Jazz keeps turning really rapidly and making a sort of grabbing at his back legs/back end and generally pacing about alot.  Has anyone got any idea what it might be? Also any way I can help him until tuesday?

He is still letting you touch his legs so doesnt appear to be in muscular pain.

anal glands????
Lea :)

Insect sting? My boy has a bit of a tendency to be stung by wasps and behaves like this until the pain subsides. Or there could be something stuck in his fur/skin causing irritation?

a flea or itchy bottom maybe an ant bite. !!!
Did  he just start doing this today ? 

Donna

He was like it yesterday but not as bad, it has been alot more noticable today.

If nothing obvious is to be seen, like tangles or a sore spot, I'd guess it was his anal glands giving him problems. They can be emptied at home, if you know how. Might be best to have your vet check him up first,though, and have the vet emptying them if that's what's bothering him. Then should the problem reoccur in the future, if you ask your vet to show you how, you could do it yourself.
Karen

If it his glands will he be ok until tuesday? I have never had to do them before so dont know how.  Can i help him in anyway?

Is there a fishy smell coming from his back end as that could be a sign of his glands needing emptied. Both mine have to have their glands done and they will both start to nibble at the base of their tail and lick their bums a bit when needing done.

Jenny

Jazzywoo, if it's his anal glands causing him discomfort, he'll be OK until Tuesday. It's not an emergency in uncomplicated cases. You might see him dragging his bottom on the carpets, another sign of this problem. If it is in fact the anal glands that is the problem. Let your vet check him over on Tuesday.
Good luck, and prepare yourself for a rather unplesant smell :D
Karen

Thanks for all your advice/ideas everyone :).  It was his anal glands, took Jazz to the vets yesterday, he was less than impressed with the nurse :D.  My goodness what a smell though I have NEVER smelt anything like it.  I was gagging.

Lovely isn't it!! :-D My friends have just had their Cavaliers done - they charged £9 each, and said they could 'train them in how to do it, but as the vet was trained it would be better to keep going there'!! I've showed them how for next time!!

Try giving your dog one dry weetabix every morning. It does help.

Or a teaspoonful of bran sprinkled over his dinner. :)

I have taken Beano to have his done for over 2 years.
Then the last time I took him I made a passing commment about doing it myself.
So the nurse wouldnt let me go until I had done it!!!!!!
Now I empty them myself when needed and cant believe how easy it is, I just keep my head WELL back!!!!
And save my self a fortune!!!!
Lea :)

What causes the anal glands to fill up ?

It's not so much filling up as failing to empty.  Dogs produce the secretions continually in order to release a little with each bowel motion, marking it with whatever is the message of the day ;)  Some may produce more than others, I suppose, by the real issue seems to be if they are not emptied adequately or even blocked all together.  Getting the stool to the right consistancy to enable the glands to be nicely squeezed as it passes can often be achieved by adding extra fibre to the diet.

The majority of dogs today eat a diet that is lacking in fibre and bones - unless they are fed BARF.  Therefore, when they defecate there is little substance to press against the anal glands and release the contents.  Sad subject..........but, just observe the difference in consistancy of faeces between a dog fed BARF and one fed other processed foods.

Very confusing, many raw feeders complain there is too much fibre in commercial diet :)

>many raw feeders complain there is too much fibre in commercial diet

As I understand it it's rather more to do with what the fibre is - i.e. just a food recipe bulked up with grain (as in most dry completes) the majority of which has little or no nutritional value, or natural (to a canine) fibre found for eg in carcasses :)   

FWIW, I've had dogs fed on a multitude of diets and have not had problems with any re anal glands however I think some breeds (or lines with breeds) are predisposed to issues in that regard.

The fibre needed for correct peristalsis action is insoluble fibre - the source is pretty much immaterial because it isn't digestible anyway. :)

There are animals (and humans) on virtually fibre free diets for a multitude of reasons - yet their guts are able to propel waste matter.

Added fibre - for problems with intestinal motility - is a different matter.

Fibre, constipation and cancer information.

I would have said it the other way round Teri, low fibre diets are for a particular digestive problem the normal healthy diet for a human would be one with a good amount of fibre in it.  In my experience dogs need it too.

JG & Isabel - to clarify, there is no need in a normal healthy animal or human for fibre in the form of grains.  As I understood Isabel's initial post to which I replied, there appeared to be confusion on that specific matter :)

I'm not at all sure what the confusion was.  No I don't suppose fibre has to be provided by grain but on the other hand I see no reason why not either.

That is what my understanding of fibre is, something indigestible to aid the passage of food through the gut.  Of course there are other parts of the grain that are digested.  I have had problems with complete diets that have low amounts of grain and consequently fibre, sold incidentally on the basis of less to pick up :rolleyes: my dogs got horribly consitipated and needed their glands manually emptied.  When reverted to foods pf, at least, 3% fibre the problem was sorted :) although I am sure you are right that some dogs are more needing of that sort of diet than others.  I know several people that have improved their function by simply adding a little bran to their regular diet too.