My dog has a white mole on his side. Is it something to worry about?

Hello. This is probably one of the many benign skin nodules dogs can get. If it has been relatively quiet for the past several years, it is not likely a something neoplastic or of great concern. If it grows, changes color again, or begins to bleed, then it might be a good idea to just have it removed. Some benign growths can turn cancerous, although this is pretty rare. Do show this to your veterinarian at your next visit & thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

I, too, hope they are just moles, but it is just like a spot that pops up on a human - it is ALWAYS best to have them checked out by a doctor. Your vet can examine these new lumps, and may collect a small sample of cells to be examined under a microscope for diagnosis. If there are any signs that the cells may be cancerous, then your vet will likely recommend that they be removed and sent in for official diagnosis.

You may not need to do anything about it. It could simply be a benign tumor and it won't need to be removed unless it's bothering Beau or becomes bigger. I would have it checked out by a vet to be safe, as there is always a chance any bump could be a malignant tumor in a senior dog. I would have him seen by a vet sometime over the next week. I hope this helps!

I do not see any photos attached to your question. If you would want to resubmit your question with the photos attached a Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach expert can help further. But just in general a skin mass could be benign (skin tag, etc) or malignant. Unfortunately without some sort of sampling (cytology or biopsy to collect cells) there is not a way to know for sure based on appearance. Small size, no growth, lack of ulceration, and freely moveable nature are certainly favorable characteristics. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! As dogs age, they can develop a variety of skin tumors, some benign (non-cancerous) and others cancerous. I do recommend all abnormal growths be evaluated by a veterinarian to determine if they are an issue or not. Many of these can be diagnosed with an analysis of a needle sample. Good luck!

Hello, sorry to hear about Nala. Most often, those slow growing moles are typically benign, just that some may grow larger than others. However, rarely, some of these moles may become or turn into something more aggressive. Dark colored bumps can be melanomas or hemangiosarcomas amongst other types of tumors. The best way to tell wether this bump is something you should worry about is to have it sampled or removed before it gets too big. Schedule an appointment with your veterinarian to have the lump sampled and potentially removed. Once removed it can be submitted for biopsy to confirm that it is either benign or malignant. Hope this helps and best of luck.

Anytime a new mass is noticed, I always recommend having it evaluated to see what it is and if anything needs to be done about it. Unfortunately, we often can't tell anything about a mass by just looking at it. Your vet can perform a simple test called a fine needle aspirate where they use a small needle to collect some cells from the mass, then look at them under the microscope. They may even need to send the cells to the lab for a pathologist to examine them, so we know what the mass is. If it is benign, you might not need to do anything about the mass at all, but if they see cells that worry them, they might recommend removing the mass. Since Qbert has scratched the mass, I think it is certainly worth having your veterinarian examine it again and evaluate a sample to make sure that it is benign. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.