Occasionally my little Pomeranian/Yorkshire dog rubs her bottom on the carpet, and seems to be uncomfortable. And other times she seems to appear in distress - i.e. she will suddenly jump off the bed, looking at her backside and then go under the bed, as if in pain... but sometimes I wonder if she may also be frightened by any gas she passes!! She is often scared of many things - I rescued her from a terrible life of living in a cage and being beaten:( so, even her own body frightens her! I would like to know if a dog has impacted anal glands does that mean that they would be rubbing on a carpet constantly, or occasionally like this? Do these glands remain impacted? I am wondering if I need to bring her to the Vet to "express" them - does it need to be at the immediate time that she does this, or do they remain impacted - i.e. if I have an appointment several months later - I am just not sure if these glands always are full? I do not want to be charged for this procedure if it is unnecessary to even be touching her anal glands? HELP? :eek:

My dog's glands fill up at least once a month, it costs us about £5 ($10 US or so) to get a grooming parlor to empty them, it's a very simple and standard procedure, worth it to stop him dragging his bum on the floor for a few weeks! :)

I don't know if being impacted is any different to just being full, hopefully labman will pipe up soon! :)

Thanks... what do you mean by being full?
:eek:

violet, you need to bring your dog to a groomer or the vet now. If she is exhibiting the symptoms you describe, it means the anal glands are full of liquid and excrement. They remain full and do not get better on their own. It is a simple procedure. If you wait months, aside from the chronic discomfort your dog will be in, there is the chance of impaction which will result in infection. It is not that expensive a procedure and will give your dog much needed relief.

Ruby is right. If it is a chronic problem, the vet may suggest removing them.

Expression of anal glands and small dogs go hand in hand. The anal glands are small sacs at the 10 and 2 o'clock position on either side of the anus. Normally, they empty when a dog has a BM. Smaller dogs have smaller anal sac openings. These need to be expressed routinely once monthly-usually ate the rate the dog gets groomed. If you do not have a grooming schedule, a vet technician can do it or a grooming shop as stated above.
There are some dogs that need expression more frequently than once monthly. You'll need to keep an eye on her. Scooting is a sign of full glands but also can be a sign of flea activity as fleas enjoy the rump area!
If you do take her to a groomer, be sure you ask for glands to be expressed specifically as some bathers like to skip that part!

Thank you everyone... but I STILL do NOT understand! The last time she "scooted" on the rug was about one month ago, and has not since then... so, does this mean she has anal glands that are full OR... what I am asking is: Do they empty by themselves?
If she scooted one month ago, and then not since, does that mean that she her anal glands are full?? She is not in any distress, happy, playful, eating , having good BM... hope my question is clearer? Thanks! :)

As previously discussed, they do empty with each BM on a large dog. Small dogs have trouble emptying them on their own. Whether she scoots, they should be expressed manually every month to every 6 weeks. You can learn to do this yourself. Call your vet and schedule an appointment with the technician if you can to avoid an office visit fee and ask them how to do it at home. It's gross but possible! Don't rule out another unforseen butt problem-not the only reason to scoot you know? It might just itch and it feels good-disgusting habit!

violet, I will try to be clearer if I have not done so. No. Anal glands do not just empty themselves on most dogs. They have to be expressed by someone who knows what they are doing. A groomer, vet tech, vet. Or, a friend who has been taught how to do this properly.

If the scooting happened one month ago and you never brought her to the vet, the scooting stopped rather quickly, there are no signs of flea infestation, no worms in stool, no licking or sniffing her butt, then maybe she just had an itchy butt. Maybe she passed a stool that irritated her anus. As long as there doesn't seem to be any signs that she is in distress, it stands to reason her anal glands are not full at the moment.

Thank you everyone! I rescued "Baby" 5 years ago and only one time did I go to the Vet, and he expressed them. But he never mentioned to bring her back every 4-6 weeks to have it done. As I absolutely cannot manage this myself, I need to bring her to him to have her dew claws and nails cut, every 3 months - I do not go to a groomer. She is brushed and bathed by myself. She is very very terrified and scared at the Vet when he cuts her nails, because of what happened to her before I rescued her etc.

