My dog has a breast lump, low energy, and black stool. What's wrong?

I would recommend that Linda see a vet. The lump may or may not be related to her other signs but vomitting and diarrhea with lethargy can become serious quickly in small breed dogs. Blood in her stool and brown vomitus indicates bleeding in her GI tract so she may be at risk of anemia as well as dehydration. She should be seen asap if she is still vomitting or lethargic and depressed. And mammary cancer is more likely to occur in unspayed females so the lump should be checked out as well. I hope Linda is feeling better soon.

Yes, I would be worried about Loca. In a senior dog, a large lump could potentially be a malignant tumor. Bloody nipples are also not normal, and she could have hurt herself or may have mammary tumors causing the bloody nipples. Best thing to do is have her seen by a vet in the morning. The vet can diagnose what is causing the lump and bloody nipples, and can discuss treatment options with you. Good luck, I hope this helps!

If the masses on the liver / spleen ruptured, I would expect her abdomen to be getting larger and her gums to be getting pale due to the hemorrhage. If she has black tarry stool, my concern is that the cancer is also somewhere in the GI tract. If clinically she is unchanged and doing ok, I would speak with the oncologist and see what the recommendations are in regards to this. The fact that there are cancerous changes evident on the liver and spleen, tells me that this is spreading, which is not good. However, that being said, these could be benign. I just worked on my friends dog who had a liver mass and splenic tumor in his dog. I surgically removed a liver lobe and the spleen and the dog is doing better than ever still and this was done about 6 months ago. There is no way to tell for sure whether or not these are cancerous masses until a biopsy is done or the masses are removed and sent out to the laboratory for testing. As long as Chewy is stable and doing the same, I would recommend speaking with the oncologist and see what their opinion is considering all of these changes. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Based on your description of the black stool, lethargy, and decreased appetite, I am concerned that June may be very ill. The black stool could be blood in the stool, which could be caused by parasites, change in diet, toxin ingestion, infectious viral diseases, blockage in the intestines caused by ingestion of a foreign body, or a mass/growth in the gastrointestinal tract. Please make an appointment to have June seen by a veterinarian as soon as possible, as blood in the stool can lead to anemia, and can be very dangerous if left untreated. In the mean time, if she is not eating well, you can try boiling boneless skinless chicken in water, shredding the chicken, and feeding her small amounts of the resulting chicken broth and cooked chicken once it has cooled. I recommend taking in a fecal sample from June to your vet as well, as that may aid them in making a diagnosis. Good luck, and I hope she feels better soon!

So sorry she is having these problems. Drinking and urinating more can be a sign of kidney disease, Cushing's disease, diabetes, Addison's disease, infections, thyroid disease, etc. The only way to know the cause is to have a vet run some bloodwork and a urinalysis. The lump could be a cyst, infection, benign or cancerous mass. A needle aspirate or biopsy may be necessary to diagnose. She really needs to be examined by a vet. Try to find a low cost clinic in your area or a vet that would take a payment plan. You could also apply for Care Credit which is a veterinary credit care. Hope you can find her the help that she needs.

Poor Talley sounds very ill at the moment! There are any number of things that could be causing her symptoms. This tumor could be malignant and may have spread, leading to her losing weight and being lethargic. The blood stools could also be cause by cancer, hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, eating something rotten, or a foreign body. The cause of the bloody stools could make her feel bad enough that she loses weight and is lethargic. Based on her combination of symptoms, the best thing to do is take her into a vet asap. The vet can diagnose what is causing her symptoms and can discuss potential treatment options for her. Good luck, I hope this helps!

Fluid in the abdomen is usually caused by either heart failure, low blood protein levels, or cancer. Blood work should be done to check protein levels. A follow up appointment with your veterinarian soon is important, and more work up should be done to identify the cause. Blood work, urinalysis, and ultrasound are the steps I would usually take is a case such as Major to find the problem and develop the best treatment options. Best of luck and I hope you find an answer soon. Thank you for using Pet Coach.