Why is my female dog's nipple lumpy and painful after C-section?

It could be that Nova is suffering from mastitis, which is an infection of the mammary glands. This would be painful to her and would cause her to be lethargic. Unfortunately there are no OTC pain medications you can give her, as many human ones are toxic to dogs and can be fatal if given. She needs to see a vet immediately. Mastitis is fatal without treatment, and if she is in a lot of pain, she needs veterinary care right away. Please take her into an ER vet clinic; if there isn't one in your area, there will be a vet on call for emergencies. The information to reach that vet is found on a clinic's answering machine or website. Good luck, I hope this helps!

It could be mastitis but it is hard to tell from the photos. Usually mastitis is warm to the touch and the teat is red/swollen/painful and there may be yellowish/green discharge. You can do warm compresses on it if you think it is mastitis to see if that will help but being that she is pregnant it may be best to have your vet check it out. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

If she is not spayed the number one reason for swollen teats is mammary (breast) cancer. If she recently had puppies then it could be severe mastitis. Either way this is serious. Your vet cannot drain these. I have no idea what they would possibly be referring to. If this is cancer, they have to be surgically removed. Sometimes the cancer is benign. Sometimes it is malignant and will spread to other organs (mainly the lungs). Regardless, the only way to potentially cure this is surgery. ( https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/mammary-tumors-in-dogs-malignant ) If it is mastitis, then she should respond to antibiotics, anti-inflammatories and warm compresses (or cabbage leaf compresses). ( https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/mastitis-in-dogs ) Please go back to your vet to discuss this or get a second opinion from another vet. This can be fatal.

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear about Princess. I would advise taking Princess to your veterinarian. It's possible that she is going through a false pregnancy (pseudopregnancy) if you are sure that she didn't get bred by a male dog. Dogs often get mammary enlargement and will lactate when they are in a false pregnancy. Your veterinarian can gather a history and assess Princess. They may want to x-ray or ultrasound her to confirm that she is pregnant or not if she was out of your sight within the past 2 months or so. A false pregnancy usually resolves without treatment but it's also possible that she is developing some mild mastitis from the mammary enlargement. Your vet can advise you on any treatment that might be needed. Good luck with Princess

Hi and thanks for your request. The one with red liquid may be affected by a mastitis, which is an inflammation/infection of the mammary gland. A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential to confirm these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Antibiotics may be needed. Other care recommended for the bitch may include hydration, warm compresses using towels or cabbage leaves, and frequent expression of milk from the infected gland by hand. This alleviates discomfort and swelling while also encouraging blood flow. Hand-milking should be performed every six hours. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Absolutely keep nursing. In fact try to make the puppies use that nipple the most. Also warm water compress and massage can help too. I would also encourage you to have her evaluated by your veterinarian as soon as possible as she may need antibiotic therapy. Best of luck and thank you for using Pet Coach.

Poor girl. It looks like she has a severe allergic skin reaction and secondary bacterial infection of her skin. I wouldn't suspect her c-section and incision site are the cause of this. However, to get rid of this infection and help control her allergic reaction, she will need to see your vet for prescription medications. Until you can get her seen, it is best to clean these areas with Betadine diluted 50:50 with warm water or better yet Chlorhexidine solution 2 or 3% diluted until a really light blue mixture and then rinsed with sterlie saline. Allow either the Betadine or Chlorhex solution to stay on the skin for 3-5 mins before rinsing with the saline. Once at the vet you can then get her on much needed antibiotics to fully resolve this infection. I do hope that Lola's skin infection and allergies resolve soon! Best of luck moving forward and take care.