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Why is my dog breathing weird, squinting, and has a lump on her side?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Chihuahua | Female | 9 years and 9 months old | 99 lbs

my dog has been having trouble breathing always does some wierd noise and lately her eyes have gotten small its like she is squinting her eyes alot and she has a someone what big bump on her side with small balls on it

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Jennifer Summerfield, DVM CPDT-KA

Veterinarian, Certified Dog Trainer

Published on March 25th, 2018

Poor Canela! I'm afraid these things all together don't really add up to any particular illness. Difficulty breathing can be caused by lots of different things including heart disease, collapsing trachea, bronchitis, a respiratory infection, or even some type of cancer. Squinting is often a sign of eye pain caused by conjunctivitis, glaucoma, or some other eye problem. The lump on her side could be a benign skin growth, or a malignant tumor - I'm afraid there's no way to know just by looking. I would recommend taking Canela to the vet for an exam as soon as you are able to. He/she can check each of these issues and may recommend blood work, chest x-rays, or other diagnostic testing to help determine what's wrong and see what kind of treatment is needed.

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