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What are these red, smelly, rapidly growing lumps on my dog's groin?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Husky | Male | neutered | 8 years and 6 months old | 80 lbs

Our dog has a two growths near his groin. They’re red and came very rapidly. They also begin to smell really bad this evening. He licks them and has a slight limp but he still lets us touch them. We would like to know what it is.

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2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on March 20th, 2019

Oh, those do look bad! This could be malignant lumps. Unfortunately in a dog Toby's age, there's always a chance any lump could be malignant. They could also be cysts or from a skin infection. Any suspicious lumps should be examined by the vet. The vet can perform a test called a fine needle aspirate on it. To do this, the vet sticks a small needle into the lump to get a sample of its cells, and examines the cells on a slide under a microscope. It's usually painless to the animal, and relatively quick to perform. Once the cause of the lump is diagnosed, the vet can discuss treatment options if needed. Give his vet a call in the morning to make him an appointment. Best of luck.

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    Answered By Kevin Sanada, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on August 6th, 2017

    Red spots could be one of a couple different things: 1) A blood blister - usually get these from some sort of pinching or biting to the area. 2) Tumor - there a a couple of different tumors that will look red. The severity depends on the type of tumor. Your description of the red spot going away and turning into a bump is not quite clear to me, but I'll assume you mean that it is still red and is now raised. If that is the case, then it is most likely a tumor; especially since there is more than one. Don't panic just yet though. There is a type of red tumor that we commonly see on the abdomen and around the groin that will spread to different areas of the skin, but usually does not spread to internal organs. If you notice that these bumps are growing and spreading, then my best recommendation is to have a veterinarian do an exam. They will be able to take a sample of one of these bumps and determine exactly what it is. If it is a tumor, then the sooner you discover it, the better chance it has at being successfully treated.

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