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My dog has a bloody black lump in her ear. Is it an emergency?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Medium (23 - 60lb) | Female | spayed | 10 months and 3 days old | 42 lbs

My dog has a bloody black lump on the inside of her ear flap. The vet saw it when it was very very small scab last time we were at the vet but I just noticed it was very large and black crusted. I am very concerned and the vet isn’t open until Tuesday. any idea what this could be and if I should take her to an emergency vet? Any thing helps :(

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH

Veterinarian, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist, Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner

Published on December 31st, 2017

The most common reason that we see black crusting like that is when there is a small wound or mass that is bleeding a little and the blood is black when it dries. If it is a mass and was very small before and larger now, then it may need to be surgically removed. Since it has been there for a while, it would not be considered an emergency and the emergency clinic would likely recommend you have your regular vet evaluate it. However, if it is actively bleeding and you can't get it to stop, then it is certainly worth a trip to the emergency clinic. So, unless it is actively bleeding or bothering Zoey, I would contact your vet next week to have them examine it and decide on a treatment plan. We see a number of benign masses in young dogs and some require surgery to remove while some will resolve on their own. Here is a link with more information on one of the benign masses that we can see in young dogs.
https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1676
Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

3Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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