My Dog's Anal Gland : Squeeze or not?

It sounds like her Anal Glands may need to be squeezed. They usually empty themselves when the dog goes to the bathroom, but sometimes they don't and they need to be squeezed (expressed)! It's only dangerous, if you don't know how to do it yourself. It has to be done a certain way, so you don't cause any injury to the dog. It is more dangerous Not to have them emptied. It is very uncomfortable and very painful if the Anal Glands become infected. Vets empty Anal Glands on a daily basis. It's no big deal and it's very inexpensive to have a vet do. If you want to learn to do it yourself the next time they need squeezing, then when you take her to the vet, have the vet show you how to do it properly. Most people don't like to do it themselves because its' very messy and it really stinks, so they have the vet do it instead. I definitely think, that Cocoa should go for it! Don't worry! She'll be fine!

If the diet is correct then they should never need manually expressing. I pesonally don't think it does the dog any good to have this done and so many groomers do this as a matter of course nowadays that it is ridiculous. The anal glands are supposed to secrete small amounts every time the dog poops. To do this the poops need to be firm enough to squeeze the glands and release some "gunk"... this puts a smell on the poops as a sign to other dogs. Unfortunately, most dogs now eat a diet that softens the stools too much and therefore doesn't empty the gland "gunk" out. If this happens then the glands will need manually emptying or else they can become impacted and eventually abscess and even get a tumour in them. If you have a dog that needs manually emptying then the better way is to add fibre to the diet and try to get it naturally occurring.

Yes, her anal glands need to be expressed.

Please don't listen to random people on the internet over a DVM. I know, however, that all of the info out there can be confusing.

What happens is, the anal glands are usually squeezed a bit when feces passes by. However, they can become overfilled, or not expressed enough, which can cause the dog discomfort.

The veterinary technicians will do this for you. Do not attempt it yourself, or you could hurt your dog. It is very common in a vet practice, however, they do it for many dogs that come in.

If you do not express her anal glands, there is a possibility that the fluid could build up in there, causing the gland to rupture. It will then be VERY painful, and need to be surgically taken care of.

Take her to the groomer or the vet and have them evaluate her. They can tell whether the anal glands need to be expressed or not. Is her poop hard? Generally dogs that have hard poop won't need their anal glands expressed because the pressure of defecating squeezes them. And don't do it yourself unless you have a professional show you how.

You need to have it done, certainly -- but by someone who knows how. Your vet, or even an experienced groomer can do it for you.

If the anal glands get too full, they will begin to impact to the point where they *can't* be cleaned without surgery, or they will rupture (leading to an abscess).

Either way, it's not pretty, and much more expensive than having them expressed now!

The vet would not have expected you to do this. It is dangerous to do it yourself, you could burst the glands and give your dog a huge amount of pain. It's a vets job and the cost is much less than a consultation..

Whatever you do, don'r try to do it yourself! That's how they get injured! Take her to a professional who is trained to do things like that like the vet or a groomer. It definitely needs to get done. Large breeds can usually express on their own. However, small breeds sometimes have difficulty and if they cannot express them on their own, then the anal glands can become impacted and if they aren't treated, implode--meaning, bloody, painful mess and imperative surgery.

Definitely take her in. A pro won't hurt her.

i'm thinking you're never done it before so i would recommend that you take your pomeranian to a good groomer or to the vet to have her anal glands expressed.

If you aren't sure about this have the vet clean the anal glands or take her to a groomer and they can take care of this.

Do you know how to do it? If not, go to a vet or even a good groomer and they'll show you how to do it. In many cases it needs to be done. The dog will feel much better, but you need to do it right.