What Dogs Really Tell Us when They Drag Their Rear End Across the Carpeting

Many pet owners complain that their dog scoots their rear end across their floor at home and do not realize what their dog may be trying to tell them. Every dog has two glands that are situated next to the rectum. These are called the anal glands and they produce the scent that usually covers fecal material after defecation. You see, when a dog defecates, spinchter muscles should express these glands onto the fecal material as it comes out. In some dogs, poor muscle tone in the rectum will lead to full anal glands. Since these glands cannot be expressed, they begin to fill up with the glandular material. This in turn gives the dog an uncomfortable feeling.

When your dog begins to scoot across your floor at home, he/she may be telling you that their anal glands are full or that something else is going on in that end such as a rash of some sort. The most common cause is full anal glands. Now, how do you relieve a full anal gland? Your veterinarian does this at your dog's veterinary clinic. The doctor will reach in the rectum with a gloved finger and express the glands from the inside. The material will ooze out of the glandular ducts on the outside. Sometimes the material can be very difficult to express and painful because there is an infection secondary to the material accumulating.

If your dog frequently goes to your veterinarian for anal gland expressions, you may consider having them surgically removed. Not every veterinarian will recommend this. You should only consider this if your dog has chronic anal gland issues and when they become infected more than 3 times. The 3 times is just an indicator that you should consider having the glands removed. What your veterinarian may also do is fill the glands with hard wax so that they never fill with material again. This is an older method, but is still used by some doctors. This method is also less invasive and requires no incisions. Removing the glands leaves your dog's hind end with two incision sites and it can be more much more painful than filling them with wax.

Allergies are sometimes the cause of thicker glandular material and can cause the glands to become impacted with material. For this, address the allergy problem and monitor the anal glands. Some groomers will opt to express them from the outside. However, sometimes they express them wrong and this can worsen the situation. Some groomers may damage the glands doing this method. You should always have your veterinarian perform an anal gland expression to prevent any mishapts. Monitor your dog for these changes and when they begin to scoot on the floor, don't ignore it, your dog may be in extreme discomfort.