Dog skin tag changed anyone else had this ?

[Joanna8899]

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My 11 year old border collie had a skin tag attached by a thin stalk it was bleeding a little like she had scratched it accidently then she was locking it hopefully I can attach photos the tag looked to have died butter another lump on the top she' going to vets tomorrow but I'm worried it' turned into something else

 

[Dinky Dillon]

Hopefully it's nothing, but you are doing the right thing getting your vet to check it.

Let us know how she get on.

 

[Joanna8899]

Thanks for ur reply really worried about her it' gone from a normal skin tag to looking like that but I'm thinking its got infected from her catching it and thats why it formed this lump and her skin tag has come off rather than it turning into something else either way it will probably be removed by vet but is a worry

 

[leashedForLife]

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By any chance, did U SAVE the tag that came off? - the bit that detached?
that might be important, as it may need to be sent off to a pathologist. If U tossed it in the trash, i'd don disposable gloves & get it out, then bag it in a ziplock bag, & i'd stick it in the refrigerator, labeled & DATED - when it came off.
Fingers X'd it's still around, & hasn't been picked-up by the garbage truck, as yet.

Trauma can cause skin changes; so can sun exposure, age, etc - any time a lump or mole changes size, color, texture, it's best to get to the vet [or for humans, to the Dr].

It's hard to tell on the photo, WHERE was the lump?
With longer hair above & minimal hair below, i'm guessing mammary area? - if so, about 50% of tumors on a dog's chest are benign, but the other half are malignant.
It's always best, whether the dog is M or F, to remove any chest mass, even when it's small, & get it checked by a pathologist; by the time symptoms of cancer arise, the tumor has almost-invariably moved to the lungs, & there are no treatment options.
Early removal & ASAP pathology are the safest option, even when it's "tiny". Then U can remove it with good margins, & follow up with meds or radiation - chemo & radiation do not have the terrible side-FX in dogs that humans suffer, & vet-insurance makes all the difference, as these are very costly, & aren't affordable by the average dog owner.
Good vet insurance can add years of quality life to a dog's span.

I hope it's a simple fix & needs only a stitch or two, praps with some anti-Bs to prevent infection.

- terry

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[Joanna8899]

Its in the middle of her belly she is 11, I couldn' find the skin Tag that dropped off I dont know whether she ate it

 

[leashedForLife]

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The vet may want to do a skin-punch for pathology, or a chest X-ray, to look for metastases - just in case.
Without the lump, they might sample the spot "under" it, or there may be subcutaneous lumps elsewhere.

Is she spayed? - & if so, how old was she when she was spayed?
If she was 6-MO or under when she was desexed, she's very unlikely to develop a malignant mammary tumor - the more heats she went thru, prior to desex, the higher her risk of mammary cancer becomes.

- terry

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[Joanna8899]

she is spayed yeah she had had only had a few seasons when I had her done think 2 or 3 years old , I'm going to be very worried until the vet has seen her

 

[Joanna8899]

I've been bathing it in salt water and its looking allot better at the end of tonight looking more like the skin tag it was just with some missing and more attached than it was but it is still weeping some clear liquid and I think cause this has happened and the risk of hair getting stuck vet will remove it but at least it don'tlook as sinister as it was looking earlier on in the day

 

[leashedForLife]

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I'd be sure to show the 1st photo to the vet, & if U have a photo of the tag as it was when attached, that would probly be good to show them, too. They may contain clues to any likely worries, re pathology.

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[leashedForLife]

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Do U have an Ace-wrap / wide elastic bandage in the house? - About 4-inch width is good, but 2 will do, in a pinch.

I'd clean the wound with a Q-tip & 1st-Aid strength hydrogen peroxide, or medical alcohol, whichever U have.
Then i'd put a small dab of antibiotic ointment, & cover it with a dry 2 x 2 gauze-pad.

Finally, I'd wrap the elastic-bandage over the gauze pad & the wound, so she leaves it alone overnight - I'd use diaper-size SAFETY PINS to secure the elastic wrap, not the butterfly clips that are included! - Dogs can swallow them, or get their gums & tongue injured, when they try to nibble them off. Put Ur hand under the elastic bandage when U pin it, to prevent sticking the dog; I'd use at least 2 safety-pins, preferably 3, large diaper-size ones.

if U have an Elizabethan / CONE collar, that would work, too. Anything to keep her tongue off it.
A onesie, panties...

- terry

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[Joanna8899]

I did have a photo of it I'm sure but I've lost some of my photos on phone as files have corrupted I went through all photos I do have earlier today couldnt' find one or even it showing when she is showing her belly off but will show these photos I took of it, I dont have hydrogen peroxide or medical alchahol what I did have Google said not to use so I just used the salt water it is looking allot better though but it still needs removing I've taken my dogs with warts tags fatty lumps before and they say just leave it but this is in a difficult place and she will just catch it again if done so once already

 

[leashedForLife]

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Suggestion -
get a Google acct [gmail] & use Google Photos - they will back-up from Ur phone to yer laptop anytime Ur phone & laptop share WiFi. All U need to do is refresh the Google Photos page - the phone-photos will be stored by date & in the same order as they were taken.


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[Joanna8899]

Good news just got back from vets he said it' still a benign skin tag he has prescribed a cream called betafuse and said if it continues to be a problem it will need to come off under anaesthetic

 

[Dinky Dillon]

So Glad she's OK, they do like to worry us don't they.

 

[Joanna8899]

They certainly do

 

[leashedForLife]

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Good! - that's a relief.

Were she mine, I'd have it removed - she's taken off the dangly bit, & she's quite liable to mess with it again, as tags don't stop growing - some grow more slowly, others quickly, but they don't just sit there, *unchanging*, for months & years. The dangle will be back.
Once the base is removed, & the nick heals, she can't nibble-groom the tag obsessively or decide to rashly take it off. There's no target for her teeth.

If U need to save up, i'd ask the vet for an estimate & do that, with a planned future appt. // I know she's 11, but if she's in decent shape, that's not the equivalent of a frail 95-YO human; she may well live another 5-years, it's not beyond possibility.
Among the dogs i've met that lived to a very ripe age was a F Brittany who was 17 when i met her, & had already lived with cancer for 4-years - she was thin & wobbled when she walked, as she'd lost a lot of muscle, but she wasn't in pain, & she was very happy in herself. She was almost 18 when she died naturally, during an afternoon nap in a sun-spot. // Her vet had predicted she wouldn't make 6-mos from Dx, & advised euth - not unkindly, but knowing that she had a definite terminal illness.
She'd been a Hallowe'en greeter from puphood, meeting costumed adults & children at her own door, & as an old lady, she had the children of children she'd known, coming to see her, for some years. A very sweet dog.

- terry

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[Joanna8899]

Yeah I think I will have it removed at some point as it' in a funny spot and I would rather he removed it she is fit and healthy full of life at 11 , I had a golden lab had nothing wrong with her and lived to 17 my other lab now is nearly 13 thinks she's still a pup lol