Anal Glands?

[AmberXo]

When I adopted Brynn they said they had to have her anal glands expressed about once a year or as needed. She did the whole rubbing her bottom on the grass today and then I caught her trying to on my rug! Needless to say - that is not going to fly. I have never had a dog that I had to do this to - is it an expensive vet trip? They told me once she starts doing this that usually means they need to be expressed; I am just not familiar with it at all.

 

[Davidh]

You can take her to a groomer to have t done and it is cheaper.

 

[Ashleym]

No its not expensive most groomers will do it as part of a bath or as an extra service. Mine charges $10 with bath or $15 just to express. You can do yourself but...yah its pretty gross

 

[jlcox24]

They said the same with ollie who we adopted so far so good....I believe that you can take them to the groomer to have it done it doesn't have to be the vet and i'm pretty sure its probably under 30 bucks. I have no real experience just hear say, as Ollie hasn't needed it yet!

 

[AmberXo]

No its not expensive most groomers will do it as part of a bath or as an extra service. Mine charges $10 with bath or $15 just to express. You can do yourself but...yah its pretty gross

Oh no thank you! I work in healthcare and do enough dirty things I will leave it up to someone else to make Brynnlee mad hahah

 

[AmberXo]

What great news! I was dreading the thought of having to pay a $40 office visit for the vet to do something so simple as that (at least it seems simple just not very lovely to do) Then that brings me to a different question - If I can have a groomer do it cheaper would it be bad to have her get a bath while there? Only reason I ask is because she had a bath a week ago - her previous owner gave her one before I picked her up, but I did apply her flea/tick meds sunday night and was told that can be washed off after 24 hours. Now her back looks greasy and I want to wash it off but was told the less baths for bullies the better...

 

[Ashleym]

What great news! I was dreading the thought of having to pay a $40 office visit for the vet to do something so simple as that (at least it seems simple just not very lovely to do) Then that brings me to a different question - If I can have a groomer do it cheaper would it be bad to have her get a bath while there? Only reason I ask is because she had a bath a week ago - her previous owner gave her one before I picked her up, but I did apply her flea/tick meds sunday night and was told that can be washed off after 24 hours. Now her back looks greasy and I want to wash it off but was told the less baths for bullies the better...

Should be fine to give her another bath. Just dont do it all the time. They develop skin issues if its done all the time. I have had to give multiple baths in one week when mine gets into stuff they shouldnt like mud, ocean water ect... with no issues. Ask the groomer to use a gentle shampoo and make sure they are used to bathing bullies and their tail pockets and wrinkles remind them to make sure to dry those areas good.

 

[AmberXo]

Should be fine to give her another bath. Just dont do it all the time. They develop skin issues if its done all the time. I have had to give multiple baths in one week when mine gets into stuff they shouldnt like mud, ocean water ect... with no issues. Ask the groomer to use a gentle shampoo and make sure they are used to bathing bullies and their tail pockets and wrinkles remind them to make sure to dry those areas good.

Awesome; thanks for the tip! If Brynn were a kid she would probably be locked in a padded room LOL I feel like I thought I knew everything and here I am asking myself if I should do this or that... but yes for sure I would want to know if they have ever gave a bath to a bully and it must be a female doing it - Brynn doesn't like guys to much, but okay then I will just have it all done at the same time Should I request they use an oatmeal shampoo or is there something better?

 

[Ashleym]

Awesome; thanks for the tip! If Brynn were a kid she would probably be locked in a padded room LOL I feel like I thought I knew everything and here I am asking myself if I should do this or that... but yes for sure I would want to know if they have ever gave a bath to a bully and it must be a female doing it - Brynn doesn't like guys to much, but okay then I will just have it all done at the same time Should I request they use an oatmeal shampoo or is there something better?

