Worried about our little one….

[kskajohnson]

Hello. New member here and look forward to becoming an active member of the forum.

We have two little minis, Riley & Jackson. They are both just about two years old.

The concern we have is with Jackson (pictured).

He is a few pounds overweight and we've been working with him by lowering his food intake and making sure he's getting a proper amount of exercise and we are getting there, slowly but surely.

Anyways, over the last few months he has this issue where we find him constantly digging in his rear end with his mouth eek: I know) and he usually leaves a small trace of the odor and its clearly a puss type smell, its really gross.

We have a comprehensive monthly plan at Banfield and we've taken him a few times to have it checked out and both times they end up charging me to express his anal glands and they don't ever really get a lot out but they do say it is producing a little bit of puss and just to keep an eye on it.

We've started expressing his glands ourselves at home whenever we notice him digging (typically have to do this once or twice a week) and every time we do it, we will get a very small amount of discharge but nothing crazy.

We are just clueless as to what the problem is and as to why this keeps happening, the vet says its nothing to be to terribly concerned about but it obviously is something that bothers him if he's constantly digging at it.

We were told that if we REALLY wanted to, the option of surgery to have some type of gland removal done or something was there and that'd set us back about $300.00 which is money we have no problem parting with if it's going to make this whole ordeal go away but my question is…will it??

We're just confused and kinda stuck as to what we should do….we know it bothers him and try to maintain it the best we can but we just want it to stop, any suggestions?

I apologize if you just read this and were in the middle of lunch

Thank You.

Also, As an intro post….I'll share a photo of our other pup, Riley who is a double dapple.

 

[Inkeri]

Hello and welcome! Very cute dogs!!! I have one longhaired black dapple dachshund.

I don't have an answer to your question and I understand that you don't want to go with the surgery if it doesn't work. There's always risks with surgerys...

 

[Ilovemylily]

Tht same thing happend to a dachshund I had before the doctor said that he kept getting cause of the low amount of fiber in his food u gotta chose food with a lot of fiber! That's what our vet told us

 

[DeafDogs]

I wonder if there are any side effects of not having anal glands? But honestly, if the anal glands are removed, then he wont have the problems anymore.

And welcome! I have 2 double dapples who're both deaf and sight impaired. I LOVE the colour

 

[vizzla]

Our dog gets a nasty wound by the glands at winter when it is dry air outside. We got a cream to put on the wounds and not have him licking there. Could it be something like that? It looks like the anal glands but theres nothing coming out of them at the vets. So we foud the cream and the prooblems has been less since.

 

[kskajohnson]

Tht same thing happend to a dachshund I had before the doctor said that he kept getting cause of the low amount of fiber in his food u gotta chose food with a lot of fiber! That's what our vet told us

Thanks to all of you who have welcomed us…as far as the food goes, we feed them pretty expensive stuff from a specialty pet store that we were told is very good for them….I believe its called "Taste Of The Wild".

But thanks for the advice on the fiber thing, when we go to buy food next time, I'll inquire about a high fiber food to see if that helps.

 

[DeafDogs]

Thanks to all of you who have welcomed us…as far as the food goes, we feed them pretty expensive stuff from a specialty pet store that we were told is very good for them….I believe its called "Taste Of The Wild".

But thanks for the advice on the fiber thing, when we go to buy food next time, I'll inquire about a high fiber food to see if that helps.

Taste of the wild is very good food. I would be more inclined to feed them raw bones. Bones work like fiber, and you wont have to change their food. I feed mine raw chicken legs every now and then. But for your boy, I would seriously consider the surgery. Having to express anal glands twice a week is really not normal.

 

[kcast]

Now I am by no means an expert on this sort of thing, but I would postpone the surgery option as long as possible. There's likely a simple explanation and fix. For example we ran into a lot of issues with our boy Dexter and the things he would do, such as chewing and licking one spot on himself. After looking into skin issues, allergies, and everything else, it turns out he just has some OCD tendencies and we've learned to work around his wierd quirks. Your little man's quirk may be undesirable but I'm sure it's nothing serious.

My main concern for you is you Veterinary choice. I too chose Banfield for their Wellness Plan and it's value, which turned out to be fine for my cat, but a nightmare when I used it for my 1st dog. Before I had Dexter I had rescued a puppy who turned out to have Parvo and although this was due to negligence of the rescue group, it was not caught by Banfield Vets at my first visit when I noticed he was sick. This one oversight ensured his death, had he been tested and treated earlier he may have survived, but Banfield insisted on 3 different explanations for his illness and charged me for multiple unnecessary medications and treatments. Only to find out within minutes of my arrival at a different Vet that he had Parvo Virus and needed immediate emergency treatment, which sadly came too late.

I have since found a new vet, who is fantastic. Dexter has an issue with scooting, and I too bring him to the vet for anal expressions often, but they perform this service free of charge. Even the groomer I use charges $5 for the service, so if you're paying a dime more, it's too much.

I understand you're signed in for the year with Banfield but I urge you to consider getting a second opinion for your concerns with your pup. And once you finish out your contract with Banfield, start visiting other vets in your area. A good vet should care about you and your dog and want what's best for him, make both of you feel comfortable and relaxed, and usually they will make every attempt to remedy an issue without invasive procedures or surgery.

Hope I've helped a bit and not just rambled!