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Bumps On Dog Skin

ALL BUMPS ON DOG SKIN DO NOT MEAN CANCER
By Tess Thompson

While moving your hand over your dog’s coat you might occasionally feel a bump under the skin. Chances are that if you have been able to locate one, a veterinarian will be able to find a few more since he is skilled and trained. Dog skin problems like bumps in the skin is as common an occurrence as feline acne and feline hair loss. Even though these conditions are common, they should not be treated carelessly. Such problems should not be considered as minor conditions of pet hair and coat disorders like canine and cat dandruff.

But spotting a bump on your dog need not be a cause of panic also. In most cases, bumps turn out to be harmless mass of fatty tissue. Such non-cancerous lumps like cysts, warts, infected hair follicles and swellings filled with blood can cause discomfort to the dog. But they are localized skin problems that have little impact on the overall health of the dog.

There are many reasons why these bumps appear on dog skin. Sebaceous cysts form due to plugged oil glands under the skin. Cysts that are a combination of dead cells, sweat or clear fluid often disappear on their own.

Warts are benign growths caused by a certain virus. These are usually seen in small dogs and normally appear on lips, tongue, eyelids and the inner lining of the mouth. Long lasting cysts that develop slowly and cause a fait amount of irritation may need to be incised.

Lipomas are fatty tissue tumors that are mostly benign and harmless. They just appear in the skin and then refuse to go away for a long time. But they can increase in size and cause increasing discomfort to your pet. The decision to remove it surgically should be taken in consultation with the veterinarian.

Other tumors that are normally benign include:

Granulomas – These tumors are composed of granulation tissue and appear as multiple nodules of varying size. This tumor generally appears as a reaction to injury, inflammation or infection and is the body’s natural reaction to foreign substances.

Fibroma – Fibroma is an uncommon benign tumor of a solitary polyp type nodule. It usually occurs on legs, groin, or sides

Follicular cyst – This is the most common of all the cysts. It usually develops on the head, neck and trunk. The characteristics of this tumor are that it is solitary, round, appears above or just beneath the skin, may have a bluish color and is full of thick yellowish gray fluid.

Epidermal inclusion cysts – This cyst is also the body’s reaction to infection or allergy. The cysts are very small, up to 2 inch diameter nodules, and often contain unusual amount of thick greasy fluids.

But this does not mean that tumor can be neglected. There are many cancerous tumors that one needs to watch out for.

Squamous cell carcinoma is a common malignant tumor. It is mostly seen in dogs that are exposed to sun or have long lasting irritations in the skin. The bumps that this cancer causes take the shape of a cauliflower or crusted ulcers.

Basal cell tumors are cancerous and slow in growth and metastasize very rarely. These are single nodules filled with fluid and can be seen in head, neck and shoulders of adult dogs.

Fibrosarcoma is a fast growing and invasive firm tumor, which can ulcerate. These tend to occur at vaccination or injection sites.

Epitheliotropic lymphoma is a rare carcinoma of T lymphocytes and is generally diagnosed in older dogs. It takes varied shapes - itchy and scaly redness, ulcers with loss of pigment, single or multiple nodules or oral ulcers.

Hemangiosarcoma is a malignant and invasive tumor that has a reddish black nodule and normally appears on chest or abdomen of the dog.

Histiocytosis is a condition of cancerous tumors that can cause extensive hair loss. They have the capacity to affect the entire body system of the dog.

All bumps should be investigated as there is always a possibility that a harmless looking bump or eruption may be cancerous. Careful veterinarians aspirate the tumor fluid or remove a piece of tissue of any tumor they come across. A pathological examination eliminates any doubt whatsoever regarding malignancy.

Ideally any tumor should be removed surgically. However, if surgery is not an option that you would like to consider for a benign tumor, then a strict watch needs to be kept on the progress of the tumor and action needs to be taken on first sign of change.


References:
http://nzymes.com/Articles/dog_skin_hair_problems.htm
http://thepetcenter.com/exa/lumps.html
http://peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1638&articleid=424