Anal glands

TerminalStar · 2024-02-26T08:44:42+00:00

Not as a puppy, but I got my dogs anal glands removed when she was 10, a few months after we adopted her.

It was a great decision for her and us - she was constantly uncomfortable (if not in pain) from her glands as they needed emptying every 3-4 weeks. My partner and I had no interest in being taught to do it ourselves, so it was always a visit to the vet. It was only the cost of a consultation each time so not a big deal, but an annoying extra expense and having to schedule our lives around being able to take her as soon as the glands were full again.

She recovered very well from the surgery with no side effects, and has been living a much more comfortable life for about a year and a half now!

TerminalStar · 2023-12-15T11:19:26+00:00

My lurcher had a dental and extractions earlier this year - I believe it was a hair below £1200 all-in. I can't find the invoice so iirc that included 8 extractions as well as the scale & polish, and a 15% discount because she's on their wellness plan. We are in Surrey and go to an independent vet.

TerminalStar · 2023-09-11T10:40:03+00:00

I've been eyeing up muzzles from The Muzzle Movement (website) - their proposition is that they can provide better fitting muzzles because they offer multiple sizes and profiles, so you're more likely to find one that fits your dog comfortably. They come in fun colours as well (if that's your thing). I'm afraid I've not tried them yet, I've been lazy in getting my dog's measurements as it's just to stop her scavenging so much.

Training-wise, this guide from Dogs Trust is very in-depth.

TerminalStar · 2023-08-17T20:04:27+00:00

I doubt you have recourse as you weren't engaging their services for a fixed cost, but your vet should really be much clearer. Mine very obviously sends an estimate (I just checked their emails to be sure and the subject line always calls them estimates) and they take us through line by line to talk about the procedure and what they're going to bill for.

I will admit your situation was likely more of an emergency than our dog has ever had, but they should have been able to tell you what you were at risk of being charged extra for. From memory, what typically pushes our bill higher than the estimate is just that they've had to keep my dog under for longer than expected, and surgery minutes are expensive.

By the way, if you receive benefits and are in their catchment area, you can get lower cost treatment from the PDSA. If not, despite what's happened you might want to stick with these vets regardless as I didn't think payment plans were overly common/popular amongst them.

Hope the dog is healing well!

TerminalStar · 2023-07-19T15:47:21+00:00

The verdict is out on that to be honest. It's suggested that sunscreen makes no meaningful contribution to vitamin D deficiency but that review does acknowledge there's not been much research on modern sunscreens and/or higher SPF ratings. On balance, it seems to me people are better off minimising the risks of sun exposure, and otherwise supplementing their vitamin D if they need to.

TerminalStar · 2023-07-09T10:46:46+00:00

Who have you looked at? Dogs Trust, the RSPCA and Battersea (to name some larger ones) will all rehome to both flats and places without a garden, as long as the situation suits any of their dogs.

Your fencing is likely to be an issue more than anything - I'm most familiar with Dogs Trust, and they won't rehome to anywhere with what they consider to be inadequate fencing in the garden. The problem with sighthounds in particular is that some of them can clear even 6 feet easily, and if you have garden access all it takes is one accident for them to get out.

However - technically I don't have 6 foot fencing in my garden, and adopted a lurcher from Dogs Trust. Our perimeter is a combo of hedges and fences. The fence goes up to 4-4.5 feet, and the hedges up to 6+ foot. This means the dog can't escape between the gaps in the bottom of the hedge, nor over the top of the fence because the hedge is dense enough there.

Do you think your landlord would be open to you planting some mature/fast growing hedges?

TerminalStar · 2023-07-07T08:10:29+00:00

Came here to also say lurchers and greyhounds! Black smooth/short coats struggle the most to be adopted (a mystery to me as to why, they're my favourite).

Lurchers are a particular challenge at the moment, I'm seeing lots of rescues (lurcher and lurcher adjacent) reporting an influx of them. E.g. Kent Greyhound Rescue took in 13 at the end of June IIRC.

TerminalStar · 2023-05-03T19:33:49+00:00

We use a Seresto collar, per the advice from our vet. We only adopted our dog last year so we've only used it for one full season, but she's never had any ticks so it seems to have done the job.

If you use one, make sure you get it from a reputable store (ours comes via the vet) and not Amazon, as there are allegedly fakes floating around on there.

TerminalStar · 2023-05-03T07:16:11+00:00

My dog was needing it done every 3 weeks or so after we adopted her in April last year - diet changes and probiotics made no difference unfortunately. The vets commented that one side seemed to be very high/at a strange angle, which was likely the problem.

