Dog food for anal gland problems

Recurring anal gland problems that keep coming back — especially in a gun dog breed like an English Setter — are often a fibre story. When stools are too soft or low in bulk, the glands don't get the natural pressure they need to empty during defecation, and that's when blockages and infections set in. Sensitive stomach issues in dogs usually fall into a few categories: food intolerance, ingredient sensitivity, or a gut that just needs a simpler, more structured diet — and identifying which applies is the key to finding the right food. To point you in the right direction, can you tell me what your setter is currently eating, what digestive symptoms you're seeing alongside the gland issues, and whether your vet has recommended any dietary changes so far?

That pattern makes a lot of sense — soft stools and gas on a low-quality dry food, with glands that can't empty properly as a result. Supermarket foods often have lower fibre levels and more fillers that ferment in the gut, which explains both the gas and the consistency. What you want is a food with a meaningful fibre level — typically from ingredients like beet pulp, chicory, or added vegetables — combined with a clean, single-protein base to rule out any ingredient sensitivity compounding things. Can I ask: has he ever had an obvious reaction to a particular protein — chicken, beef, anything like that — or have you not had reason to narrow it down?

Good — that simplifies things. You don't need a hypoallergenic or novel-protein food, you just need something significantly better structured than what he's on now. My recommendation would be Forthglade Complete Adult Dry Dog Food with Turkey, Brown Rice and Vegetables. It has a clearly stated fibre content from natural sources including brown rice and vegetables, a single named protein in turkey, and no artificial additives or cheap fillers. It's designed to support digestive health specifically, and the stool-firming effect of the brown rice and added veg fibre tends to be quite reliable — which is exactly what you need to give his anal glands a chance to express naturally. At his weight, one bag lasts a reasonable amount of time and it's well within a normal food budget. I'd give it six to eight weeks alongside his next vet check to see if the expression interval lengthens.

Yes, Forthglade Complete Adult Dry with Turkey is available on Amazon UK — search for it by name and you'll find it in the 6kg and 10kg sizes. The 10kg is better value if you're committing to a proper trial period, which I'd recommend. Transition gradually over about a week — mix increasing amounts of the new food with his current food — to avoid any temporary digestive upset from the switch itself. If his stools firm up noticeably within the first two to three weeks, that's a strong sign the fibre level is doing its job. Worth noting to your vet at the next visit so they can track whether the gland expression frequency starts to reduce.

Good plan. With any luck you'll be down to two or three month intervals — or none at all — within a few months of the switch. If things don't improve after a sustained trial, it's worth going back to the vet to rule out any anatomical component to the gland issue, but diet is absolutely the right first step and you're in a much better position now than staying on supermarket food. Hope it makes a real difference for him.