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This blog post was originally published in 2013. It has been updated with new information and republished.
Nearly 6 years ago, we lost Blue to a car accident. It was heartbreaking. Facebook has been sending me memories and I saw one today showing Rodrigo, Sydney, and Blue chasing each other around. Blue was an amazing dog and we all loved him. The video reminded me of Blue's tendency to express his anal glands when he got over-excited or startled.
The littermates loved to gang up on Blue, herding him into a corner as they growl and Blue snaps back. They’re hilarious. Some days, Blue got so excited that a puff of “smoke” came out of his butt and it smelled like heaven to dogs. I sat smiling as our dogs were playing and then I headed to grab the Nature's Miracle Advanced (my go-to product for big-time pet smells) when the playing changed to 3 dogs sniffing the carpet wildly.
Blue’s anal glands expressed.
One of the lovely chores that belong to me is the expression of anal glands when they aren’t cooperating. It’s not really a big deal and not something that you want to do often or without a tissue and rubber gloves, but I’m getting ahead of myself here.
What are Anal Glands?
“The anal glands or anal sacs are small glands found near the anus in many mammals, including dogs and cats. They are not found in humans.”
~ Google
Anal Glands discharge a small amount of fluid when pressed during a potty break (pee or poo) and each dog apparently has a unique smell (it all smells the same to me). The joy of anal glands is that they can also be released when a dog is startled (thank you, J for sneaking up on Blue) or excited (like when they’re playing or meeting another dog).
Why Would I Express my Dog’s Anal Glands?
If the glands aren’t expressing naturally (releasing the fluid that’s building up), then they will become impacted, which can lead to anal gland distress, infection or rupture, and a trip to the emergency vet.
When our dogs are scooting across the carpet, some dog owners are tempted to grab a camera – YouTube, I got one for you! Instead, this is a sign that either your dog’s butt itches or he may be trying to relieve impacted anal glands.
In my experience, I notice that the anal glands aren’t expressing normally and regularly when the smell sticks around for a day or so. I reach for a tissue to help our dog out.
Then, I grab a room freshener and spray the area of the carpet that got the scoot treatment. I prefer to use non-toxic products, so I make my own DIY Febreeze using essential oils that are safe for use around pets.
You can search YouTube and find several videos that show you how to express anal glands. The videos with the black dogs are useless (for me), because I can’t see what they’re doing. And a few videos show white anal glad discharge; our dog’s discharge is brown.
Expressing Anal Glands, Step by Step
It’s really easy and the most important thing to remember is to be calm, be quick, and be gentle. This isn’t a walk in the park for your dog either.
- Locate your dog’s anal glands. Picture a clock (not digital) – the anal glands are located at 5 and 7 o’clock on either side of your dog’s anus.
- I recommend wearing gloves until you get a hang of it, because the fluid is pungent and it lingers on the skin. Apply gentle, yet firm pressure to the anal glands using a tissue over the anus. You do NOT want this on you.
- You’ll see fluid released from the anal opening. And you’re done. Don’t do it a second time, even if nothing comes out.
I wipe our dogs with hydrogen peroxide on a tissue (also takes the smell of your fingers if you forget to wear gloves) and give them tons of love.
A Couple of FYIs about Expressing Anal Glands
- You don’t want to start doing this regularly, because then it’ll become a regular task as the dog’s body stops naturally expressing the anal glands. Some dogs, however, do need help and this is something that you should discuss with your veterinarian.
- If you don’t want to do it, then you can take your dog to the vet. Some groomers provide this service too, but I'd prefer my veterinarian to handle this task because a repeated issue with anal glands may be a warning of a health issue. Also, having a veterinarian express your dog’s anal glands will prevent injury. YouTube is a great resource, but our vet is a better one.
Maintain Healthy Anal Glands by…
We've only had one issue with anal glands and that was when Rodrigo's digestive issues lead to days of soft stool. As a result, his anal glands weren't naturally expressing. To avoid anal sac distress, I took him outside to express his anal glands and boy did I get a shocker – the fluid shot out and across the yard. The pain my boy must have been in makes my heart hurt.
As a result of that experience, I've been vigilant about my dogs' diet. My dogs eat a diet of fresh food (a raw food diet), which I write about in my book A Novice's Guide to Raw Feeding for Dogs. One important part of my dogs' raw diet is fiber:
I also add a digestive supplement and fermented foods to my dogs' diet to better support gut health, which, in turn, keeps their immune system and anal glands healthy as well:
Removing Anal Gland Odor from Fabric
If you have experienced the odor of anal glands, then you know that it can get on the furniture, dog beds, and carpet/rugs. It's not a pleasant scent and I've found an effective way to remove the smell quickly without damaging or discoloring the fabric.
Nature's Miracle Sunny Lemon Advanced Stain and Odor Eliminator
If you don't mind the fact that this isn't truly natural, despite the name, Nature's Miracle Advanced works great! Not only does it clear up the odor, but it also does great on accidents if you have a puppy or kitten in the house.
