He did it again....

On Saturday night Jordan was sitting on my lap rubbing on me, purring & loving on me & then all of a sudden he expressed his anal glands all over my arm???? He's done this twice before. I know they do it when they are afraid, but I've never heard of a cat doing it becuase they are happy or getting attention?

That must have been a shock! How old is this kitty? Has he ever had any serious health problems? Is he normally a skittish sort of fellow?

I don't know that much about this, um, area... but it seems to me that this would have to indicate some kind of trouble. I'd give the vet a call and see if Jordan needs to be checked out...

eeewww, that does not sound nice at all..........umm think the vet need to have a look at that - did you have him at the vets when he did it last time ?

He's almost 4 & I guess I didn't think anything of it last time. He's healthy other than a case of feline herpes in his eye. It's been probably over a year since he's done this and he has been to the vet every year. I guess I just thought that it was something strange about his personality. He's very outgoing & affectionate, but gets agressive if he feels challenged at all. I can't hold him near my face & make eye contact (I know it's a challange, but I have to look at his eyes becuase of the herpes). He's getting better as he trusts me more, but when he's afraid he turns agressive, but this is the same cat that I say "Jordan up" & he jumps up into my arms.

I do know that sometimes cats spontaneously express their anal glands when being groomed. This happens not because they're scared, but because the sacs are full. The theory is that the food we feed them results in softer stools, and the sacs require hard stools to have them expressed normally while pooping.

If he was lying on your lap and petting him, was he snuggling and had his butt pressed up against your arm? If the sacs were full, this in and of itself could have caused it.

You may want to consider a vet appointment so they can show you how to intentionally express the sacs. If you do it once a month for Jordan, it should avoid the unwanted spontaneous expression of the glands.



Laurie

My Levi's get full, and he has problems, so I guess when I do his once a month I can do Jordan's too. It's strange though becuase Jordan tends to be a little on the constipated side, so I would think it wouldn't be a problem for him. I think Levi's would get blocked it I let them. I feed Nutro dry for breakfast in the morning & Natural balance wet at night.