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My dog has a growing, hard, bloody lump on its leg. What is it?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

I noticed about a month ago a small lump on my dogs leg. About a week ago it started to grow and it's now a hard quarter sized lump that is pinkish, bloody colored. I have attached a picture. Any clue what this may be

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4 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Massimo Orioles, DVM, Cert AVP, MRCVS

Veterinarian

Published on May 17th, 2017

This kind of lump/growth needs to be ideally assessed by your veterinarian to have a definitive and specific answer. Usually there are two ways your vet can do that a part from examining it directly during physical examination. A biopsy can be taken under local or general anesthetic, otherwise a smaller sample through a fine needle can be aspirated (this technique is called FNA= fine needle aspiration). Differentials include skin cysts, infections, benign or more sinister type of tumors. 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.

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    Answered By David Elbeze, DVM, MRCVS

    Veterinarian

    Published on February 11th, 2020

    This growth needs to be checked and analysed as there are many conditions and types of tumors that could look like that. take him to the vet, they will perform a fine needle aspiration on the growth and send it to the lab for analysis. when the result comes, the vet will advise what needs to be done according to the diagnosis.

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    Answered By Mara Howard, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on June 7th, 2018

    Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! From the pictures, it appears like Bosco has a dermal nodule on his leg. These can be benign (such as a skin tag), or something more concerning (such as a skin tumor). I would recommend having it evaluated by his regular veterinarian to determine if it is anything concerning, and come up with a treatment plan if needed. Good luck!

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    Answered By Stephanie Echols, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on July 1st, 2019

    Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! We cannot diagnose whether or not a mass/lump is cancerous or benign based on the way it looks. We need to submit cells from it to a pathologist to know for sure. This can be done by a needle aspirate or surgical removal. It could be a benign growth like a mole, or it could be something serious. I recommend having a vet take a look at Patch and discuss your options for diagnosis. I would recommend having it removed surgically because it is small now and in that location it will be hard to close if it grows. Good luck and kisses to Patch!

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