Anal gland secretion

[Zaiya]

I just did a usual overall health check with my rabbits, and I found something somewhat disturbing on both of my rabbits. These two "pockets" on either side of the penis, filled with brown foul-smelling gunk. Wow, those things stunk!

I did a Google search to see if I could figure out what it was, and if I should be worried or not. I searched "rabbit anal diagram" in images. The first one to come up labeled the "pocket" gunk as anal gland secretions. I've never heard of this before!

Is there anything I should be concerned about? Anything I should know about this? Is the smell supposed to be so strong?

Thanks!

 

[Korr_and_Sophie]

Rabbit scent glands can be pretty smelly. You can clean them out using a q-tip and warm water. It might be hard to get out, so be careful. I do check the glands on my rabbits when I do their nails and clean them as needed.

 

[Zaiya]

I did a little digging and came upon this link: http://www.rabbitsonline.net/f14/do-you-need-clean-rabbits-scent-glands-51810/

From what I read, you really don't need to clean it out unless you want to, or if it gets plugged up.

Thanks for the reply!

 

[Nancy McClelland]

We check ours and clean if needed when we do their nails. I use unscented baby wipes for all our cleaning needs.

 

[tonyshuman]

Oh yeah, those stink. They should have brown, waxy material that smells awful. I use baby oil on a q-tip to clean them roughly monthly when I do the nail trims to keep my bunnies smelling ok.