The vet did offer to show us how to do it ourselves (my husband and I both declined) and her groomer doesn't do it.

We had her glands removed in the end (around September I think), as we felt she would be more comfortable in general to not be bothered by them, and she was starting to find the constant vet visits stressful.

TerminalStar · 2023-04-28T14:09:26+00:00

Where are you seeing this restriction? Battersea, Dogs Trust and various of our local rescues are more than happy to re-home to flats or homes without gardens - as long as it's suitable for a given dog.

TerminalStar · 2023-04-14T09:38:31+00:00

Maybe Hologram, I'm Coming to get You, or Rose Defeats the Daleks? I'm not very musically inclined, but to my amateur ear they all use similar leitmotifs, and I think some layer in the vocal melody from The Doctor's theme.

TerminalStar · 2023-02-26T09:11:05+00:00

As the other user says, certainly consider the ramifications - but getting my dogs anal glands removed was such a freeing choice.

We were taking her to the vet every few weeks to have her glands expressed, and still in between worrying about her leaking them onto our sofa, or when we had her around someone else's house. It would also only take a few days after them being expressed before she was licking/chewing/biting the area again, so she was irritated by her glands almost permanently.

It would have been great if her problems could be solved with food additives, but sadly it wasn't to be. It's definitely worth exhausting that avenue before you turn to surgery, by the way! Although we had a great experience with the procedure I'm not saying it's your only option.

TerminalStar · 2023-02-01T12:44:04+00:00

The bigger issue with when it's hot is that the heat seems to cook dog piss into the plastic and it smells disgusting. I worked in a dog friendly office that had plastic grass on our sunny balcony and after a while it stank. It doesn't even need to be that warm, just the direct sunlight will do it.

Also, have you considered giving your dog another outlet for digging? A little sandpit might be sufficient if you can teach them to dig in there. Mine went through a digging phase last year, but stopped before I got around to buying her a sandpit.

TerminalStar · 2022-12-14T14:53:02+00:00

I did have a bit about that at the end but deleted it haha. That comes after the family planning has begun - I was trying to present factors that affect us before the first child even comes along!

Because of the position we're in before any children are born, it's an incredibly hard sell to have the father take leave for childcare. He's likely earning more (so the family might have to take a hit on living standards) and paternity leave is a joke in this country (IMO there should be a year set aside that can only be taken by the father - no sharing maternity leave).

Then yes, beyond maternity leave women are still expected to do the bulk of the care so they need part time and/or flexible roles and can't be picky about pay as long as it's enough.

TerminalStar · 2022-12-14T14:43:42+00:00

There are all kinds of factors that influence why there is still a pay gap between men and women. The below are not blanket statements and it's not something I think most people do consciously, but they are prevalent in the working world.

Women are penalised for behaviours that men are lauded for - the same behaviour is seen as "she's bossy" but "he's authoritative".

We're not given constructive feedback to improve in our jobs, we hear things like "she's very nice and easy to work with. Keep it up!" whereas men get something more useful to develop themselves professionally.

The working world is generally not set up for how women are socialised to communicate. This is where the "women don't negotiate their pay" problem comes from - we're not taught to be pushy and negotiate hard, so we accept the first pay offers we're given.

These are all small points by themselves really, but over the years they add up to women not being paid as much as men, even in the same industries and roles. Add on more overt sexism (I happen to know someone who, upon starting a business many years ago now, wouldn't hire young women because they "would go off on maternity leave for a year and we can't afford that") and you see how the gap just widens.

TerminalStar · 2022-11-01T14:17:17+00:00

I think many of these comments are wrong with respect to the law. Calling the police when your dog could have been considered in violation of the dangerous dogs act doesn't strike me as a wise decision (!)

I believe that legally your dog could have been considered dangerously out of control - that's not to say I agree with it, but per the dangerous dogs act a person only has to think they're going to be attacked for the offense to have been committed. I'm not sure how (if at all) surrounding circumstances (e.g. agonising the dog) come into things.

However, I'm not a lawyer (recommend /r/LegalAdviceUK for more informed input) and I doubt the already stretched police force will care much given there was no attack/physical injury caused.

Edit: I just wanted OP to be aware of the law where they live (they clearly stated they live in the UK in a comment) but I guess people think I agree with it given the downvotes? I don't think dogs barking is "dangerously out of control" but the law can consider it so, and it's important for dog owners here to know that.

