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Does pet insurance cover anal gland problems?

By Bradley Jacobs · Published Oct 19, 2026 · Last checked Oct 26, 2026

Routine gland emptying is usually not covered. An infected or swollen gland, a removal surgery, or a gland tumor can be, if it is new after signup. Every carrier draws the line a little differently.

What anal glands are, in plain words

Dogs have two small pouches just inside the bottom, one on each side. They hold a smelly liquid.

Most of the time they empty on their own when your dog poops. Some dogs need help, and the vet or groomer squeezes them out.

Signs a gland is bugging your dog:

Scooting their bottom on the floor.
Licking or chasing their back end.
A fishy smell, or wet spots on the bed.
Straining or seeming sore when they poop.

If a gland stays clogged, it can get infected. An infected gland can swell up into a painful pocket of pus (an abscess) and even burst.

The short answer

Routine emptying is usually not covered. Lemonade, Pets Best, and Trupanion all leave it out in their sample policies. Lemonade calls it grooming.
A real illness can be. Spot only leaves anal gland care out when there is no infection. An infected gland, a burst gland, or a tumor is treated more like any other illness.
Some wellness add-ons pay a little for emptying. Fetch's Advantage and Prime wellness plans list it. Embrace's Wellness Rewards lists it too.
Old gland trouble is left out. If scooting or gland visits are in the vet notes before signup, that problem is usually pre-existing.
Accident-only will not help. Gland problems are illnesses. See accident-only vs wellness.

Emptying vs a real problem

This is the line that decides most claims. Here is how it usually splits:

Usually not covered: a quick squeeze because the glands are full, done as upkeep or at a grooming visit.
Can be covered: an infection, a swollen or burst gland, a lump in the gland, or surgery the vet says is needed.

The tricky part is the squeeze itself. Even when your dog has an infection, some carriers still will not pay for the emptying part. They may pay for the medicine and the rest of the visit.

Lemonade's sample policy says grooming is not covered "even if performed by a vet to treat a condition," and it lists anal gland emptying as grooming.

What can be covered

If the gland problem is new and your waits are done, these are the bills that often come up:

The sick visit (if your plan pays exam fees).
Antibiotics, pain medicine, and medicine put right into the gland.
Opening and draining a burst or swollen gland.
Tests on a lump, like taking a small sample to check for cancer.
Surgery to take the glands out when problems keep coming back.

On cost, Embrace's vet-written guide gives these ranges:

Routine emptying: usually under $50.
An infected or burst gland: about $100 to $1,000 per bout.
Gland removal surgery: about $750 to $2,500.

Your vet's written estimate is the number that counts. Your deductible, payback %, and yearly cap still decide the check.

Older dogs and scooting in the records

Gland trouble is really common. Pets Best puts anal gland problems on its list of common pre-existing conditions in dogs.

So with an older dog, the big question is what is already in the vet notes. Here is what to know:

Notes like "scooting," "full glands," or "glands expressed" can be read as signs of a gland problem.
A gland infection last year can make later gland trouble pre-existing.
Some carriers let a problem that cleared up come back into coverage after a stretch with no signs. Lemonade and Embrace describe about 12 months. Spot describes 180 days. Ask whether gland trouble counts.
Trupanion looks back 18 months for signs. Embrace and Fetch usually ask for about the last 12 months of records. Any carrier can ask for more.
A totally new problem somewhere else in the body can still be covered.

Embrace offers a free Medical History Review if you want to know how old notes will be read. For more, see problems already in the record and senior dogs over 8.

Gland tumors in older dogs

Older dogs can get lumps in or around the anal glands. Some are cancer. A swelling near the bottom is worth a vet visit soon.

How coverage usually works:

A new tumor found after signup and after the wait is treated like other cancer. Tests, surgery, and treatment can be covered.
A lump the vet already noted before signup is usually left out.
Trupanion's sample policy has a catch for dogs that were not fixed (spayed or neutered) before their first birthday. It does not cover tumors around the bottom for those dogs. It also lists some exceptions, like when the vet advised the timing.

See cancer coverage, lumps on an older dog, and mast cell tumors.

Carrier-by-carrier (public pages)

These notes come from carrier public pages and sample policies we read in October 2026. They are not personal underwriting.

Sample policies can be older than what is sold today, and terms vary by state. Verify on the quote form and the issued policy.

Spot:
- Its sample policy leaves out anal gland emptying, treatment, and removal "when no infection is present."
- So an infected gland is the kind of case that can be covered.
Lemonade:
- Its sample policy lists anal gland emptying as grooming.
- Grooming is not covered, even when a vet does it to treat a problem.
- Ask whether medicine and surgery for an infected gland are covered.
Pets Best:
- Its California sample booklet lists "anal gland expression and removal" among things it does not pay for.
- Ask whether that includes a removal your vet says is medically needed. Policy forms differ by state.
- Lists anal gland problems as a common pre-existing condition in dogs.
Trupanion:
- Its sample policy does not pay for gland emptying, but says it will cover surgery to remove the glands.
- Leaves out tumors around the bottom for dogs not fixed before age 1 (with some exceptions).
- Does not pay exam fees unless you add that.
Fetch:
- Its wellness add-on pays up to $30 a year for gland emptying on Advantage and $40 a year on Prime. Essentials does not include it.
- We did not find US Fetch wording on infected glands. Ask on the quote.
Embrace:
- Its Wellness Rewards plan (a membership, not insurance) lists gland emptying.
- Says it covers illnesses that are not pre-existing. We did not find gland-specific wording in its insurance pages. Ask.

Carrier	Age to join	Illness wait	Cured problems	Quote
Lemonade	From 2 months. Top age depends on breed and state	14 days	Some short-term problems after 12 months clear. Not knees or long-term problems	Get a quote from Lemonade
Embrace	6 weeks to 14 (15+ accident-only)	14 days	Some short-term problems after 12 months clear	Get a quote from Embrace
Fetch	From 6 weeks, no top age listed	Up to 15 days	Some short-term problems after 1 year clear	Get a quote from Fetch
Pets Best	From 7 weeks, no top age	14 days in the sample we read	Some problems that fully heal	Get a quote from Pets Best
Trupanion	Under 14	Varies by state	No cured path on the page we read	Get a quote from Trupanion
Spot	From 8 weeks, no top age	14 days	Some problems after 180 days clear. Not knees	Get a quote from Spot

Short version from public carrier pages. Rules change by state. Verify on the quote form. The long version, with sources, is on what counts as pre-existing.

Questions to ask before you buy

Do you pay for anal gland emptying ever, or only with an add-on?
If my dog gets a gland infection, is the medicine covered? Is the emptying?
Is gland removal surgery covered if my vet says it is needed?
My dog's glands were emptied at the vet before. Will you treat future gland trouble as pre-existing?
Is a tumor near the bottom covered like other cancer?
Are exam fees covered, or is that an add-on?

If your dog's records are clean on gland trouble today, signing up sooner keeps more options open.

Get a quote (official carrier URLs)

We do not run a fake quote widget. These buttons open the carrier.

Waiting periods, add-ons, yearly caps, and premiums are state-specific. Verify on the quote form and the issued policy.

Get a quote from Lemonade Get a quote from Embrace Get a quote from Fetch Get a quote from Pets Best Get a quote from Trupanion Get a quote from Spot

Sources for this page (fetched October 2026)

General carrier rules (waits, age limits, pre-existing) come from official carrier pages. The full list of those sources is on what counts as pre-existing.