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My dog's anal gland swollen after vet expression. Should I worry?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Coton de Tulear | Female | spayed | 12 years and 11 months old | 9.8 lbs

The vet squeezed my dogs anal glands and 1 side of external rectum is swollen. Should i be concerned? She defecates ok. She is eating redbeets & prior prescribed gland chews. She's not scooting but will not let me brush her back hind legs next to her bum. She's 9.8 small dog.

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on December 31st, 2019

You can see some swelling after expression of the anal sacs. Given that Sofia is pooping fine, I would just keep an eye on her for now. If this swelling continues over the next few days, gets worse, or she starts having problems pooping, then I would be concerned and have her seen by a vet again.

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1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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Hello, I hope you can help. I took my dog today to a vet for a suspected parasite infection. The Vet said that dog needs glands expressed and proceeded to do so. No liquid came out, but poop. Vet sent us home saying that her glands are now empty, ga
Thank you for contacting Pet Coach with your concern about Spot. If her anal sacs were impacted, then it would make the contents of them thicker and to appear like poop. Should the vet had to squeeze hard to get the contents out, that could be the cause of the pain and swelling. Please do NOT give her any human pain medications. Many are toxic to dogs and can be fatal if given. Give her vet a call today to explain what you are seeing, and they can advise if they want you to bring her back in now. Keep her quiet and rested, and make sure she is eating and drinking. If she stops eating and drinking, and/or becomes very lethargic, then I would take her into a vet right away. Best of luck, I hope this helps!
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Yesterday (6/11/18) I took Emma to have anal glands expressed around 4:30 pm. Vet tech said her glands were pretty full. I just caught Emma scooting on the area rug. Does this mean her anal glands still need more expressing? Is this why her anus loo
Thank you for using Boop by Petco! Continued scooting following anal sac expression may not be related to the need to be expressed further. Occasionally the anal sac may still be inflamed/irritated following the expression which may still result in some discomfort and the urge to itch. Scooting of the hind end can also be due to a superficial itch that may be related to an underlying environmental or parasite (i.e flea) allergy. It is difficult to tell from the picture without being able to palpate the rectum, but I do not see any evidence of overt swelling in the region (the anal sacs sit at 5 o'clock and 7 o'clock position at the anus). If Emma continues to appear irritated you can have her evaluated by her veterinarian to palpate the anal sacs and make sure everything palpates normally.
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My dogs anal gland is swollen it's the size of a half golf ball maybe smaller he's not affected or in pain He doesn't scoot or lick area been compressing and as a result it helped but it's not going down completely. It's been this way for almost 3
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My dog has swelling near her anus. She also is warm to the touch on her back end and down under the swelling. Should I take her to the vet now or can I wait until the morning? What could be wrong?
Swelling near the anus are usually secondary to a problem with the anal sac, such as an impaction, abscess or even cancer. It could also be secondary to something entirely different, such as an insect bite or a cyst. The vast majority of the time, these are not emergencies. So as long as Gidget is otherwise acting normally, you can call your veterinarian in the morning. A good physical exam will likely lead to a preliminary diagnosis and possible treatment. Other tests your veterinarian could do include aspirating the swelling to see what it contains. Good luck and I hope Gidget feels better soon. Thank you for using pet coach.
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My dog had a lump of poop stuck to his butt some hard and soft I got it off but his butt hole looks huge what should I do
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My dog has had diarrhea for the past couple of days and then I noticed he would kick around him bum area very often and I noticed it was swollen, is there anything I can do at. Home to help or do I need to seek medical attention?
Since the diarrhea has lasted for 48 hours, he should be seen by your veterinarian. The swelling could be an anal gland abscess or a tumor. An abscess will need to be lanced and drained. A tumor should be aspirated or biopsied to collect samples for pathology. Place an e-collar (cone) on him to prevent licking until he sees the doctor. Submit a stool sample to diagnose intestinal parasites or bacterial overgrowth. Night may go home with a bland diet, antibiotics and pain medication depending on the diagnosis.
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My dog wasn’t feeling well this past week. She wasn’t eating and all she did was lay down on her side. She was in pain where her anal glands were and so I took her to the vet. They said she just needed her Anal glands to be expressed because it was a
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Updated on September 24th, 2025
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Elsie had stool ( with material in it) pertruding from her anus, that she finally went outside and pooped out. There appeared to be a small amount of bright red blood in a piece of it, and it was soft stool. Now her anus appears inflamed or swollen i
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I took my dog to the vet earlier today around 630 pm to find out she needed her anal glands should she be whining and squirming like she's restless and uncomfortable?? She also had to have a little blood drawn I'm not sure if that has anything to do
If Zoey's anal sacs were really impacted, it may have been uncomfortable to have them expressed and he is still feeling uncomfortable. In addition, going to the vet is stressful for some dogs. I would keep an eye on her, and hopefully she's back to normal tomorrow. If not, I'd consider taking her back into the vet. I hope this helps!
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