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My dog has a skin bump. Is it a tick, skin tag, or something serious?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Akita | Male | 7 years and 5 months old | 60 lbs

Hi I have just discovered something on my dogs skin. Not to sure to as what is it. Possible a tick or skin tag. As this is what it looks like. If you could give me your opinion of be grateful

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Laura Johnson VMD

Veterinarian

Published on July 9th, 2017

Hi, I'm Dr. Johnson! Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. It's great that you posted pictures because they can be very helpful. The only thing I can't tell from the picture is where the skin bump is located on Arny's body. If it is on his belly it could be an irregular nipple. Otherwise to me it doesn't appear to be a tick. Skin tags are more dangly. It looks like a dermal (on top of the skin) bump. There are many types of skin bumps that can affect dogs- a lot are harmless: skin tags, hair follicle cysts, sebaceous adenomas, etc. And some are more concerning. Sadly a lot of the time we can't tell from just looking at them. If it suddenly appeared or grows rapidly, having it aspirated by your Veterinarian can give you a better idea of what it might be. An aspirate is a quick procedure where your vet uses a needle and syringe to suck cells from the bump. Then slides are usually sent to the lab for a pathologist to look at. If it comes back concerning then it could be removed. I hope I could help! Have a great day!

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