Scooting and Scratching Shih-tzu

[margy]

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Hi can anyone help x my moms shitzu Maisie Moo has been wormed, flea treated etc but has again this week started scooting on floor, trying to bite her tail and becoming very upset and stressed. She has been clipped today also and has had her anal glands cleaned out and has also emptied her bowels normally but she's still very distressed.

 

[JoanneF]

If she has had her anal glands expressed, they might still be a little sore. Going forward I would suggest looking at her feeding to make sure her poo is nice and firm, which helps the glands express naturally as she toilets. What do you feed?

 

[JudyN]

I'd get her checked by a vet - something's irritating her rear end but it's not possible to tell what without an examination.

 

[Sezzy]

Misty has to regularly have her anal glands emptied at the vet. She will still be obsessed with her bum for about a day afterwards, I think due to what looks like gel around her rear. Also when I clip her around her privates it makes her lick them for a while. But as others have said, a trip to the vet to be on the safe side.

 

[Breed Lead]

Definitely take her to the vet, might be her anal glands. It can get infected too so I wouldn't wait long to have it checked.

 

[leashedForLife]

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How old is Maisie?
How fit is she? - pudgy, downright obese, or lean? --- What's her body-condition?

Any added wt makes anal-gland issues more likely - hence my Qs. // If Maisie's under 12-MO & the groomer expressed her anal-glands as SOP, i'd take that groomer out & carry them thru the streets riding a pole, tarred & feathered, as a warning to other groomers.

groomers who routinely express the dog's anal-glands do the dog & owner no favors - they make the glands dependent upon manual expression, & the muscles particularly the sphincter at the gland opening, lose tone.
Then the dog is much-more prone to impactions, swelling, ruptured or abscessed glands, etc.
It's a vicious spiral into poor function.

Anal-glands should only be manually expressed when they MUST be - & then preferably by a vet, not a groomer.
Dogs eating good diets shouldn't need manual expression, & anal-glands should very rarely cause issues over a dog's lifetime - when they're working properly, leave 'em ALONE.

If Maisie is an adult dog & has chronic issues with her anal-glands, i'd tell the groomer hands-off in crystal-clear terms, & i'd add canned plain pumpkin to her diet. It contains both soluble & insoluble fiber, & no, B4 U ask, there is no substitute on Earth for commercially-canned, low-water pumpkin puree. It's available in the UK, & feeding it is a lot cheaper than every-6-weeks or every-2-month visits to the vet.

- terry

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