Expressing Dog Glands

Grooming your dog is not always a pleasant experience. A shiny coat and manicured paws are definitely a more glamorous aspect of this process, but there are also less fashionable routines that are very important for your dog's appearance and overall health. One of these is the act of expressing dog glands in the anal vicinity.

What Is Expressing a Dog's Glands, Exactly?

Let's start with the part nobody explains clearly. Your dog has two small sacs positioned just inside the anus; roughly at the 4 and 8 o'clock positions if you're looking at the back end like a clock face. Each is about the size of a pea or a grape, depending on your dog, and each holds a fluid that ranges from thin and brownish to thick and gray. The smell is genuinely unforgettable. Metallic, fishy, and impossible to confuse with anything else once you've encountered it.

Expressing a dog's glands simply means applying pressure to empty those sacs manually. That's it. It's a plumbing job; you're squeezing fluid out of a reservoir that's supposed to empty on its own but hasn't.

Why Do Dogs Need Their Glands Expressed?

Here's the thing worth understanding before you touch anything: most dogs don't.

When a dog defecates, the glands on either side of their anus express a fluid along with their stool. This secretion has a unique odor for every dog and accounts for why dogs sniff each other in that particular area when they first meet. A firm, well-formed stool presses against those sacs on the way out and squeezes them empty–a system designed to be entirely self-cleaning.

Dog anal gland expression only becomes necessary when that mechanism fails. Which means a dog who needs regular help usually has an underlying reason:

• Chronically soft stool: Not enough pressure on the way out to empty the sacs

• Low-fiber diet: The most common and most fixable cause

• Obesity: Extra fat changes the anatomy around the sacs and reduces the pressure they receive

• Allergies: Skin and food allergies cause inflammation that narrows the ducts

• Breed and size: Smaller breeds are overrepresented, though any dog can have trouble

• Genetics: Some dogs simply have poorly positioned or narrow ducts

That first point matters more than most owners realize, because it flips the question. If your dog needs their glands expressed every four weeks, the goal shouldn't be finding a reliable expressing schedule. It should be figuring out why the natural process stopped working. Manual expression treats the symptom; fiber, weight management, and allergy control treat the cause.

Signs the Glands Are Backed Up

These glands can become impacted or backed up. When this happens, you might notice any of the following signs:

• increased biting or licking of the tail or anus

• scooting or dragging the butt on the floor

• increased amount of chasing the tail

• a swollen or irritated backside

• a sudden strong fishy odor, often noticed on furniture or bedding

• reluctance to sit, or sitting down abruptly and shifting

When your dog is showing signs of these symptoms, there is a good chance that their anal glands may need to be expressed. It is a process that you can do yourself, as a dog owner, or you can also seek the aid of a professional groomer or veterinarian. If no action is taken, then the possibility of an abscess or infection is greatly increased.

If your dog is suffering from repeat bouts of an impacted anal gland, it is a good idea to change their diet to one that contains more fiber. This will add bulk to their stools and aid in the natural process of gland expressing. If the problem is very severe, another alternative is to have their anal glands removed altogether, though this is a surgery with real risks, including incontinence, and it's reserved for dogs who've exhausted every other option.

How to Express Dogs' Anal Glands

Below are two practices commonly used for expressing dogs' anal glands.

Expressing Dog Glands Externally

First, get your dog's tail out of the way by carefully pulling it back toward their head with one hand. Have a paper towel or tissue ready in the other hand. Next, place your forefingers at the 8 o'clock position and your thumb at the 4 o'clock position just below the anus. The anal glands are small bumps underneath the skin, and you should be able to feel them. Firmly press inward and squeeze your fingers together over the glands to drain any fluid.

Expressing Dog Glands Internally

This process is a little more "intrusive" and unpleasant. It involves inserting a gloved, lubricated finger into your dog's anus and internally massaging each anal gland between your thumb and forefinger. You should definitely consult your veterinarian for more specific instructions that are tailored to your particular breed and size of dog. This will help you avoid damaging any fragile tissue inside your pet.

Internal expression is more thorough and is what your vet will typically do — it empties the sacs more completely than the external method can. It's also where the potential for injury lives, which is why this is the one to learn hands-on from a professional rather than from any article, including this one.

Before You Try This at Home

A few honest words on the DIY question. Expressing dogs' anal glands is not complicated, but it is easy to do badly, and doing it badly has consequences:

• Too much force bruises the tissue and can cause the very inflammation that leads to future problems

• Expressing glands that don't need it can irritate healthy ducts and create a dependency cycle

• You will miss the warning signs that a vet would catch: an abscess, a tumor, or an infection can present as a "backed up" gland to an untrained hand

Stop and call the vet immediately if you see blood or pus in the fluid, a visible swelling or red bump beside the anus, an open draining wound, or if your dog cries out during handling. Those are not gland-expression situations. Those are infection or abscess situations, and they need antibiotics.

Also worth saying: if your dog scoots occasionally and is otherwise fine, they may not need anything at all. Not every scoot is a gland issue; worms, allergies, and simple leftover residue all cause the same behavior.

If you choose either of the methods above, be sure to get a brief tutorial from a professional groomer or veterinarian. They should have no problem going over the proper technique with you and answering any questions that you may have. This is a very sensitive and delicate part of your dog's anatomy, and it requires care and attention when dealing with this at home. However, it is not an overly complicated practice, and it can relieve discomfort in your pet. Expressing dog glands is an important part of the grooming regimen for the dogs who need it, and it's a crucial step in keeping that furry friend healthy and happy.

One Thing to Check While You're Back There

If you're already doing hands-on grooming, take ten seconds to look at the collar while you're at it. Grooming day is when most owners actually handle their dog's neck, and it's a good moment to notice that the tag has worn smooth, or that the number on it belongs to a phone you replaced two years ago. A tag nobody can read does exactly as much good as no tag at all.

Browse our custom dog tags for a design that holds up to a life of mud and grooming appointments, or explore the full pet ID tag collection for everyone else in the house.

Impacted anal glands are a very common issue in the dog community, and Russ Barker decided to write an article covering the basics of expressing dog glands. Russ is a world-famous blogger for DogTagArt.com, which is an active group of pet lovers who always have pet safety and style in mind. Dog Tag Art offers uniquely wonderful pet ID tags which provide customers with a chance to enhance their pet's personality. These essential personalized pet tags make a fashion statement while keeping your pet protected in case they ever wander off.