My dog's ear lump has brown fluid. What does the vet look for?

This may be a cyst, or a small abscess, or an irritated tumor. Since Snoopy is an older dog, I recommend having this swelling looked at by a vet sooner rather than later, to make sure it's not a cancerous tumor. It probably is just a cyst, and nothing to worry about, but the only way to know for sure is to have your vet look at the swelling and potentially take a small sample of it with a needle to look at cells under the microscope for a diagnosis. This is called "fine needle aspirate and cytology." Hope that helps!

Hello! 'Lumps' like this are typically either made of tissue or cystic and filled with debris/fluid- like a cyst. Sometimes appearance of the way they feel can help determine between the two, but other times the only way to know is to have it sampled and examined under the microscope. This would also allow you to know if it was a lump to be concerned about (ie will it spread or cause other problems) or a benign growth. If it is small and has not changed over the past few months to years then it increases the chance that it is a cyst or benign growth although, again, the only way to know for sure would be to have it sampled! I hope this helps!

If this just showed up, I would recommend having a veterinarian take a look at this. It may be a type of tumor that needs to be removed called a mast cell tumor. I would err on the side of caution and have the veterinarian look at this and perform some additional testing on it. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

This looks like a normal old dog skin cyst that has developed. These are usually bengin and stem from the hair follicle. I wouldn't be too concerned if it stays this color. If the color changes to pink or red, then I would recommend having it examined by your vet and tested to ensure it isn't cancerous. However, if it stays like this there is little reason for concern. Thanks for visiting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach about your concerns for Mr. Stitch. : ) Best wishes and take care.

It would be best to have it looked at as soon as you can him examined. It may just be a cyst but it could also be an abscess or a tumor. I'm glad it is not bothering him but that doesn't necessarily mean it's not something worse than just a cyst.

That does look to be a mass. A mass is a collection of cells and can be benign (inflammation, cyst, some tumors) or a malignant tumor. Given the age of your dog this may be a histiocytoma, but as many skin tumors can look alike the best plan to confirm this is for your vet to perform a needle aspirate for cytology. That way you will know for sure if this can be monitored or if it needs any therapy. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

This looks like it could be filled with fluid, and would technically be considered a cyst, but the only way to know for sure is for your vet to withdraw cells from it with a needle and examine them under a microscope. This is called fine needle aspirate and cytology. The spot on his tongue is likely a pigment spot, and harmless, but without photos that's just a guess.