Question about anal glands

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  • 16 October, 2007 at 11:21 pm #11760
    JenniferSigman
    Participant

    OK, now that the subject has both warned people and scared them off… :-p

    I think my 8 year old neutered male cat Sweet Thing has an issue with one or more of his anal glands. He’s not the world’s best groomer, so I periodically check out that area to pull off any mats and such. Today when I did, a drop of greenish pus appeared from somewhere (not sure if was on the anus or just next to it). At that point Sweet Thing wriggled out of my arms and I haven’t been able to get another good look at him.

    I called the vet, but they never called me back. I know that if it’s clogged/infected, there’s not much they’ll do other than try to express it and charge me $100. :-p Do any of y’all have any advice on how to do it? I know it will be gross and smelly and uncomfortable for him, but I’ve handled my own medical issues involving bodily fluids that I am willing to do what I can to make him more comfortable. He does cry from time to time, especially when he’s in the pan, so I’m guessing he’s not happy.

    Thanks,

    Jennifer

    16 October, 2007 at 11:33 pm #74771
    LadyValkyrie
    Participant

    Oh no jennifer poor baby. I wish I knew what to say. Ipersonally would just take him to the vet it could be worse than you think, there by hurting him more if you try to take care of it.

    Ange

    17 October, 2007 at 12:36 am #74772
    AZDEBRA 5/27 & crew
    Participant

    Jennifer, if you have a PetSmart in your area, I know that my dau has her dog’s done w/grooming and it only costs $65, so you might want to check with them or local groomers. If the vet charges $100, that would scare me too…probably because I would want it done but don’t have that expendable monies lying around. Never have done it myself, but I have heard that its not a nice thing. Don’t know if any of this helps you at all.

    17 October, 2007 at 12:40 am #74773
    MerD
    Participant

    Check in your area for a vet tech trainers school. They may charge less, since they are being trained.

    17 October, 2007 at 12:58 am #74774
    sparkdragonfly
    Participant

    My kitty was having some anal problems and your’s seems to be more to it than my Willow’s ‘slight constipation’ diagnosis (thankfully a simple thing to help remedy it without even more costly meds).

    I would definately take the poor kitty to a vet, or like what was said if there is a school in the area where they are teaching people to be vets for it to be more cost effective for you. Places like that would have a close eye on things by trained professionals.

    Hope it isn’t something to hard to patch up for him. He must feel so uncomfortable. Wish I could give him a hug.

    17 October, 2007 at 8:48 am #74775
    miu
    Participant

    Try to get a better look. If he has an abscess in anal glands or they are infected he needs antibiotics too. Infection is painful to the cat; have you noticed any changes in his behaviour? Sometimes little fluid drips out during defecation and everything is OK.

    If your cat is very mellow you can do the emptying yourself but many cats require sedation first. Emptying is pretty much ‘grab and squeeze’.

    17 October, 2007 at 8:56 am #74776
    miu
    Participant

    http://www.pets.ca/pettips/tips-81.htm

    17 October, 2007 at 10:09 am #74777
    JenniferSigman
    Participant

    Thanks, y’all. He’s definitely not a happy camper, I’ll call the vet back when they open and see if I can get him worked in.

    17 October, 2007 at 3:16 pm #74778
    JenniferSigman
    Participant

    I called the vet’s office and actually talked to my doctor, and he apologized profusely for my call not being returned (they can’t keep a receptionist for longer than a few weeks, apparently). He said to bring Sweet Thing in and drop him off and he’d look at him as soon as he could. He called right before I went into a meeting and said, “You know I’ve been in the vet business too long when I can tell normal anal gland stuff from bad stuff.” Basically, he has run into many male cats (especially ones like Sweet Thing who are indifferent groomers) where that discharge is not an infection, but fairly normal.

    We talked a bit, and we think he’s crying a lot people he’s completely stressed out by everything I’m having to do to get my house ready to sell. So he’s giving me some sub-cutaneous (goes in through the skin of the ear) mood altering drugs to try to calm him down. I’ll go pick him up on my lunch break and reunite him with his twin sister, who is driving my Mom crazy at my house, demanding to know where her brother is).

    Again, thanks for the advice. 🙂

    17 October, 2007 at 3:21 pm #74779
    anncetera2
    Participant

    Oh, Jennifer! I’m glad your vet is being so helpful.

    Quick note: stressful times tend to exacerbate health conditions, due to the increased load on the immune system. This is the case with pets as well as people. So anything you can do to make your cat’s world a little more routine and stable, and less stressful, will be very helpful for Sweet Thing.

    If things are *really* nuts in most of your house (rehabbing), it may help to confine the cats to a portion of the house that is not undergoing such changes, especially when you’re not at home. Is your bedroom a good, safe, comforting place to which the cats can retreat?

    (Of course, that suggestion doesn’t apply if Sweet Thing will be more stressed out by the confinement than by the changes going on.)

    17 October, 2007 at 6:18 pm #74780
    JenniferSigman
    Participant

    I do keep all three of them closed in my bedroom with food, water, a litter pan, and a couple of scratching posts when Mom’s painting or Dad’s working with his tools. I try not to keep them locked up all the time, because Goldeneye does get a little stir crazy after a few hours and will start hassling the other two. When I’m showing the house, he’ll be in a room to himself, but right now I don’t have another available room. :-p

    17 October, 2007 at 6:29 pm #74781
    Emma
    Participant

    http://cats.about.com/cs/healthissues/a/analglands.htm

    17 October, 2007 at 9:12 pm #74782
    JenniferSigman
    Participant

    Thanks for the link, Emma… the doc did mention putting a 1/8th of a teaspoon of Metamucil in his food to make sure things stay firm and he can express them.

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