My pit bull has a growing calcium deposit with a black spot. Is it serious?

Since Sunshine is young, this may be something like a histiocytoma (see the link below), but the only way to know for sure is for your vet to collect some cells with a needle (called a fine needle aspirate) and look at them under the microscope. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1676 There are other things that it could be, so I would recommend having your vet evaluate it to make sure that it isn't infected, that it is benign and decide if any treatment is needed right now. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Hello. It is difficult to tell if this is a cyst or a small tumor, but it is good to have this looked at soon. Iggy is young, so I am not so much concerned about this being very serious, but Pitbulls do seem to be a little more inclined to develop what we call button tumors. Most of these are not terrible dangerous, & if your veterinarian suggests having this removed & the tissue sent for pathology, I would do so. Often, with these small tumors, removal is curative. But knowing what this is also gives you a heads up as to whether or not other small tumors may arise from time to time. I would not panic over anything I have said, but wait to have this looked at. Your veterinarian may take a completely different approach & treat this topically once he has a good idea of what this is. Thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Hello, that little red growth does look a little suspicious. If Heidi was a little younger I would have been suspicious of a common benign mass knows as a hemangioma which typically resolves on its own. However, with Heidi being a little older, you should air on the safe side and have that checked out by your veterinarian to ensure it is nothing you need to be aggressive about. It can still be a hemangioma but the best way to ensure it is benign is to test the cells that make up the little lump itself. Hope this helps

Thank you for providing a picture! This could be a cyst or a benign growth. 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 Rocket's vet a call to make him an appointment. Best of luck.

This may be an abscess, a cyst or a tumor. You should have it examined by your veterinarian, as it is not possible to distinguish these by just looking at a photo. An abscess can usually be treated with antibiotics and/or be lanced, and a cyst can be evacuated. To identify a tumor, your vet may want to do a fine needle aspirate (he takes some material from the bump with a needle and then looks at it under the microscope) to determine whether the mass is concerning.

Unfortunately any skin mass can be cancerous but the good news is that most are benign. The only way to know for sure is the have a small sample of the mass collected and examined under the microscope. I recommend for Pepper to see his veterinarian. Sometimes the doctor can tell by palpation but other times they need to see the cells. Anytime you have a dark colored mass, melanoma is on the concern list. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Ajayi's lump looks a bit irregular and to the naked eye looks most like a papilloma, which is a benign wart-like mass. Papillomas are not terribly common in young dogs, but not all dogs read textbooks in what they "should" do! Other possible causes include an irritated insect bite or sting, some healing granulomatous tissue from rough play with one of his housemates, or other benign or malignant masses. Since Ajayi isn't bothered by this lesion, I think it's perfectly reasonable to monitor it at home for changes for now. If it grows or becomes irritated at any point, or is still present in a few weeks, then you should take Ajayi to his vet for further evaluation. Your vet would likely need to perform a fine needle aspirate to draw out some of the cells for microscopic evaluation. I hope that everything goes well!