Should I be worrying about anal glands

[Fbsake]

My dog (4) did a normal poop (sorry! May as well get straight into it!!) this morning then this afternoon she seemed a bit off, and had an upset stomach.
At that point I noticed that her anal gland on one side was inflamed.
She’s never had an issue with them before.

Since then she’s been really subdued, however she’d had such a busy day before that, that to be honest I’d expect her to sleep the rest of the day anyway, so this can be explained away.
I’ve done a hot compress, and fed her some rice for her stomach and some weetabix for fibre.
I really just want to know how worried I should be - is this something I should give some time to rectify itself. Can I wait until Tuesday to call the vet?
Or do i need to panic and call the emergency vet tonight/tomorrow?

She’s not scooting, smelly or even paying that much attention to it, the only reason I know is that poops seem a bit uncomfortable and I can see it’s a bit inflamed and red.
Thank you! I’m a hypochondriac for myself and don’t know if I need to be panicking for her.

I know this is late reply but Apple peel also really help firm things up for them and bran flakes so she may be able to sort it out herself. If it's infected though will need vet

Thank you! Definitely going to up the fibre in her diet so this is less likely to happen again, but not really sure what to do about it today.
It’s a bit swollen and it’s come up more since last night, but again now sure if it’s worth calling emergency vets over it??

I have a very small dog (3.5Kg ) I have managed to express the anal glands when they were blocked. (It was during a strict lockdown and getting to the vet was going to be difficult)
I watched a few YouTube videos and after placing a warm compress on it I gently massaged it on the outside and it popped almost immediately. I then placed some gentle pressure on it and drained out the remaining fluid. I watched the dog carefully for the next 72 hours to ensure that there was no signs of infection. I also increased the fibre in her diet. My dog seemed to feel better almost immediately.

Thank you @pippyloo123 I’ve called the vet and they’ve advised they’re only taking emergencies. As she’s eating drinking and going to the toilet still and seems mostly ok in herself, she isn’t one, but just to keep an eye on her.

My worry was if it bursts i don’t want to cause any damage to her, or risk infection or long term problems and at I didn’t know at what point it becomes an emergency - I suppose I wouldn’t go to a&e for a swollen gland on myself for example.

I am feeling very guilty that I hadn’t realised she wasn’t already getting enough fibre though.

I understand your concern about expressing the glands yourself. I had little choice as we were in a strict lockdown(not Uk) and I was working crazy hours as a nurse.
I kind of felt that given the situation that I would give it a try and then try to get an appointment with the vet the if necessary.
Anal glands are not like the glands in humans that swell when we are sick. They are more like little sacks of fluid that have a small opening to release the fluid to lubricate the faeces when the dog goes to the toilet. They sit at either side of the rectum at 4 and 8.
I placed gentle pressure with my index finger on the side that was blocked and the fluid released almost immediately. There was no blood in the fluid, though it was foul smelling and dark. I could see that my dog was relieved almost immediately. It was quite easy though as she is such a small dog so is easy to handle.
I am a nurse and have worked with quite sick people so perhaps that gave me the confidence to give it a try and watch for infection or signs of illness afterwards.