortable for many weeks (long past the death of those two fleas).

Suggestions for flea control:

* If you suspect or know fleas are a problem for your dog, I recommend you comb her at least once daily, every day during pest season with a flea comb. Do this on a white towel or other light colored cloth so you can see what’s coming off your dog as you comb. Flea ‘dirt’ (actually flea feces) looks like real dirt, but when suspended in a little rubbing alcohol or water will dissolve and release a red color (blood) allowing you to discern real dirt from flea dirt.
* Bathe your dog often. A soothing bath will kill any fleas on your dog, help heal skin irritation, and make her feel more comfortable and less itchy. Also, clean animals aren’t as attractive to fleas. Pick a non-grain (no oatmeal) herbal shampoo.
* Make liberal use of an all-natural pest repellent like Natural Flea and Tick Defense during flea season.

For some dogs with a serious case of flea allergy dermatitis, I prescribe an oral drug called Comfortis. It is a chemical, but it’s considered the least hazardous of all similar drugs. All drugs can have side effects, but Comfortis has reportedly fewer than topical insecticides.

Food Allergies

If your dog has an allergy to something he’s eating, it may show itself not only as digestive upset (gas, diarrhea, vomiting, etc.), but also as one or several of these symptoms:

* Itchy or oozing skin
* Red, irritated eyes
* Nasal discharge

* Coughing or sneezing; asthma
* Inflamed ears
* Swollen paws

If you suspect your dog is sensitive to something in her diet, there are a number of things you can do to learn the source of the allergy and solve the problem:

* If your dog is over a year old, consider using Dr. Jean Dodds’ Nutriscan saliva test to determine if your pet is allergic to beef, corn, wheat, soy, eggs and/or milk (the most common antigens for dogs). Dr. Dodds will be adding additional antigens to the test in the near future.
* If your pet has been eating the same food every day for months or years, there’s a good chance she’s developed an allergy to it. Contrary to what you’ve probably been led to believe, pets need diversity in their diets just like humans do. She might be sensitive to the single source of chemically-laced protein she’s been getting (chances are the meat is loaded with antibiotics and hormones causing immune system over-reaction). She’s also probably grown sensitive to certain allergenic ingredients in the food, typically grains and other carbohydrates.

Work with your holistic vet to develop an allergy elimination diet to help pinpoint the source of the problem. I recommend a three-month diet, which is longer than what many vets suggest. I like to give adequate time for an animal’s body to clear the allergenic substances, detoxify, and clean out cellular debris.

At the end of the elimination diet, new foods are added back in slowly, one at a time to gauge your dog’s response. It’s not uncommon for pets to be able to re-incorporate previous problem foods or clean proteins into the diet once the body is detoxified and the GI tract is healthy again.
* Your holistic vet should also suggest natural supplements to help with detoxification, allergy relief and immune system support during and after the elimination diet.
* To be optimally healthy — which includes avoiding food sensitivities and building resistance to all types of allergies — your dog should be fed a balanced, species-appropriate diet. The diet I recommend is preferably raw, either homemade (again, as long as it’s balanced) or commercial. Rotating the protein sources your dog eats is extremely important, as is strictly limiting or eliminating grains.

Environmental Allergies

In addition to flea saliva and certain foods/ingredients, your dog can also be allergic to an infinite variety of irritants in the environment. These can be outdoor allergens like ragweed, grasses and pollens, as well as indoor irritants like mold, dust mites, cleaning chemicals and even fabrics like wool or cotton.

As a general rule, if your dog is allergic to something inside your home, he’ll have year-round symptoms. If he’s reacting is to something outdoors, it could very well be a seasonal problem.

Also, your pet’s immune system is partly genetic, so he can actually inherit a tendency toward environmental allergies.

Finding the root cause of this type of allergy is extremely important, because what usually happens is the more your pet is exposed to an irritant, the more his sensitivity and reaction to it grows.

Some suggestions for finding and resolving environmental irritants:

* Clean up your pet’s indoor air environment. Don’t allow smoking around your pet. Switch to non-toxic cleaning products. Consider investing in an air purifier to control dust mites.
* Make sure your dog’s drinking water is high quality and doesn’t contain fluoride, heavy metals or other contaminants.
* Don’t allow your dog to be over-vaccinated or over medicated. Vaccines rev up your pet’s immune system – too many vaccinations can send it into overdrive. An over-reactive immune system sets the stage for allergic conditions.

Antibiotics wipe out good bacteria right along with the bad guys. Since the majority of your pet’s immune system is in her GI tract, the right balance of gut bacteria is crucial for her health. There’s also the growing problem of antibiotic resistance in pets.

Steroid therapy (prednisone, for example) is often prescribed for pets with allergies. What these drugs do is turn off the immune system so it stops creating the allergic response. It does work for symptom relief, but unfortunately, the side effects make this a very serious, potentially dangerous drug.
* Bathe your dog. If your pet has irritated skin, bathing will rinse the allergens away and make her feel better immediately. Don’t be shy about how often you bathe your pet, especially if she suffers from allergies that itch and irritate her skin.

If you suspect something outdoors is irritating your dog, in between baths, do foot soaks. Chances are the allergen is coming inside on your pet’s feet. She can’t escape it, and she’s spreading it around indoors to every room she visits.