My dog has a small brown scaly lump. Could it be a wart or cancer?

Luckily no, this is a wart which is a benign skin growth. Many dogs get warts as they age and they are nothing to be overly concerned about unless they get very large or are in a location to be cut when dogs are getting groomed. If they enlarge then we recommend surgical removal. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for your dog.

Dogs can develop different types of skin growths/masses. This mass could be an adenoma or benign wart like skin growth, a true papilloma wart, or another type of growth. Your veterinarian might be able to tell what the mass is just by looking at it and/or feeling it, or might recommend taking a sample of cells using a needle and examining it under the microscope. If the mass is bleeding I'd recommend seeing your veterinarian sooner rather than later.

These types of lumps are usually due to a sebaceous adenoma, or wart. In both cases, they will often go away without any treatment, but have the potential to break open and bleed in this location. There is no way to tell for sure what is actually causing this from a picture though, so I recommend having your vet evaluate it for a more definitive diagnosis the next time he goes in for a visit. I hope that helps and all is well with Otis.

This looks like a benign wart that is very common in older dogs. Sometimes they scratch at them and cause some irritation which I think that is why there is some scabbing there. I would just monitor it for now and point it out to your vet at her next exam.

Yes, this does look like it could be a benign growth but unfortunately I cannot make a definitive diagnosis from a picture. Any suspicious lumps should be examined by the vet. The vet can perform a test called a fine needle aspirate on it. To do this, the vet sticks a small needle into the lump to get a sample of its cells, and examines the cells on a slide under a microscope. It's usually painless to the animal, and relatively quick to perform. Once the cause of the lump is diagnosed, the vet can discuss treatment options if needed. Give Charley's vet a call in the morning to make her an appointment. I hope this helps!

Hello. This does not look like an aggressive cancer, it actually looks more wart-like. But the only to know definitively is with a fine needle aspirate. The biggest criteria to remove a growth is malignancy, but even benign growths can become large enough to cause significant issues. If this is very slow growing & remains a nonproblem for Tiny, then I would not be inclined to remove it surgically. It may be a good candidate to remove with liquid nitrogen without needing anesthesia. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Teddy. Pink wart like growths are common in small breed dogs. If this is not the case, then a cyst is another possibility. In the later case, fluid or even a chunky material can sometimes be expressed from the bump. These are the most common scenarios given your picture. Skin cancer is possible in dogs, but less likely. The veterinarian will examine him and may collect a sample of cells to evaluate under the microscope. This can be done while you wait and give you an diagnosis. I hope this information helps!