Ok You all know what I’m talking about. Anyone who has a dog knows about the doggie butt scoot across the carpet. You all always look mortified at us and apologize to your guest because you always claim we do it at the worst time. You also usually yell at us and act all embarrassed. And sometimes we even leave a nice trail for you to clean up. So let me you us dogs perspective of why we do it. Us doggies have something called an anal sac (or anal glands) in our hind quarters. It is two small glands just inside our anus. We have material that is secreted into these glands. And it is thick and foul-smelling. My Mom calls it “ butt juice “and says a big ewwww when she smells it. Most wild animals can empty the glands voluntarily for scent marking or self-defense. However. over the years us dogs have lost the ability to empty them out. So that causes a problem since we can’t really reach back there very well. If our sacs become impacted or full..we will start scooting to try to empty them out ourselves. When I go to the groomers they empty mine out but I won’tt tell you the details…it is degrading! but if we are doing the butt scootin’ boogies we probably need to go to the vet to make sure we don’t have an infection in the hinny. So next time you see us scoot don’t yell..take it as a sign that we have an issue back there!
Does this apply to us girlies as well as boys ‘cos I don’t do this but(t) my male friends do?
I think it applies to all dogs but my mom has seen boy dogs do it more often it seems. Maybe the girls dogs have better manners and don’t do it in public BOL
Preston, my westies usually do this when their anal sacs need attention. It could be that a trip to a groomer that will empty the sacs or a visit to the vet could help this pup feel much more comfortable. It does actually happen to all dogs, male and female. Good luck!