young male dog damaged sphincter leaks poop

[greentiger]

My beautiful 8 year old boy went to have teeth cleaned and anal glands expressed.
Sadly the vet believes that pressing the glands damages them. He prefers to rinse with a hydrogen peroxide water solution. he didn't inform me of this practice until after the fact. To make a very long story short the anal glands were burned. Sadly, the problem was missed on two occasions when the vet partner examined my boy. I knew that something was not right but trusted the vets. When the main vet saw my dog his face went white.

Snoopy had necrosis in the anal glands, sphincter and the intestinal tissue. They rushed him the another dog hospital where he stayed for 7 days. The skin tissue was growing back but he was still leaking feces all the time. The dr thought it was diarrhea and that he would have control. But sadly this is not the case.

Snoopy has been home for two weeks and its been ####. I have seen two other vets that fear that he has no sphincter muscle. So we see a surgeon on Thursday to see if that's the case.

My immediate problem is that he is always leaking. If we firm up him food he cannot push it out. He tries so hard that he has burst vessels. If we keep the stool soft then he likes to shake it out and then gobble it up quickly.
He tolerates diapers well. Little Swimmers size med. But since he still has healing to do he is now getting really irritated in the anal region. I have to keep him in a small bathroom when he is diaper free. But he cries and has escaped several times. Also he has to wear a lamp shade to keep him from licking. Its a tragic mess.
This poor dog has gone from a dog that could go everywhere with me (live in Europe), or be left at home and behave beautifully. We also live in an apartment so its a challenge for the whole family.
If anyone has any kind of similar medical situation please write.
The vets have talked about a colostomy bag but I have never heard of one for a dog.
Thanks

[CarolC]

I have seen two other vets that fear that he has no sphincter muscle. So we see a surgeon on Thursday to see if that's the case.

My immediate problem is that he is always leaking. If we firm up him food he cannot push it out. He tries so hard that he has burst vessels. If we keep the stool soft then he likes to shake it out and then gobble it up quickly.

I don't have this exact situation but I do have a dog with no sphincter control and the stools just come out whenever. She has feeling so she does not like me to express her bowel so we just keep the stools firm and pick up after her as needed. The food that works for her is Science Diet w/d, but I have seen other people report using other brands of food to produce good stools in their dog, I think you just find what works for your dog's individual system. It sounds like you need to keep experimenting till you find that happy medium, not too loose, not too firm. There is an inexpensive product called Lactulose Syrup that you get from the vet. A bottle is under $20 and will last for months. You give a little bit to the dog (they seem to like the flavor) and it regulates the stool quality, and your dog thinks he got a treat.

I do not understand the part about straining to defecate if the dog has no sphincter muscle. If there is no muscle it seems like the sphincter would be relaxed/open, which is OK. If he is straining that much and there is no muscle, either it is major constipation, or could there be a stricture caused by the surgery? The vet could determine this by a digital exam.

My dog wears a diaper for urine (she leaks urine as well) but it has a nice tail hole so the stools drop out. At night (or other times when needed) I put her in a baby playpen with washable linens in the bottom, like you say, the air is good for her skin.

If your dog is eating the stools, there is a product you can get at the vet (because this is a common problem) called For-bid. You sprinkle it on the dog's food and apparently they don't taste it in the food, but it makes the stools unappetizing. Your vet probably carries it.

Today is Thursday and my reply is late...what did your vet say? Did you see the vet today?

[greentiger]

Hi Carol,
Thanks for the letter. He just saw a surgeon yesterday, the vet said he has about 1/3 of muscle so perhaps that's why he is straining. I had a diaper on him but it caused a bad reaction to the skin so now he has to be w/o anything for 7 days. Then the vet will sedate him and make a more extensive exam to see what is happening while Snoopy is relaxed.

Its really tough because he is so used to having the run of the flat all of the time and now its nothing. Still working out the kinks.
Its nice to know that there is a community out there to lean on.

Best regards
Deborah