You can order Nature's Miracle on Amazon and Chewy.com.
Young Living Thieves Cleaner
Although I no longer have an account with Young Living, I still love their oils and my favorite product in their inventory is their Thieves cleaner and I buy a couple of big bottles a couple of times a year. I use the Thieves cleaner to mop the floor, I've created a spray (by mixing with water) to freshen the rooms in our home, and I've used it successfully to clear up the anal gland odor on a dog bed.
You can only order Young Living's Thieve's cleaner on their website. I usually order through a friend who has a Young Living Account.
DIY Thieves Cleaner
You can also make a DIY Thieves cleaner with the following ingredients. This is my plan should I lose my Young Living hook up.
- 16-ounce glass spray bottle
- 3 tbsp of organic witch hazel
- 50-80 drops of Germ Fighter by Plant Therapy
- Fill the bottle with water
I only write about feeding raw on this blog because switching my dogs to a diet of fresh food helped to improve gut health. Have you looked into that for your dog?
My new puppy (almost 6 month old Catahoula) has had soft poos for a couple weeks. Still working on correcting this, not quite diarrhea anymore, more like cow pies. Regardless, tonight he jumped on the couch next to me and while snoozing, a dribble of white stinky stink leaked out the bum. I’m assuming this is the anal gland leaking? From lack of solid poos? He has a vet appointment next week but perhaps we should get in there sooner? Also if anyone has recommendations about foods, he’s already tried Bill Jac, Blue Buffalo, and currently on Hills science diet for sensitive stomachs (about 3 weeks now), with paw life pro pup probiotic chews. We did gradual food changes. No relief from these soft poos yet
I have a small dog also named Peanut. I have never expressed, but I have rushed her to the groomer to do it for me. I noticed (twice in ten years) she was struggling to go, so very constipated, and had what seemed like a piece of poop sticking out of her butt with dirt on it. I guess she scooted her butt on the ground (we have a doggie door so she has access to dirt.) So if I eveer see a lump of poop sticking out of her butt, a smell, and her being very uncomfortable I take her to the groomers or vet ASAP. Hope this helps.
We shouldn’t have to express our dogs’ anal glands, they should do so naturally. If a dog’s poop is soft for an extended basis, then it because harder for the anal glands to express naturally (when they poop) so I recommend looking at the diet and making changes that promote better gut health and solid poops. Two products that I add to Rodrigo’s diet that help him are:
Olewo Carrots, which support good gut health: https://amzn.to/2OLID46
Herbsmith Scooter’s Butt Bars, which are great for dogs that have temporary issues: https://www.herbsmithinc.com/scooters-butt-bar/ (use KTTW10 to save 10% at check out).
my next door neighbor and only friend at the retirement community was in hospital/rehab/icu for 3 months and I took care of her little part Poodle. I have always had Labs and Goldens. Peanut started this “butt scooting” and the Daughter took her to the Groomer and they expressed her Anal Glands. My friend passed away last Sunday night and left the little girl to me. How often would you say this needs to be done? I have read that it can be dangerous if they become impacted so I want to do it right, Any other suggestions for little dogs, my cat is bigger than Peanut?
That hasn’t been my experience. When Rodrigo has had to have his anal glands expressed, it was because he had too many days (usually weeks) of soft stool which prevented the anal glands from expressing naturally.
I have a small rat terrier mix got a question for anyone that might know if the annal gland needs released would it cause them to be constipated in till it is released?
I’d recommend having your veterinarian or groomer show you how to do it or have them take care of it. Expressing anal glands should only be done rarely because your dog should be able to do it naturally. If he can’t, then you should take him to the vet for a check up.
Best of luck.
how do you do this anal gland expression on a dog who has no tail? he really does not even have a stub it is kind of a dimple that looks similar to a bellybutton
Our dog had this problem once. We had no idea what was going on when one day we noticed she had pulled out all the hair under her tail! Bishu had a normally full, shepherd, swisher back there and suddenly it was bare. She was constantly licking under there and would pull away when I tried to look, so to the vet we go.
The vet admonished me for not making her let me look under her tail for the infected glands. I had no idea they existed, dude! Thank goodness for the internet now. I think I would still have a professional do this.
Thanks, Wendy. Our dogs have loud farts that they don’t notice. Sometimes they’re loud enough to startle them, but that’s just it. I’m so glad they haven’t cleared a room yet!
Hi Kimberly,
Great article. I’ve never done this with our greyhounds. Maybe they aren’t prone to problems like this?
Our greyhounds were known for their SBD (Silent But Deadly) farts…sometimes so toxic that one fart could clear out a room in 2 seconds flat lol!
LOL – thank you so much for the laugh. I get the look from Sydney too – it’s like “you need help?” Luckily I’ve only had to do it a couple times. But sort of hard to get better without the practice, but somehow I’m okay with this.
