My young female dog has a soft, swollen area on her breast. What is it?

In an older dog a swelling like this around the teat is most often a mammary lump. 50% are benign and 50% cancerous in dogs. They can be closely linked to hormones hence the fluctuation in size. Other causes would be mastitis or mammary development, but this photo does look like a lump. It can be tested by the vet to know what sort it is.

It is difficult to tell what is going on with Panthera based on the picture alone. The lump in the picture almost looks wet, so I would be concerned about a potential cyst or infected gland. Since she is unspayed, I also worry about potential mammary cancer, which we see more commonly in intact females. It can present as firm masses under the mammary glands. Dogs can also get benign masses of the mammary tissue as well. The best course of action would be to take her to your regular vet to have them evaluate her. She may need a fine needle aspirate of the lump. This is when we take a sample of cells from the area and look at it under the microscope to try to determine what the underlying cause is. It is no more painful than a vaccine and can give a lot of information as to if anything further needs to be done for Panthera or not.

Unspayed dogs can be prone to mammary tumors, which causes swelling and pain. Fifty percent of these mammary tumors are malignant, so you will need to take Mocha into a vet first thing in the morning to have this examined and diagnosed. Once the cause is found, the vet can discuss treatment options with you. Best of luck.

Hello there! It looks like Princess has a mammary gland problem. What is causing the swelling should be determined at the vet's office. It could be mastitis (an infection of the mammary gland), a cyst (a fluid filled sac), or possibly mammary cancer. At the vet, they will give Princess a complete physical exam, and most likely they will take a small sample of cells from the mass with a small needle to look at under the microscope. This is called a fine needle aspirate, or FNA. The FNA will help the vet determine the cause of the mass and decide it's treatment. An infection may require antibiotics, a cyst may require regular draining, and a tumor may require surgical removal. Mammary tumors in unspayed dogs have the potential of being malignant (the kind of cancer that multiplies and spreads), so they may want to biopsy the mass to rule this out, should it be removed. The brown discharge and milk production may be from a condition called false pregnancy. This occurs when the body is responding as if it has puppies, but it in fact does now. This usually occurs soon after a heat cycle. It is also possible that she has an infection in the uterus, called pyometra, which can also cause abnormal discharge. This also requires a visit to the vet as it could be life threatening. I am suspicious of this due to her straining to go to have a bowel movement, as an enlarged, infected uterus can put pressure on the colon and make a dog feel like they have to go. You should make an appointment with your vet as soon as possible to have Princess checked out. Good luck, and I hope she feels better soon!

Hello. This is probably benign mammary hyperplasia, but you do want to have this looked at, especially if she has been spayed. If she has not been spayed & has never been with a male dog, then this could be related to a false pregnancy. Also, has she been in contact with anyone who is on hormone replacement therapy? Sometimes, this can rub off on a pet & cause mammary enlargement. If no outside cause can be found, then have her spayed if that has not already been done, & submit a biopsy to see exactly what is going on with the tissue. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

If a mammary gland swells up within an hour the cause is usually either trauma, or an insect bite or even a snake bite. If the swelling has been there for a longer time or developed over a longer time, then this could be a cyst or an abscess or a mammary tumor. Observe it, and if it does not get smaller over the next 48 hours, take Baby to your veterinarian for an exam.

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