Anal gland removal - Page 2

All my guys are on TOTW . What changes in diet do you feel might be of help?

I do think there is a genetic predisposition to this, as the vet commented as well (sees it more in Am. lines) but I would try adding some RMBs to the diet. Often, dogs who have anal gland issues (need them expressed manually) have a drastic improvement when bones are added to the diet.

It's not so much that TOTW is not a good diet; it's more like this dog has a tendency to have problems, so a more natural diet would probably be of benefit to him. If he were mine, I would make simple changes, like subsitute a chicken leg quarter for one meal (if he eats twice a day) and add wild salmon oil and vitamin E to his kibble. I think every dog should be on these two supplements, but especially dogs w/health issues. They are so great for fighting all kinds of inflammation.

I was told lack of exercise has a lot to do with it by a vet years ago?  What do you think?
 

They get plenty of exercise. We play ball in the yard, they go on long walks and they have their own treadmill. I checked the fiber content in TOTW and it should be sufficient. They are on fish oil,but Salmon is only one source listed . They get apples,carrots,brown rice with chicken stock , etc as treats or mixed with their food. I buy their bones directly from the butcher . I've always believed in natural bones even though there has been some controversy about them over the years.Their stool is formed and firm and I never have problems with loose stool.They are all in excellent condition except for this one problem.

I will try the chicken leg quarters because I do not want to see him go through any more flare ups and worst yet surgery. What ever it takes to make his butt feel better!!!!

Hmmm, maybe cut out grain altogether for that dog? Can't hurt.

It may be absolutely nothing you're "doing"; it may just be an issue w/him, but nevertheless, some are more sensitive than others and often, grain/starches/carbs beyond what's required can contribute to inflammation, allergies, infections due to yeast, etc....

Lots of these go hand in hand. Have you tried an all-in-one probiotic/digestive enzyme combo? Wholistic Canine Complete or Nzymes or something similar? They can sometimes clear up those nagging problems that you can't otherwise put your finger on the cause of.

Good luck.

My GSD had one of her anal glands removed last year after a lot of trouble.  She is so much better now, a different dog & I think they might have been troubling her for years without any outward symptoms.

She got through the op ok, I was warned by others whose dogs had it done that she could be incontinent back end for a few weeks, but no problems there, though we were prepared for all of this.

All I would say was that she seemed in a lot of pain the first night really screaming & I was in tears thinking she was in a lot of pain.  I phoned the vet who said she was on stroong pain killers so shouldn't feel it but prescribed some Tramadol just in case, but then on the second day we realised that as the wound was still weeping (did so for a week) it was because she could smell the blood but could'nt get to clean it so was frustrated by that.  We didn't give the Tramadol but kept her on Rimadyl for the week.

Once healed it was fine.  The biopsy came back as severe deep seated infection & inflammation the worst the vet had seen, and the beginnings of anal furunculosis.  She has been on Antirobe antibiotics & Cyclosporin for about 8 months & is now being weaned off them & hopefully everything will be ok.

I highly recommend the op though.  Dogs are tough & cope better with these things than we do. 

To teulfel hunde although the food ur feeding is good i think the high protein content is abit much and should be addressed try lookin at reducing the content of the meat for 6 mths i feed my dog burns he thrives on it i rate the company.

My female had problems with her anal glands when I feed her TOTW. My vet told me that it could be a allergy,  I switched her to Acana Grasslands and she has not had any problems since, that was about 4 months ago.

 I had a bitch who had anal gland problems, we solved it by going to a more natural diet or if on kibble it was a greyhound maintenance diet supplemented with raw veggies, chicken carcasses.

Many dogs suffer from anal gland problems due to lack of roughage in their diet and many highly processed diets make this worse.  If there is enough roughage in the diet then the gland are stimulated from the inside and this removes the need to treat.

I passed this information on to one owner who was days away from having her dog's anal glands removed and this change of diet has meant the operation got cancelled and the dog is now fine.