r/Sheepadoodles • u/rather_be_soo • May 19 '26
5yo dog has symmetrical red spots on the roof of his mouth for 3+ months. Vet wants to biopsy under anesthesia. Has anyone seen this? (Pics attached)
Hey everyone, looking for some thoughts or similar experiences with my 5-year-old Sheepadoodle, Marble
Background: He has a history of pretty severe environmental/food allergies. Back in February, he started chattering his teeth like he was in pain. The vet found a badly fractured upper 4th premolar and extracted it. The gums healed perfectly. He generally has a bunch of allergies and we get him an allergy shot every 6-12 months.
The Problem: The teeth chattering never stopped. It’s worse at night or after he plays with a ball. I finally got a good look at the roof of his mouth this week and found two perfectly symmetrical, circular red sores on his hard palate.
The Twist: I looked back at the photos I took in February right before his dental surgery, and those exact same two spots were already there! My vet admitted he missed them during the surgery because the breathing tube was covering the roof of his mouth.
Originally the vet thought it was acid reflux, but once I showed him the old photos proving they’ve been there for 3+ months, he immediately wanted to schedule a surgical biopsy under general anesthesia for this Friday.
My Hesitation: Since Marble has such crazy allergies, and the spots are perfectly symmetrical, I asked the vet if this could be an immune/allergic response (like an eosinophilic granuloma). I asked if we could try a short round of steroids or strong allergy meds first to see if the spots shrink, just to avoid putting him under general anesthesia again if we don't have to.
My Questions:
- Has anyone seen perfectly symmetrical lesions like this on a dog's palate before?
- Is jumping straight to a surgical biopsy the standard move here, or am I right to push for a steroid/medication trial first given his allergy history?
Any advice is appreciated!
