Lumps all over body.

Dr. Marie replied:

Oh I am sorry to hear that poor Pepino is having these problems.

Before I answer, I have a few questions for you that will help me to see if I can help you out:

• Have any tests been done on the lumps? The type of test I am wondering about is a fine needle aspirate to determine what types of cells they are.


• How big are the lumps and what do they look like?


• How long has this been going on?


• Has a full set of bloodwork been done? If so, do you know what abnormalities were present?

Hopefully I can help you with this case.
Thanks!
Dr. Marie.


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Dr. Marie replied:

You're very welcome! This sounds so frustrating! It would be great if you could find out what they saw on cytology of the lumps. I really think our answer is in finding out what the lumps are.

Your vet is the best judge of whether or not they can be biopsied, but most dogs will allow a biopsy with a local anesthetic, so you could ask your vet if this is a possibility at all.

Here are a few of the unusual things that could cause lumps on the body:

• Mycobacteria such as nocardia.


• A fungal infection.


• Panniculitis (looks something like this:)
  
  


• Cutaneous lymphoma (looks something like this:)
  
  
  

By far the best thing that can be done next in my opinion is a biopsy. If you think it looks like any of the pictures above then let me know and I'll give you some more information.

Dr. Marie.

Dr. Marie replied:

You're very welcome.

When you mention that some lumps are on his neck I am wondering if what you are describing are lymph nodes. If these are lymph nodes then this tells us that we are dealing with either some type of infection or unfortunately a cancer like lymphoma. Usually though a fine needle aspirate of a lymph node is really helpful in telling us whether this is cancer or not.

It's really hard for me to suggest a food without knowing his whole case. That's really something that you should ask your vet about. In most cases as long as we are feeding a good quality food that's about as good as we can do.

Be careful about some of the stuff that you read online about "miracle" foods and supplements. The key to Pepino's healing here is to figure out what is wrong first and then once we can treat that effectively he will start eating again.

I do have some faith in a supplement called Missing Link that helps with general overall health. However, no supplement on its own is the answer here.

You may also want to ask your vet about a medication called remeron which is an appetite stimulant that may help perk his appetite up a little until we can get some answers.


Dr. Marie.