My dog has a red lump in his ear and shakes his head. What is it?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Based on the pictures, it appears that Nikko has a growth or a mass at the entrance of his ear canal. It could be normal tissue that is overgrown due to inflammation, it could be an fluid filled swelling (seroma or abscess) or it could be mass. Masses can be benign or cancerous. If he is shaking his head and the ear is sensitive he could also have an ear infection. The growth could be contributing to an infection. Most ear infections are due to overgrowth of yeast and/or bacteria. Your Vet can look in his ear and look at a sample of the ear wax under the microscope to diagnose an infection. Due to the growth and the possible ear infection I think it would be best to have Nikko examined by your Vet. I hope this helps and I wish you and Nikko the best!

Hello. Because of this lesions' change in size & color, I would recommend just having it removed. It looks like a melanoma, but would need histopathology to definitively diagnose it. It is small so removal should be pretty easy. This would be a good time to have your veterinarian take a good look deep into Moka's ears. You may not see any infection, but there could be inflammation or even a foreign body like a grass awn down near the ear drum. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Red. I recommend that he sees his veterinarian. He could have an ear infection causing the red bumps. This is typically accompanied by shaking of the head, scratching the ears and discharge coming from the ears. If this is not the case, an allergic reaction could be to blame. His veterinarian will examine him and determine the best course of treatment for him. I hope this information helps!

Thanks for sending there photo of Isha. From the photo the bump looks like a cyst but I think new lumps and bumps should always be investigated by a veterinarian. They can examine her and her ear and potentially take a small aspirated sample of the bump to look at it under a microscope or send to a pathologist. This is the way to rule out whether it is a tumor or not.

This lump/bump/growth should be ideally examined by your local vet to have a diagnosis established. Your vet may want to perform an FNA (fine needle aspiration) or a biopsy to sample the bump and determine its underlying nature. Differentials would include skin cysts, infections, benign or more malignant type of tumors. 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!

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.

Thank you for the picture and clarification. This looks like it could be an aural hematoma, which is when fluid gets trapped between the layers of the ear. This is usually a sign of an ear infection. I'd have this checked out by a vet.