Why is my dog biting his butt, growling, and smelling fishy?

His anal glands may be full, impacted or he could be developing an anal gland abscess. You will need to have him physically examined by your veterinarian for a definitive diagnosis and treatment. If the glands are full, expressing them may resolve Theo's symptoms. If an abscess is forming or has formed, it will need to be lanced, drained and flushed. Theo will likely go home with antibiotics and pain medication.

Poor Buddy! This is a common behavior when they have full anal glands. Anal glands are 2 glands, one on each side of the anus, that holds a foul smelling material. They are there to help naturally lubricate a dog's bowel movements, but not all dogs properly express them. I would take him to your vet clinic and see if they can express his anal glands. Also, he could also act this way and lick everything if he is really itchy, anxious or just uncomfortable. If he doesn't improve after his anal glands are expressed, then I would have your vet take a look at him to ensure he doesn't have an infection or something else going on causing these behaviors. I hope this helps!

What you are smelling may be anal gland secretions. If one or both of the anal glands are very full they will sometimes "overflow" and then you have them exit the anus. This is a very bad sort of fishy smell. Next time you visit your vet for his vaccinations, you should have the vet examine them and empty them if necessary. If you think he has problems pooping or if he cries when pooping or if he scoots his behind on the floor, then they may be infected or impacted and need to be checked by your veterinarian.

I would try feeding him some canned pumpkin with his next meal. This will sometimes help dogs naturally express their anal glands. By tomorrow, if his condition is not improved I would have a veterinarian clean them out. They can become impacted and infected.

One possibility would be that Ozzy is expressing fluid from his anal glands. Anal gland fluid often has a fishy smell to it that attracts other dogs. I am attaching a handout below with more information on anal glands. http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=625 If that sounds like what might be going on with Ozzy, then I would recommend scheduling an appointment at your veterinary office to have them check Ozzy's anal glands. Hopefully they will be able to express the fluid and resolve the problem. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Billion and his little friend are so cute and I bet they are best of friends. It sounds like he is not feeling good and these cues are his way of telling you this, especially the hiding. I wish we could know if our furry friends are depressed but more often these symptoms are linked to some sort of physical ailment and this is their way of conveying it to us. As he is biting his rear end this could be a sign that something is itchy (do you see any fleas as this is a common area for fleas to be?) or painful for him (like his rear end (anal sac issues are sometimes a concern in younger dogs) or his back). As I can see that you are concerned about your little guy I would recommend he be seen by your family vet for an exam. That way he or she can rule out some common problems and get your little guy some help. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

If you are noticing him bite near his anus, then it is possible that this is due to an impacted or infected anal sac. It could also be due to other anal/rectal issues causing irritation like pinworms, or allergies. If your dog is biting you or other people/animals, then this may indicate that he/she is painful, but definitely would not be a specific problem with anal glands. I hope that helps to answer your question. If it didn't, then please post again and try asking the question a different way, or with some more detail in order for us to best help you.