My dog has smelly anal glands and is vomiting. Should I see a vet?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Vomiting can be observed with conditions such as gastroenteritis, pancreatitis, dietary indiscretion, gastrointestinal foreign body ingestion and obstruction, among other possibilities. For this reason, I highly recommend that you have Bambi evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment as soon as possible as I am afraid he is likely becoming dehydrated. They would be able to check for these possibilities and also check his hydration status and give him medications to make him feel better. Good luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Vomiting and diarrhea can be caused by many conditions primarily gastrointestinal in nature such gastroenteritis and gastrointestinal foreign body ingestion and obstruction or other conditions such as pancreatitis or kidney disease. I recommend that you have your pup evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Likely diagnostics to be performed include abdominal imaging and general bloodwork. You could try a bland diet composed mainly of boiled chicken and white rice which is easily digestible and can help with an upset stomach. Good luck and have a great day!

Hi and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Given Boomer's older age and the acute onset of the vomiting/diarrhea, I would have him seen sooner rather than later by a veterinarian. Boomer could just have an upset stomach, but he also could have a foreign body, an infection or even a tumor causing these signs. Your vet will perform a full physical exam and determine if any additional diagnostic testing is needed (bloodwork, xrays ) and what treatments he made need. Good luck!

Withhold food for 12-24 hours. Allow small amounts of water or unflavored PediaLyte. Resume feeding a bland diet (1:1 ratio of plain boiled boneless chicken and plain white rice). Feed in small, frequent amounts waiting at least one hour between feedings. If the vomiting stops, continue feeding until the stool is normal. Transition slowly to the regular diet. If the vomiting or diarrhea don’t stop, see your veterinarian. The fishy odor is likely from her anal glands. These glands are located around her rectum and are responsible for scenting and marking. They get expressed (or emptied) during defecation but sometimes, they can get too full and inflamed or infected. Occasionally, an abscess can form requiring lancing, flushing and antibiotic therapy.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! She may have full anal glands causing the yelping and turning in circles. The vomiting may be due to dietary indiscretion, GI disease or systemic disease. I would recommend having Fudge examined by a veterinarian and having her anal glands checked to see if they need expression. As for the vomiting, if she is otherwise healthy, you can start by initiating a bland diet as outlined below and then transitioning to a completely different commercial dog food and see if the vomiting resolves. If it does not after 4 weeks or it worsens, I would recommend further testing with a veterinarian such as x-rays and blood testing. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. GENERAL INFORMATION A bland diet is a diet that is soft and highly digestible. It is low in fiber, fat and protein and is high in carbohydrates. Bland diets are generally composed of a single carbohydrate source and a single lean protein source. The most common bland diet is boiled rice and boiled lean chicken breast, without skin and bones. Since bland diets are low in fiber, stool production slows and defecation is less frequent. Bland diets are fed to rest the gastric system and to help promote normal stool formation. Animals that are physically sick should not be fed bland diets as a method of treatment. PRIOR TO FEEDING A BLAND DIET Pets should be fasted for 12 to 24 hours. Young animals should not be fasted for more than 12 hours. Fasting will allow the intestinal system to relax and minimize acid secretions that may irritate and inflame the intestinal lining. During the fast small amounts of water or ice chips may be provided. Never fast a sick animal, it may cause disease progression and death. BASIC BOILED RICE AND CHICKEN BLAND DIET RECIPE CARBOHYDRATE SOURCE: Boiled white rice LEAN PROTEIN SOURCE: Chicken breast, no skin and bones BOILED RICE: 1 part white rice with 3 parts water boiled for 20 – 25 minutes or until the rice is easily crushed. BOILED CHICKEN: De-fat chicken breast and boil in water for 10 – 15 minutes or until the chicken meat is easily pulled apart and cooked all way through. MIXING INSTRUCTIONS: Finely chop the lean protein and mix 2 cups carbohydrate source and ½ cup lean protein source. STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: Bland diets can be premade and stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 48 hours. The bland diet can be cooked in a batch and frozen in feeding sized portions to minimize preparation time. Thaw and warm the frozen diet prior to feeding. PERMITTED LEAN PROTEIN SUBSTITUTIONS Pork loin, egg whites, low fat cottage cheese. 7% low fat hamburger, plain low fat yogurt. PERMITTED CARBOHYDRATE SUBSTITUTIONS Boiled potatoes, boiled spaghetti, Minute rice. PERMITTED COMMERCIAL BLAND DIETS Science Prescription Diet I/D, Eukanuba Veterinary Diet Low Residue, Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Intestinal HE. FEEDING INSTRUCTIONS Estimate 25% of your animal’s diet and feed that amount of the bland diet every 6 – 8 hours. Smaller animals will require less and larger animals will require more adhering to the same carbohydrate to lean protein source ratio. The bland diet should be fed for 4 -5 days with no treats or other food sources until stools are firm. TRANSITION BACK TO A NORMAL DIET Never transition back to a regular diet rapidly. Transition back to the regular diet over a 1 week period. Start by adding 25% of the regular diet to 75% of the bland diet and feed that combination for 2 days. If stools continue to be firm then continue substituting the regular diet in 25% increments and feeding the combination in 2 day time intervals until the diet is 100% regular diet. Minimize treats for 1 week after moving the diet back to 100% regular diet.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It looks like you have done everything you can to help with this at home. However, this may be due to impacted or infected anal glands that may need veterinary evaluation and treatment. I recommend that you have him evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. They would be able to diagnose the issue and treat it accordingly. Best of luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Vomiting in dogs can have a variety of causes, including intestinal parasites, dietary indiscretion, foreign material ingestion, or gastroenteritis, among others. If the vomiting hasn’t improved on a bland diet, I would recommend Puchiwilly be evaluated by a veterinarian to determine the underlying cause for his vomiting, have any necessary testing done (X-rays, bloodwork), and start any treatment that he may need to resolve the issue. Good luck!