How to Express a Dog's Anal Glands

Perhaps the most unpleasant task for a dog owner occurs during the grooming process. Expressing the anal glands of a dog can be difficult and downright disgusting, but proper care of these anal glands on a regular basis can prevent health problems that require veterinary care. While not all dog owners will want to be a "do it yourself-er" when it comes to this chore, with a little practice, it can be done quickly and efficiently with minimum mess and odor.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Prepare a bath for your dog. The secretions of the anal gland are highly unpleasant to smell, and the contents of the gland can spray out unexpectedly during expression. Expressing the anal glands in a tub allow you to perform this task and immediately control the mess and odor.

2. Locate the anal gland openings. Look at approximately 5 and 7 o'clock around the anus of the dog. They may be impossible or difficult to visualize.

3. Feel for the glands with your thumb and forefinger beneath the skin under the anal gland openings. The glands are about the size of a kidney bean. They may be enlarged if the sacs are impacted or infected.

4. Press in and squeeze with your finger and thumb in an upward motion. The goal is to get the gland under your fingers on each side, and force the contents to the surface and out the opening. You should use firm pressure, but not so firm that you cause discomfort to the dog. This step can be done with a warm washcloth or paper towel covering the anus to prevent the secretions from spraying.

5. Repeat Step 4 until you no longer notice the greenish or brownish fluid being expressed.

6. Wash the anal area thoroughly. The secretions of the anal glands can be transferred to your furniture, clothing or pet's bedding if it remains on your pet's coat. It is imperative to remove all of the odor from the dog after expressing the glands.

Tips & Warnings

• Contact your veterinarian if the fluid you express is bloody, thick or contains pus. This indicates an infection and must be treated.

[heatherw25]

on 5/31/2009 if the fluid does get on a blanket or clothing, can it be removed? or is it a permanent stain? my little dog has been sick-ish lately and had not pooed in several days. finally, the other night, she did. the next morning i noticed an oily yellowish circle on the sheet in bed. it had no odor and i did not wake up from the odor. but i can only assume that it was her anal fluid, which had been expressed when she finally had a good "excretion," and that she accidentally tracked it into bed when she came back.

[hungover]

on 12/24/2008 There are those that claim that over expressing the glands can lead to the glands becoming ineffiecient and can therefore be detrimental to the dog's well being.

Often the need to express in the first place is the result of a lack of fibre- high fibre diets will help to naturally empty the glands during the process of passing the (firmer) waste food.

Flax seed is a cheap additive that can help to do this- alternatively you can buy products such as scoot from bichon hotel which is specifically desighed to do this

[jcbentz32]

on 12/19/2008 Hi christyhow, I had the same question and was a little freaked out when I learned about this. But here is a great explanation: http://dogcarebasics.com/dog_care_anal_glands.shtml

[spacecapt]

on 10/11/2008 Very helpful. Direction are right on. When you consider how much your dawg is suffering, and by not correcting the problem it can get worse (infection), you need to buck it up. Put aside your feelings and realize it needs to be done and you love this animal.
Thanks again.

[abornich]

on 5/28/2008 Great visual steps! I think I might actually be able to accomplish this now!