My dog has a gray, barnacle-like growth on her lip. Is it serious?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. Even young dogs can develop growths. This can be a viral wart or another tumor type like a mast cell tumor, histiocytoma, among many others. This is often differentiated by a test called a fine needle aspirate (FNA) which is a pain free, inexpensive and easy procedure which in most cases will help reach a diagnosis. Sometimes a biopsy is needed for a definitive diagnosis. I recommend that you have her evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. I am really hoping for something benign. Good luck and have a good night!

This looks like an oral papilloma, which is essentially just a wart. I would not be too worried about it being anything other than that, but the only way to tell for sure is to remove it and send it to the lab for testing. I recommend having your vet evaluate her to make the diagnosis. Oral papillomas tend to come in bunches, so I would expect for more to be seen. However, they will go away on their own in a couple of months. Below is a link to more information about oral papillomas. https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/oral-tumors-papillomas-and-sarcoids I hope that helps and all is well with Gemma.

It's difficult to see the growth clearly in the picture, it's not urgent but it will need to be checked physically by your vet, he will likely want to take a small needle sample to send to the lab for analysis this way he will be able to tell you what it is and what treatment is needed.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. There is no way of knowing for sure without an examination though this represents a reason to seek veterinary care. This is usually determined with an examination and a fine needle aspirate (FNA) or a biopsy. Treatment depends on the findings up to that point. I recommend you have Panda evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Good luck and have a good day!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. This is often differentiated by a test called a fine needle aspirate (FNA) which is a pain free, inexpensive and easy procedure which in most cases will help reach a diagnosis. Sometimes a biopsy is needed for a definitive diagnosis. I recommend that you have her evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. I am really hoping for something benign. Good luck and have a good day!

Hi there and thank you for using Pet Coach! From the pictures you provided and knowing that Klaus is young, what you are seeing appears to be what we call a papilloma. These benign masses are caused by contact with the papilloma virus, usually picked up from another infected dog. The good news is that these masses typically resolve on their own and require no specific treatment. Sometimes these do not go away and need to be removed or are getting too large and become an eye sore or catch on objects and bleed. In these cases, sometimes we will prescribe an antibiotic such as Azithromycin which has been shown to reduce the size and even resolve some papillomas. Most of the time, however, these masses will turn gray or purple in color, shrink and then fall off. If you are concerned about the mass then I would get this examined by your vet. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any further questions or concerns. I am also available via phone or text consultation if needed.

Hello there, This appears to be a small skin growth on Niklaus' chin. I would recommend having him seen by his regular veterinarian this week for an exam. They can take a small needle aspirate of the lump (fine needle aspirate) and examine the cells to tell you more information. There are two main things that I am suspicious of, though it may be something else entirely: histioctyoma or mast cell tumor. Histiocytomas are a benign and generally self resolving type of growth. Mast cell tumors are unfortunately a type of cancer and he may need surgical removal of the mass as well as more testing. I will hope for a benign finding for Niklaus growth. Best of luck to you two.