Anal Sacs - or - "Honey, what's that smell?"

Ever noticed a time that your dog had a fishy, rotten kind of odor associated with the tailpipe? Perhaps they were scooting on the floor, dragging their anus along your new carpet? These are usually anal sac issues.

The anal sacs are a pair of sacs (usually grape-sized depending on the dog) that sit at approximately 5 o'clock and 7 o'clock around the anus (as pictured above). The sacs are under the skin and between the two anal sphincters. The sacs are connected to the anus via a pair of small ducts. The sacs are lined with glands that secrete the tinny, fishy, nasty stuff that you smell from time to time. It's a unique smell to each dog and helps to explain the age-old question: "Why does my dog sniff the other dog's butt?"

These sacs will sometimes fill up with the material and require emptying or "expressing." If the sacs become inflamed or infected, it is referred to as anal sacculitis. If the infection becomes severe and the actual sac itself begins to break down, then it can become an anal sac abscess. These abscesses will actually rupture through the skin and create a draining tract. They are amazingly painful and fairly nasty! Any dog licking and painful or any dog with a red swelling next to the anus needs to be seen as an emergency so we can get an antibiotic started and get the abscess under control.

Anal sac abscesses that are not properly treated (meaning not given antibiotics long enough or an owner that stops the antibiotics too soon) run a risk of creating these nasty scar tracts in the tissue around the anus called fistulous tracts. These can be a major pain in the rear (literally and figuratively) to treat.

Question: How often do I need to express my dog's anal sacs?
Answer: perhaps never. Some dogs require fairly regular work back there. Others never ever have them done. It completely depends on the individual. If they are licking, scooting, or smelling fishy, they probably need them expressed.

Question: How do I prevent problems?
Answer: IF you have a dog with repeat problems, then you may have to just keep on top of it. However, I've found it hard to predict which dogs will have problems and which ones will just require occasional help.

Question: How do I express my dog's anal sacs?
Answer: Have a veterinarian or qualified technician show you how. It's not too hard. It is fairly stinky and probably best done outside or in the bathtub. However, if you're too rough you can hurt things, so make sure you know what you're doing.

I'm a purist on this one - they are anal SACS lined with anal GLANDS. So when someone comes to me and asks me to express a dog's anal glands, it bugs me. It really bugs me and I usually can't help but correct them. I'm the first to admit I have one or two quirks that people have to put up with and this is one of them.

Many veterinarians will say that they are checking/expressing/flushing anal glands. I have to bite my tongue and avoid the impulse to yell across the room, "They're anal sacs!!!!!!" Anyone who has worked for me has heard me yell across the room something similar to this at least once.

AMH