Kimberly
I have a small dog and figured I’d give her anal glands a try myself. Just like the groomer does in 2 seconds during her bath. I got her ready in the bath and was so proud of myself for attempting this myself. I found 4 & 6 o’clock, or was it 5 & 7, and tried to press and “express” but to no avail. I tried again, repositioned. Nope. I felt like a fumbling fool and she just looked at me like “oh god, would you do this already.” Turns out I was pressing on some bones. She’s really hairy! Hard to see! hahha Now I leave that fun stuff to the pros!
Is your husband named Johan? LOL
Ask away; I will always share what I know and if I don’t know, I’ll ask 🙂
Okay, thanks. Obviously I know you aren’t a vet, but I appreciate your insights. I’d hate to try to do this on a persnickety Jack Russell without a good reason. Archie still hasn’t forgiven me for pulling a tick of him in Munich a year and a half ago.
Gloves are important; that smell sticks around for a while otherwise, because it’s kind of oily. NOse Offense is great! We’re almost out so I need a new bottle.
He refuses to do it, so I chase him around the house with a tissue. I’ve actually only done it 2x, but if I grab a tissue and say “guess what I just did” he’ll freak out – LOL. Love it.
Kimberly, you are one in a million! And your boyfriend must REALLY love you if he’s learning how to do this! I’ve never attempted it, and even my vet puts on a rubber apron first and gets grossed out when expressing anal glands. Kudos to you and everyone else who does the job themselves!
Ooo. Brave. I did try this once on our last dog when she was butt-scooting, but got nuthin’. (Which I was kinda thankful for…) She did stop scooting after that though so I never had to try again. Good to know about the 5 & 7. Think I would definitely not attempt this without the gloves!
Will have to check out the NOse Offense – hadn’t heard of that before.
The black nails get me too – luckily our walks keep Blue’s nails short. Sydney and Rodrigo aren’t fans of having their nails clipped, but I can do it once a month. I wish I would have started at the groomers – they wouldn’t tolerate it today, but if I had started them all when they were puppies, they would have been fine.
Kimberly
I check their glands when they’re scooting excessively; more than they normally do. It’s pretty obvious about it, because they usually scoot here and there – once, Sydney was scooting like crazy and then trying to lick her butt – I could tell she was frustrated. So I gave it a try and after I expressed her glands, she felt a lot better. I’ve only had to do it 2x with our dogs in the time we’ve had them.
Oh, boy….that’s one job that I let the groomer do. But just the other day, we were Skyping with the little grandkids and I had our Toto on my lap and was having her “wave” and dance for the kids. Guess she got excited because suddenly there was this odor on my lap and a small wet area and I’m pretty sure she expressed her glands on me. Oy! The other task that I leave to the groomer is clipping her nails. I can do it and always did it with our other dog but this one has all black nails and will not sit still so I just let the groomer have at it. Thanks for the very helpful post, though.
Dee
Kimberly, so if the dog’s bottom doesn’t smell, the anal glands are probably okay? Sure, my dog scoots on his butt occasionally, but he doesn’t seem to be experiencing any discomfort. Also his butt doesn’t smell.
Don’t want to fix what ain’t broke.
LOL – the other day, Blue vomited in my hands. It was disgusting, but I didn’t have enough tissue around to keep it from the carpet so my hands took it; yuck! He felt better afterwards. I washed my hands for 10 minutes.
Wow, a brave post! I’ve never expressed these glands myself but have always wanted to know how to do it just in case – and I think my husband would freak if I asked him to do that. My husband deals with any vomit issues, I can’t handle that. 🙂
Johan won’t even do that. LOL
I don’t give him too hard of a time though.
I just make my boyfriend hold Shiner while I do this. I think it might be time to do this again because Shiner’s been butt scooting. Great tips Kimberly! One thing I’ve heard before is that rubbing some men’s Speedstick on your dog’s butt after an expression will help it feel better. We were going to start doing this at work but then decided it might be too gross since we’d have to use the stick on so many different patients.
Thanks, Cheryl – I’ll have to look into that product. Always learning, right?
Hi Kimberly,
I’ll second that first comment. Kudos to you! Pee, poop, vomit, etc. all fine, but I’ve never attempted the anal glands. Even my vet isn’t wild about expressing them…part of the job description though. I did want to share one thing. The previous comment included a reference to her dog having a touch of “leaking”. I just lost my 17 1/2 year old rescue dog, and I had found a homeopathic product called “Leaks No More”. It was fantastic. Just wanted to share. Really enjoy your writing. Cheryl
My husband says it’s “Only a job for a dog mom”. Bugs me! I’m okay with it though as he’s really, really freaked over stuff like this and little bothers me that way. Still… It’s simple and it has to be done. Peeps can learn to do it. Dog Moms AND Dog Dads. GREAT post!
Kimberly, you have my admiration because that is one job even I wouldn’t touch! We’ve had to administer shots of adequan to our old senior dogs – for their joints and I’m the only one that would do that. And poor Becca, with her spinal issues, couldn’t really take care of her lady parts herself and with a touch of ‘leaking’ she could get a little messy. Dad wouldn’t go near that either. I tend to do all of the nursing care.