My dog has a large, bleeding tumor on her leg. What should I do?

Poor guy. This does not appear to be just a lipoma (fatty tumor). I would highly recommend having Allie seen by your vet to get this tumor surgically removed and sent off for lab analysis to determine if this is a cancerous mass or a benign one. Hopefully it is benign and nothing to be worried about. The vet will likely place Allie on some antibiotics and pet friendly anti-inflammatory medication first to get the skin to calm down before surgical removal is done. But surgery is the best and often-times only option when a mass has gotten this large and has ulcerated. Until you can get her in, its best to clean this mass with Betadine diluted 50:50 with warm water to keep it from getting infected. Then rinsing with sterile saline from your local pharmacy. I hope that Allie's mass resolves soon! Best wishes and take care.

This looks like a very large tumor that has become necrotic and infected. When a tumor gets this large it starts to outgrow its blood supply and then portions of it die off and becomes necrotic. This tumor needs to be removed because it will not likely heal at this point. I would recommend taking Luigi to the vet as soon as possible to get him scheduled for surgery. Surgery at this age with such a bad infection does have some risks but I believe at this point the benefits of removing the tumor outweigh the risks of anesthesia. Good luck with your little guy.

Unfortunately there isn't really any way to shrink or remove a tumor without surgery, I have had some veterinarians have some luck in helping to stop bleeding from tumors with a Chinese medicine called yunnan baiyao. I would ask your vet if they feel this would be useful for your dog if the tumor is bleeding.

This can be one of two things: 1) a small abscess that has ruptured. 2) a small tumor that did not have enough room to grow and therefore started to ulcerate and finally ruptured. Since it is on a leg and deep, you should have your veterinarian have a look at it, to see whether any vital structures are involved and whether it is a tumor that needs to be removed.

Your picture came through. Romeo has a major mass that is ulcerated and looks to be infected. He needs to see a vet right away for proper wound management, pain medication and antibiotics. This is a massive mass that cannot be managed at home without the help of your local vet. Once the infection is controlled then it can be discussed whether this mass can be debulked or not. If it cannot then your vet may recommend amputation of the leg. I am sorry your pet has such a massive tumor and I hope everything works out ok for your pet Romeo. Best wishes and take care.

I'm sorry Pogo has this going on. Many things can cause what you describe, but I am suspicious that it might be an infected and now ruptured tumor. This could be benign or malignant, but should be evaluated quickly. Your veterinarian may have to treat the infection before they can diagnose what the lump may be. In the mean time warm compresses may help it drain and make Pogo feel better. Keep him indoors and away from flies or the wound will be full of maggots in a day. Good luck to both of you! I hope he improves quickly.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question about Bobo. This bump could be a cyst that has now ruptured, or it would be a benign or malignant growth. It may be bleeding because he's been picking at it. Apply gentle pressure to stop the bleeding, then put a bandage on it to protect it. Take him into the vet in the morning to get it diagnosed and treated. Best of luck.