German Shepherds Forum banner

Think there is a problem?

1483 Views 4 Replies 5 Participants Last post by  K9Kaos
My White GSD just recently started to develop a knot over his right eye. It kinda of hard and there is as much hair there but it is really small like the size of my pinky tip. I doesn't bother him and it doesn't hurt him. He still plays like crazy with the other dogs. What could this possibly be?
1 - 5 of 5 Posts
Welcome to the forums! How old is your dog? When my golden/border was 13 she developed a couple of growths one on the cheek, one was on her eyelid. My pup kept playing with her and ripped it open, the only option for healing was to have it surgically removed. A year later she is fine and the growths haven't re-appeared. I would have a vet check it, just to be safe.
If it were me, I'd schedule a visit to your vet. Could be a number of things, but warrants a professional opinion.
How old is your dog? Does the knot move around, across the surface or is it deep down by the skull?

If your dog is older and the bump moves around a lot, and is kind of soft/squishy feeling (it's not hard, like a rock), it's *likely* a fibroma, a fatty tumor. These are *usually* harmless. If your dog is young, the knot doesn't move much or it feels hard, well, it could be more serious.

There is only one way to know for sure. As Anne says, bring your dog to the vet. Your vet will do what's called a needle aspiration (as long as the knot isn't so teeny tiny that the needle is too big for it), and will draw out some of the material of the tumor, which will then be sent to a lab for further analysis. The aspiration isn't as painful as it sounds, and you'll know exactly what you're dealing with. Fatty tumors often aren't a big thing. Older dogs get them often with usually no ill effects.

As Onyx points out, these tumors are actually cysts that can burst on their own, usually with no ill effects (although they're kind of gross when they burst), as long as we ensure that the open wounds don't then get infected. But often they just exist as lumps forever.

But depending on where they're at, a growth can be a problem just by its location, even if it's a simple "harmless" tumor. (Being situated by the eye does seem to me, as a layperson, to be one of those locations that might be problematic.) That's why I always bring my dog in. And sooner is better than later.
See less See more
I'd get it checked by a vet.

My oldest (possibly a dobe mix??, 9 years old) had a growth develop over her left eye.
It was fairly firm to touch, but not warm or inflammed.

It needed to be removed surgically.
(began to bleed a week after another vet said it was "nothing to worry about"
)
Biopsy was negative, thank goodness!

That was 2 years ago, and she's had no problems with it since...

Let us know how the pupper is doing!
See less See more
1 - 5 of 5 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top