Do any dog breeds never get dangerous tumors or cancer?

I’m so sorry you lost both parents - cancer sucks! Golden Retrievers do seem to be a little more likely to develop certain types of cancers than other dogs (particularly lymphoma and hemangiosarcoma), but keep in mind any dog can develop cancer at any time. If you love Golden Retrievers, get one! Otherwise I think a mixed breed might be your best bet to avoid hereditary cancers.

First off, I'm very sorry that you had to put your dog to sleep this week. Please accept my condolences for your loss. As for Eveegrace, dogs who aren't spayed have a 25% chance of developing mammary tumors (breast cancer). With mammary tumors, 50% are malignant and 50% are benign. Unfortunately it's too late to do anything to prevent it from happening. If you had spayed her before her first heat, then she would only have a 0.8% chance of developing mammary tumors later in life. Even if you spay her now, she still has a 25% chance of developing them. You can prevent future dogs of yours from getting it by getting them spayed before their first heat. In terms of Eveegrace, the best thing you can do is monitor the area for signs of swelling and tumors. Any lump you find, take her into the vet as soon as possible to get it diagnosed. If it's malignant, have it removed surgically if possible. I'm sorry I don't have better news for you. Again, please accept my condolences for your loss.

Any dogs can get any type of cancer. Boxers are prone to Mast Cell Tumors, Lumphoma, Hemangiosarcoma and Osteosarcoma. Cancer can affect the dog at any age however it typically affects middle age and senior dogs. Lastly, cancer is a genetic disease and there is not a great way to prevent it. It is important to make sure to feed a high-quality dog food that is packed full of antioxidants. I recommend Royal Canin. They even make a diet for boxers! Also make sure to get your pup checked out anytime something seems abnormal. Also get any skin masses or tumors examined by the veterinarian. Early detection is key. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

I'm glad to help you! No, not from head injuries. For reasons still unknown, almost half of all gliomas occur in brachycephalic or "squash-nosed" breeds such as Boston terriers, bulldogs and boxers, so there may be a genetic component that has not been discovered yet. I hope this helps!

While most mammary rumors are benign adenomas some can be more malignant carcinomas. Even the benign tumors should be removed since they tend to grow over time and can cause inflammation of the mammary gland. If your vet feels Shadow is not a good candidate for anesthesia you could always ask about referral to a speciality hospital that may be better equipped for higher risk pets. If surgery is completely out of the question and you’re interested in comfort care you and your vet could simply monitor Shadow for signs of pain or inflammation. Mammary carcinomas tend to spread to the lungs so you should also watch to see if her cough worsens or if she is having trouble breathing.

Cancer is not contagious, not at all. You may be thinking of canine transmissible venereal tumour, but it's not common at all. The presence of it in the US is less than 0.5%. Now if the dog had this, then yes it's contagious but I highly doubt the dog has this because it's so rare. Cancers like pancreatic cancer, mast cell tumors, liver cancer, etc are not contagious.

I'm so sorry! Unfortunately Golden Retrievers are a breed that tend to have a genetic predisposition to cancer, and while it is certainly not common to develop cancer at a young age I would not say it is unheard of. In veterinary medicine we don't have the funding to research and collect quite as much information as for people and so I don't think there are numbers out there that would tell us how often 3 year old Golden Retrievers are diagnosed with cancer that affects the lungs vs. lung lobe torsion. Hopefully you'll have a diagnosis soon, and I'll hope for the best for Maya.