Anal Gland Issues AKA How to Stop Your Dog From Smelling Like Fish

If your dog suddenly starts to smell like fish it is not because he needs a bath but instead it is because his anal glands need to be expressed. The term "expressed" is just a nice way of saying that the greasy, liquid substance needs to be removed (or squirted) from his anal glands either at the vet's office or by yours truly! 

When I first adopted Daisy she needed to take a trip to the vet a few times and, as you can imagine, the foul smell before and even after the procedure was so overwhelming (and also uncomfortable for her) that I took it upon myself to research how I could stop this unpleasant experience from repeating itself.

After reading  Dr. Karen Becker's 'Anal Gland Issues in Dogs' I learned the following: 

1)Eliminate all grains and switch your dog to a biologically appropriate diet. She also recommends that we switch to a novel protein for your dog. If, for example, he’s been eating only beef and chicken, make a transition to bison or rabbit. 

2) A constant diet of just one or two types of protein can trigger an allergic inflammatory response.

3)  Unnecessary manual expression will also reduce the effectiveness of the glands over time so stop the routine manual expression. The anal sacs are delicate little organs that are easily injured by pinching or squeezing.
 
4) Stop feeding any food that contains corn, potato, oatmeal, wheat, rice or soy.

5) Adding probiotics and digestive enzymes to your pet’s diet can also assist in creating consistently firm stools.

6) Adding organic canned pumpkin and unsweetened coconut will naturally keep your dog's poop from being in liquid form thus eliminating his need to be expressed. These additions to Daisy's diet helped immensely!

7) Unaddressed food allergies are a quite common cause of chronic anal sac issues so talk to your vet about this possibility as soon as possible.

I hope this information is helpful for your dog's health and well being! 

If you have any further helpful hints please leave a comment below!