The most common reason for your pet(s) to scoot their butt on the ground is anal glands, which we discussed last week. So what if your dog is scooting their butt on the ground, but it’s not the anal glands?
First, check to make sure your pet(s) does not have tapeworms (to read a review on tapeworms, visit previous posts). Tapeworms can be irritating to your pet’s rectum, so they might cause them to rub their butts on the ground. If tapeworms are present, bring a fresh stool sample into your local veterinarian’s office. A Veterinary Technician will first do a gross examination, which is physically looking at the stool sample with their eyes only. There may be segments of the tapeworm present in the stool that they can visually see without a microscope.
After the gross examination, the Veterinary Technician will then set up a “fecal float”. The fecal float will usually take 10 minutes to bring up any parasite eggs, although some may let it sit for longer. Once the 10 minutes have past, the Veterinary Technician will take the cover slip and place it on a slide. They will exam the slide underneath a microscope, to see if any parasite eggs are present. Once the microscopic examination is complete, the Veterinary Technician will report the findings to the Veterinarian.
If tapeworms are the only parasite found, the Veterinarian will usually give you the option of taking home one or two Droncit pills (one given now and usually a follow up one is given two weeks later, to make sure the tapeworm is gone) or a Droncit shot. If other parasites were found, your Veterinarian will most likely prescribe an alternative medication that is able to treat more than one of the parasites.
If you checked your pets butt and no tapeworms are present, check to see if there is any dry fecal matter or any other material present that may be irritating your pet’s rectum. If you find fecal matter or other material present, you can use a baby wipe or warm wet cloth to clean the area. You may have to cut off some of the fur if it’s really stuck on there. Please be very careful when using scissors on your pet(s), you do not want them to jump, which could lead to you cutting them.
If you checked your pets butt and found no tapeworms, fecal matter, or any other material is present, your pet may be constipated. My pet advice is to monitor your pet to make sure that when they go outside that they indeed have a nice bowel movement. If your pet(s) does not have a bowel movement in a couple days, you can try increasing their fiber intake by giving them 100% natural canned pumpkin or a stool softener.
Please call your local Veterinarian for proper dosages. Special note: If your pet is experiencing constipation accompanied by not eating, drinking, vomiting, lethargic, or abnormal behavior (any of these), your pet may have an obstruction. If you suspect an obstruction, please bring your pet to your local veterinarian immediately, as these can be life threatening if left untreated.
So if none of the above is causing your pet(s) to scoot their butt on the ground, another reason that may be causing their rectum to be irritated is a skin infection. A skin infection can be a bacterial infections (Several types, and some can be passed to humans), yeast infections, and/ or a fungal infection (ringworm can be passed to humans). Usually, if your pet(s) has yeast infection, you will be able to smell it (bread baking), and feel it. The fur usually feels like there is a film on it.
If it’s a bacterial infection, you may also be able to smell it. In addition to smelling your pet(s), by just looking at your pet(s) skin surrounding the rectum, you may be able to see redness, loss of fur, scabs, discharge, ect. If you suspect your pet(s) has an infection of any kind, please bring them into your local veterinarian’s office ASAP. If you wait too long, the infection will get worse, and sometimes pets will pull their hair out, causing a moist dermatitis, which is commonly known as a “hot spot”. As always, it’s easier and cheaper to treat your pet(s) in the early stages.
So if your pet has none of the above, they may have allergies. They can be allergic to the food you are feeding them, and also things in the natural environment. It is important to monitor your pet(s) normal activities on a regular basis, so you are able to tell when your pet(s) are acting strange.
Please return soon, to learn more about keeping your pets happy and healthy.
Some pets have difficulty expressing their anal glands naturally, due to being overweight, not enough fiber in their diet, and so on. With that said, if your pet is showing signs of full/blocked anal glands such as: scooting their butt on the ground, chasing their tail, biting the base of tail/lower back, and excessive licking; it is best to address the issue ASAP before the anal glands become a bigger issue.
If you are not familiar with expressing anal glands, I highly suggest you have a veterinary professional express them. Anal glands can easily be expressed at home; if you are interested in learning how, ask your veterinary technician to show you. A groomer can also express anal glands also, but they usually express them externally (from the outside), and if your pet(s) is showing signs of discomfort, they need to be expressed internally.
If you remember from last week’s post, your pet’s two anal glands are located at 4’o clock and 8’o clock. Your veterinary technician will put a pair of latex gloves on, and apply lubrication to one of their index fingers. They will insert their lubricated index finger into your pet’s rectum, and go to the 6’o clock position, feeling for the full anal gland. Once found, they will apply slight pressure with their index finger on the inside and their thumb on the outside pulling outwards/downwards towards the opening of the rectum. Once the anal gland is emptied, a strong fishy smell will be present. Most technicians will place a paper towel covering the outside of the rectum, to prevent getting any anal fluids on their shirts or even worse, their face. Once one gland is expressed/emptied, they will move to the next one and follow the same steps. After both glands are emptied, usually the technician will clean your pet’s rectum and surrounding area with a baby wipe. Some technicians will also spray a pet safe perfume, to help minimize the smell for the owner. Side note: Your pet will be restrained during the anal gland expressing process, and may require a muzzle. The muzzle is to protect your pet and the technicians.
Once your pet(s) is all cleaned up, the technician will save the fluid emptied from the anal glands if they feel there might be an infection, and show the fluid to the veterinarian. If your pet(s) has fluid that is an abnormal color, such as white, green, yellow, or red there is an infection that will most likely require a round of antibiotics. Your veterinarian may prescribe an anti-inflammatory too. If your pet(s) anal glands were so full that they ruptured/abscessed, the veterinarian will most likely want to flushed out the glands in addition to medication. In most cases, veterinarians recommend your pet(s) to come back in two-three weeks for the glands to be expressed again, and to make sure the infection is cleared up. Once your veterinarian feels the infection and inflammation is cleared up, they will most likely recommend your pet(s) having their anal glands expressed regularly.
How often your pet(s) need their anal glands expressed can be reduced by increasing their fiber. The fiber helps bulk up their stool, helping to express the glands when they have a bowel movement. An easy way to increase fiber in your pet’s diet is canned pumpkin. Not the pie filling pumpkin, but actual 100% natural/pure canned pumpkin. The recommend dose varies depending on the size of your pet(s), usually one tablespoon to two tablespoons. Please call your veterinarian to find out exactly how much to give your pet(s). If your pet(s) refuse to eat the pumpkin, you can also try Metamucil. Again please call your veterinarian for proper dosing.
If you do not want to give your pet(s) the added fiber supplements, your pet(s) may benefit from changing their current diet to a higher fiber food. In addition, make sure your pet(s) are getting enough water in their diet. If you feel your pet’s water intake is small, you may want to add wet food into their diet. Most canned foods are 70% water.
If your veterinarian determines the reason for your pet(s) scooting is not caused by full anal glands, and tells you it’s due to tapeworms or some kind of skin infection, it’s a pretty easy fix with proper prescription medication. The hardest thing to treat that can be causing your pet to be scooting their butt on the ground is fleas. If you need help getting rid of fleas, please visit my earlier posts.
Please return next week to learn more solutions for your dog or cat scooting their butt on the ground. Let’s keep learning about keeping your pet(s) happy and healthy.