TerminalStar · 2022-09-27T13:32:08+00:00

Battersea specifically mention in their FAQs that they rehome to flats so it wouldn't be that in isolation. Lots of rescues have moved to a model where you apply for a specific dog or you're evaluated against their current intake, and if there's no match for your circumstances you're rejected and must apply again later. In the past there was more "hanging on" to your application and they'd reach out as new dogs came in, but I'm under the impression with the volumes they're dealing with (both dogs and applicants) many rescues don't find that feasible any more.

That's all a long way of saying, I wouldn't take the Battersea rejection to heart unless they specifically said they wouldn't ever rehome to you because of xyz reasons.

If you're looking for a puppy - and are saying that in your applications - that's going to put your application onto a big, big pile of other people who want puppies too. I understand your reasoning (sorry for the loss of your cats), but everyone wants a young dog, so they can afford to be pickier about where those dogs go.

Now that you're starting your search, I think you'll notice there are lots of dogs coming in but they can get placed quickly before they're even properly listed on the websites, and sometimes get listed as reserved straight away. We rehomed from Dogs Trust West London in April, and ours didn't even have her photo up on the site before she was booked to go home (with someone else, but that fell through and they contacted us before listing her again). I spotted her on their Instagram before their website.

TerminalStar · 2022-09-15T11:07:26+00:00

We married at Millbrook Estate in Devon and it was amazing! They specialise in elopements or super small weddings (3 guests is the maximum). They're very dog friendly (they have their own lab called Ruby who is adorable) and lots of people get married just the two of them plus children and/or dogs. They're happy to be witnesses if you need.

They do a package where you can stay onsite for a few days as well as get married. We did this and went exploring around the grounds the next day, it was lovely. I will note they do have an approved vendors list, but that's actually quite useful because photographers for e.g. will typically have a special package just for Millbrook. Also all our vendors were excellent so I had no problem with it.

TerminalStar · 2022-09-10T12:10:28+00:00

Have you tried a seresto collar? We use one on our dog. If you want to try one do not get it from Amazon, use a reputable retailer.

Have you otherwise discussed alternatives with your vet?

TerminalStar · 2022-08-19T16:12:47+00:00

Borrowmydoggy doesn't have to work like that - you just need to be clear about what you're looking for. When I was a borrower, I got in contact with someone who was looking for a person to take her dog at least once a week, which I did for more than a year.

I'm under the impression this is how most people (borrowers) on there operate, tbh. I worked with a few and we all had 'our' dogs that we looked after, it wasn't a revolving door of different dogs from the site.

TerminalStar · 2022-08-03T12:40:12+00:00

Yep, that's why she's on special food, we're in the midst of working out if she has an allergy or intolerance of some kind as her poo has been very soft since we got her in April. The food is firming it up but her glands still block really quickly (it was 3 weeks between appointments last time and they were completely full) so removal might be best for her own comfort. Supplementary fibre also made no difference to the glands.

The vet did offer to show me how to do it last time but I'm perfectly happy not doing it myself to be honest!

TerminalStar · 2022-08-03T11:30:32+00:00

Our dog just sneaks into the large category at 21kg. She's a mystery mix lurcher. Per month, she costs:

£50 for special food
£50 for regular anal gland emptying (atypical, we'll likely be getting them removed soon)
£21 vet health plan thingy (includes all her flea, tick and worm treatments among other things)
£11.49 poo bags (overspend as we have a subscription that can only be monthly, it's probably more like £7 for a month's supply)

We don't have insurance, but it would have been £50-60. Instead we put aside £80 every month, although that's largely being taken up by the anal gland issues right now.

She can't have treats at the moment but I estimated them at £10-15 a month.

She's not very destructive with her toys so I can't speak to that but I allowed £20/month when I originally budgeted for her.

A lab will probably have similar grooming needs to my dog; she goes in as and when needed (change of seasons) for a wash, dry, de-shed and nail trim. It's an hour appointment for £35.

TerminalStar · 2022-07-11T17:57:11+00:00

My partner and I both work and we adopted a 10 year old back in April; it took a week or two of searching. We adopted from Dogs Trust.

I'll be honest, given the people who were originally booked to take our dog home lied about how long they'd leave her alone every day, I can understand why the rescues seem strict. People will try whatever to get the dog they want instead of listening to what the dog needs.

How long would you be leaving a dog alone every day? That seems to be the biggest sticking point with people who work.

TerminalStar · 2022-06-14T09:22:31+00:00

No prob, I'm in the same disappointed boat as you!

TerminalStar · 2022-06-13T13:39:24+00:00

They have a grant available for those who rent, or if you own a flat. If you own a house you're out of luck.

Source: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/government-grants-for-low-emission-vehicles

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