Do you come here after finding growths in dogs mouth? That should an emergency lamp on. If it is your first time seeing such growth, which is abnormally emerging and has no regularity, chance it can be categorized as tumors and there are many causes behind its emergence.
To be simply put, an oral tumor is defined as an anomaly cell growth in dogs that occurs due to ‘loosened’ copying of cells. The ‘oral’ term simply means the unregulated copying happens in the mouth area. What cells are causing it isn’t easy to track down since a dog’s mouth itself is ‘constructed’ of several kinds of cells.
It’s tricky to know the reason behind tumors, since the majority of cases are the combination from two or more risk factors. For example, when we are talking about tumor, the sex of the dog, its breeds, and the age factors may play the role in determining one’s susceptibility in getting tumors.
That being said, male dogs are more prone compared to the female ones. Old age takes its toll as well in increasing the risk of having tumors. The same goes well as the breed: where Chow Chows, German Shepherds, Golden retrievers, Mini Poodles, and Boxer Dogs are the ones with higher risk of having bulgy growths around its mouth.
The signs
The clinical signs of oral tumors are coming in various ways; it depends on where it appears, its type, size, and how big it has spread. Some of them may only appear like small swellings around the gums or soft palate, yet others may go as extreme as getting ulcerated and causing some bleed. Growths in dogs mouth can also come with lost in appetite due to the pain surrounding the mouth area.
If you’ve been noticing that your dog has been constantly lethargic, loosing its appetite, and not as cheery as before, take your time to plan a vet visit. Some tumors are benign yet not for others, and such types of malignant tumors are better to be checked by your vet as soon as possible before it spreads to nearby area.
The accurate diagnosis will require your vet to take a sample of the growths tissue. The process is known better as Fine Needle Aspiration (FNA), in which a small amount of cells are being suctioned and placing it under the microscope lens. For further reassurance, biopsy is often be conducted as well since FNA’s result aren’t always satisfactory.
The treatment
The best treatment is to perform surgical treatment, especially if the tumor hasn’t been invaded farther. Chemotherapy comes as another treatment option to save your dog’s life from life-threatening growths in dogs mouth.
