by Carol Bryant
Want a client for life? Start expressing their dog’s anal sacs. That’s the exact piece of advice a veterinary technician shared with me while having my first Cocker Spaniel’s anal glands expressed during a routine visit.
There is definitely a time and a place for anal sacs to be expressed and have all that fishy-smelling material removed from a dog’s scent glands. The problem is there are:
- Too many people expressing a dog’s anal glands too often
- Too many unqualified people manipulating a dog’s anal glands
- Too many dogs experiencing too much discomfort and undue trauma from improper and sometimes needless emptying of anal glands
It’s a messy but important topic, particularly because anal gland expression is becoming the new norm. It’s not always necessary and can be downright dangerous.
