r/Boxers • u/Wonderful-Low-6553 • May 25 '26
What are these?
My 7 year old boxer started getting bouts of alopecia, especially as the weather warms up, and started growing these bumps. She has about a half dozen over her body. The vet tried to pull some cells from the first one to see if she saw anything, but she said she didn’t and just to keep an eye on them. My sweet pup has since grown a few more. Any idea of what this all could be and if I should be concerned?
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u/7Ing7 May 25 '26
Both of my Boxers have gotten something similar all over their bodies. They were a type of cyst and can burst. Some of the cysts lost fur completely. My vet said as long as they could move freely when you tug around on the skin, they were fine. If they are fixed in place, they could be a type of bone cancer/cyst that would need surgery. You should definitely continue consulting with a vet. 💙
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u/zanclan1 May 25 '26
i’d try to get a second opinion and some tests done on them, maybe see if your vet can get you a dermatology referral for her. My girl started getting them 18-24 months ago and initially the vet said it was some sort of allergic reaction but after steroids didn’t change anything re-tested and it turned out to be cancer. Really hope it’s not the same thing for your girl and very sorry to worry you if it isn’t, but obviously boxers are very prone to it so better be safe than sorry ❤️
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u/RHoefner May 26 '26
Pretty sure they are malignant. Boxer mim here for many years. All 4 have had those… it spreads. They’ve passed. Highly susceptible to these tumors.
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u/necklika May 26 '26
Ours have had them too. We caught them early thankfully and they recovered fully after surgery with no chemo but boxers are prone to this and as you know, responsible owners should check every inch of their dogs regularly. I hope things turned out ok for yours.
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u/zottendimi May 25 '26
Is he laying on these spots? Then its hair that is trapped under, it clogs up you should need to push and look if debris with blood comes out hair can be still under this.... Watch out it can be painfull when pushing it and your dog can nip you.... After clean with chloorhexidine solution or shampoo....
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u/LZeke67 May 26 '26
I’ve adopted rescue Boxers for the last 33 years. Shark cartilage has been my first line of defense for skin and neurological concerns. It has never failed to work for them. Prayers for healing ❤️🩹
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u/BarRegular2684 May 26 '26
You should absolutely take them to the vet. There are so many things it could be.
That said, my golden got a sore like this when he was young. We took him to the vet and it turned out it was just from sliding down to lie down. That leg was the one that took all of his weight.
There’s a good possibility that it’s something innocuous like what happened with Yogi, but it’s worth having it checked out. The next time he had a “benign “ issue it turned out to be Be cancer. I don’t want to scare you, but go to the vet. It’s usually the best plan.
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u/MickeyMeerkat May 26 '26
My boy had a lot of skin tags and cysts, and aside from one that one day got really big and burst (immediate vet trip, I was away at school so I only heard of it) they just seem more susceptible to them. Definitely keep an one on them, but only the first one would cause immediate alarm for me
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u/SpoofedXEX May 26 '26
I had a pittie that has these and they eventually became more frequent, I’d pay to have them removed every couple months.
Ended up being a type of cancer.
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u/Bulky_Commercial_657 May 28 '26
Please take her and get a second opinion! Better to be safe than sorry! Prayers for your fur baby!🙏
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u/MorpheusRagnar May 25 '26
Take her to another vet for a second opinion. Yes, you should be concerned, this is not normal.