So now after 5 years, I am learning about the need to express her anal glands!! Can anyone comment on what has been happening to the contents of her anal glands all of these years, since it has only been done one time by the Vet? Do all dog owners have this done every 4-6 weeks?

Is scooting on a rug the only "symptom" of having anal glands that need to be expressed?

Yes, maybe she was just itchy that day... hmmm.

I appreciate all opinions and advice! Thanks.:confused:

One more thing... there never is any "odor" that is coming from her!! She is such a clean and fresh smelling dog... absolutely no bad breath, no anal gland odor..!

violet the reason the vet did not tell you to bring your dog in every 4-6 weeks is because he probably did not feel it was necessary. In deference to mrsc's instructions, this is one of those things that is a vet and an individual owner's call.

The smartest thing you can do is, when your dog needs to have her nails clipped, you can ask the vet to check to see if the anal glands need to be expressed. That should give you an idea of how often she will require this procedure. And, talk to your vet about it and see what he/she says. Your vet is the person who knows your dog best and will tell you what he/she thinks. Outside of those times the vet directs you to bring her in, you should only bring her in if the dog is beginning to exhibit symptoms that appear she may need the anal glands cleared. If she has no odors --CONGRATULATIONS! Not too many people can claim their dog doesn't have any odors and is clean and fresh smelling. That is simply wonderful! Who knows, she may never need another anal gland expression for the rest of her life.

The way you tell if she needs it is:
If she is scooting her butt on the floor, if she is licking or chewing on her rear excessively, if there is an odor emanating from her "backdoor". Otherwise, don't worry about it.

Regarding the nail clipping problem, there is a way to desensitize her to it. You need to start handling her paws and nails more often. Do a "body check" every day. This can be a nice relaxation exercise for her. You can rub her belly and then start a light massaging in the "armpit" areas, and along the entire body, concentrating on the muscle areas. While doing this check her ears to make sure they are clear, while rubbing the belly, touch her nails and paws. Check between her pads and between the toes as if you are checking for ticks. Check her whole body as if you are checking for ticks. Keep massaging her. It will help her get used to someone touching her paws and nails and will help relax her. My dog loves her massages.

I see things just a little differently. The only thing any 2 dog experts will ever agree on is that the third one is wrong. We all have different training, experience, and agendas.

The glands should empty themselves each bowel movement. The secretions are part of what dogs are checking when they sniff other dogs' stools or anus. I will not question the suggestion small dogs have more trouble. It is fairly common for dogs to occasionally have trouble with them. They are the leading cause of the scooting. Worms likely are next. I don't think its fleas very often. You can always check for fleas by pulling back the hair in front of the tail and looking foe dark reddish specks, or even feeling them. If it is worms, it won't go away on its own. If it only happen occasionally, I wouldn't worry about it. I certainly wouldn't have the glands emptied routinely if the dog is showing no discomfort. Most dogs do fine with the glands seldom if ever emptied.

Just an afterthought-I should have said at the end of "dogs should have glands expressed every 4-6 weeks... if they exhibit signs of not being able to empty them naturally. There is no sense squeezing a booty if the booty is workin' fine!
The REAL question that needs to be asked is-why did God invent those nasty things in the first place?

I have heard differing opinons on that question mrsc. The most logical to me is, in the past it was used to mark their territories and to general identify the dog. It is believed that allows other dogs, when they sniff butt, to identify sex and other pertinent info. Now, it is really just something that can cause dogs a great deal of discomfort.

What is interesting is, if the glands are filled, if a dog gets REALLY stressed or scared from a major incident, the glands can express themselves. It happens rarely, but it does happen. Sort of works like a skunk's spray.

I have a cat that does it, too when he's real excited/scared. Everyone in the house knows to BEWARE.
I got hit numerous times when trying to restrain animals for x-rays, etc. You cannot get it out of your clothes!!