Lump on dog's leg.

Hi Dr. Marie!

Spanky is 5 years old and very healthy. His energy is good and, as far as I can tell, there is nothing wrong with him except for occasionally itchy/dry skin. I adopted him from a shelter in Colorado when he was just under 1 1/2 years old.

He's had a very small bump just to the inside and underneath his right hock (kind of like the knee of his hind leg - in case I'm using the wrong dog anatomy jargon!)

The bump itself is about 1/8th of an inch in diameter and perfectly round. It used to be covered in a kind of black/grey "skin" much like the skin of a dog's nose only rougher and not wet. He's had it for at least 2 1/2 years and it has never bothered him in the least until very recently.

In the last month, he started chewing on it a lot and/or licking it. From the very center of the bump, it started to bleed just a tiny bit. It seems like, now, what he did was lick off the black/grey "skin" and what is currently exposed is a whiter/shinier bump. The size of the bump has not changed at all and he has stopped licking it/chewing on it.

I don't take him to a vet regularly as I'm on a self-employed massage-therapist's income and, as a holistic healer, I strongly prefer to use plants and natural medicines for healing - both for him and myself. I would, of course, take him to a vet if there was an emergency... but I'm hoping you don't tell me to take him to a vet over this issue if it's something that is harmless and/or something I can take care of with natural medicine.

I've taken a picture of the bump and can send that to you in another email. Thanks for your time, Dr. Marie!