My dog's paw has a bleeding, smelly growth. Is it serious?

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!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. There is no way of knowing what it is just based on its appearance. 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!

If he is scratching at it, I would recommend an elizabethan collar until you can get him to a veterinarian. I do recommend a veterinarian because the growth is most likely infected. At his age, it is important to consider health when deciding if you wanted to growth removed. The only way to stop this from ever happening again is removal. I would discuss if this is something that can be done with Eddie. The only way to see if the growth is concerning is also from removal and biopsy. Again, this should be discussed with your vet. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. There is no way of knowing what it is just based on its appearance. 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. This is not going to away on its own and needs attention. I recommend that you have him 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 Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. Judging from the mass and the fact that Gunner is a young dog, I would suspect that this is what we call a histiocytoma. These typically resolve on their own but can be surgically removed to help speed up the resolution of the mass. If it is continuing to grow and if it bothers him, I would recommend having this removed surgically and then send it out for further testing to make sure this is not a cancerous mass. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is possible that this is still cancer and perhaps the biopsy that was taken was not representative. It really may not be cancer and it may represent fibrosis or inflammation and scar tissue. I think it would be a good idea to consider getting larger biopsies to see if the diagnosis changes. If it does come back as cancer, this could be removed. Even if benign, your veterinarian could consider referring Milo to a board certified surgeon to see if there is surgical option to remove this even if benign for quality of life purposes. Good luck and best wishes!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. This could be just an infection though I am suspicious that there is a growth underneath causing this. There is no way of knowing what it is just based on its appearance. 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. This is severe and no home remedies are expected to improve this. 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!