Oatmeal is a good option. Your being a great bully mom

 

[Zoebug]

Ok so there is so much information out there that it can get really confusing. Yes a groomer can do the anal glands and you want to have her bathed at the same time because it stinks really bad. I am a professional pet groomer and I also own 4 English bulldogs and I bath them once a week. It actually helps to keep them from getting skin issues. And then you have the whole oatmeal shampoo that everyone thinks is so great. Well think of it like this. What is the main thing that you hear when talking about good dog food? Go grain free right? Ok well if your going to not give them grains to eat then why would want to put a grain directly on to there skin? Yeah not such a great idea. We use a hypoallergenic shampoo on the bully's that come into my shop. I also work at a vet clinic so the information that I am giving comes from experience. Good luck. Anal glands can be a yucky thing to deal with . One of mine has to have hers done weekly or she will do it herself. Ewwwwww!!

 

[JeannieCO]

Jack my pitty has to have his done about every 3/4 weeks, or sometimes longer or sometimes sooner. Not only is it totally inconvenient for me to take him sometime, I have no desire to pay someone for something that really is pretty simple to do. I've been doing Jack's myself or about 2 plus years with the blessing of his vet. Jack's anal glands are offset, meaning they don't align properly when the poop coming down the shoot for it to firmly rub up against and express them naturally. Most times I either take him outside and grab some damp paper towels, a rubber glove and a bit of vaseline. I'm so past the point of it being gross, I just do what needs to be done. Most times I do them on the outside but occasionally I have to go inside due to the one gland that sits back further.

I did a ton of research and compiled some data. Here's the article I prepped. Read it and watch the videos because anal glands are a very important part of your bully's hygiene that needs to be address if they can't do it themselves. They can also get some serious infections or ruptures. It's just good informative information to know.

Anal Gland Care - Everything you Need to Know!

 

[AmberXo]

Jack my pitty has to have his done about every 3/4 weeks, or sometimes longer or sometimes sooner. Not only is it totally inconvenient for me to take him sometime, I have no desire to pay someone for something that really is pretty simple to do. I've been doing Jack's myself or about 2 plus years with the blessing of his vet. Jack's anal glands are offset, meaning they don't align properly when the poop coming down the shoot for it to firmly rub up against and express them naturally. Most times I either take him outside and grab some damp paper towels, a rubber glove and a bit of vaseline. I'm so past the point of it being gross, I just do what needs to be done. Most times I do them on the outside but occasionally I have to go inside due to the one gland that sits back further.

I did a ton of research and compiled some data. Here's the article I prepped. Read it and watch the videos because anal glands are a very important part of your bully's hygiene that needs to be address if they can't do it themselves. They can also get some serious infections or ruptures. It's just good informative information to know.

Anal Gland Care - Everything you Need to Know!

Thanks for all this information!! I am kind of afraid I would hurt her if I tried doing them myself though :/ It may be easier to just pay a groomer to do that and give her a bath. I have never had to do this before.. lol.

 

[Pati Robins]

We do the same thing as Jeannine does i don't see a point to pay a groomer for what i can do myself -it is a very stinky business and if you do it first hand it is kind of scary but as time passes you will get the hang of it

 

[AmberXo]

We do the same thing as Jeannine does i don't see a point to pay a groomer for what i can do myself -it is a very stinky business and if you do it first hand it is kind of scary but as time passes you will get the hang of it

Yeah, you guys do have a point. I watched the videos on it, but I just keep thinking it'd be so much easier to have a groomer give her a bath and do them - I would just make Brynn mad... and I would hate to cause stress to her as she is still new around here. But, then I worry what if the groomer has never taken care of a bully? They could say they have, but then again I could just go back through and make sure the tail pocket, wrinkles, ears ect are all dry.

 

[JeannieCO]

I will say that the couple of times I have had to do Wilson (he really doesn't have an issue like Jack), he's spinker is very tight and he's much harder to do. I was a bit nervous the first time I did Jack but the more I did it the more I learned and became a pro at it. I never would have imagined in this lifetime that I would be talking about anal glands so freely. But as the saying goes, "it is what it is". It takes a bit getting used to just like doing their nails, each gland is different and each gland may express differently. For Jack, his right side is easier to do, it's the left that doesn't release as it should and is the harder one to do.

Let Bree get made at someone else.