What on Earth is this??

So Nigredo was bitten by a tick when he first got here. They said he was on FrontLine so I tried to wait it out as it should fall off, but it stayed for days.. so I went ahead and removed it.

Apparently they used either some crappier medication on him or they lied to me altogether. I digress.

I have since removed the tick and he's now on flea and tick medication and hasn't gotten a tick since. Lately I've noticed that the little spot where I removed it has started getting enlarged. He's going to see a vet next week, but has anybody experienced this? What's going on?

He seems fine, it doesn't hurt when I bother it and he doesn't scratch at it or lick it or anything. He's eating well and doing great.

It's not warm and it won't pop or anything. It feels really hard, I have no idea what it could be. He's going to the vet Thursday to get it looked at... but I'm wondering has anybody ever seen anything like this?

BTW, it's NOT a nipple. His nippes are TINY and black and much nearer to his penis. I had to pull his skin over to show the lump.

Did you leave the head inside?

I suggest you Google LYMES disease
Nasty horrible beastie
Our working dogs although treated religiously every 3months still pick up the odd tick or two
Some areas are worse than others
Affects humans are well as animals
The head of the tick MUST BE REMOVED ,if not that's when you can run into trouble
My oh contracted LYMES in 1998 (occupational hazard for him ) he still has episodes
Doctors were not so well informed in those days thankfully better blood testing and a course of antibiotics
Thankfully vets are also very well informed to these days
Dogs can go rapidly down hill if not detected
If in any dought contact your vet
This really is a nasty disease

I too wonder if the head has been left inside, however, I would have expected the area to be red around the lump I hope its not Lymes disease as has been mentioned.

I've had lymes disease and I'm pretty sure it's the same in dogs and people...that the first sign of it is a target or bullseye rash. That lump doesn't look inflamed at all.

Let the vet have a look. Dogs can sometimes develop 'growths' on the site of either an injection or a bite from an insect.

It doesn't look in the least bit 'infected or nasty'. My old cavvy got a tick between her toes that I had to try to remove as it was driving her insane - chewing at it and worrying it all night. I obviously did not get it out properly - ended up being one of the most expensive VET thingies I ever had as I took her back every 2 days with them cleaning and examining and squeezing stuff out of it and her on anti bios. Cost more than her major op in the end!

My bella has a little 'bump' on the site of an injection into her back on one side. And the fur there now grows through bright white. Not unknown at all.

Thanks everyone. I HAVE heard of Lymes disease and it doesn't seem like that but it might be. He's going into the vet on Thursday for this.

It doesn't hurt and it's most certainly NOT an infection. Seems like a growth of some type related to the bite. Maybe allergic reaction or something? I'm not positive I got all of the head out, but I think I did.


I'm going to get the vet to take a look at it. I've seen dogs with ticks before and never gotten this reaction. Thanks again for input.

The common symptoms for dogs is lameness. There is absolutely no mention anywhere of a random knot forming near the bite. Also, after checking.. Lyme disease is very rare where I live. I don't think it's Lyme disease or an infection.

"The symptoms of Lyme disease in dogs differ from those in people, and usually occur much later after the tick bite. Clinical illness in dogs usually occurs 2 to 5 months after a bite from an infected tick. Cats can develop Lyme disease, but it occurs rarely in them, even in endemic areas. Other domestic animals such as horses have contracted Lyme disease, but it does not appear to be a significant problem. Dogs show several different forms of the disease, but by far, the most common symptoms are a fever of between 103 and 105°, lameness, swelling in the joints, swollen lymph nodes, lethargy, and loss of appetite.

Although not common, some dogs have developed severe progressive kidney disease as sequelae to Lyme disease. This severe kidney failure is difficult to treat and may result in death of the dog. It is recommended that a dog with a positive Lyme antibody test have additional blood tests and a urinalysis to assess kidney function. Some dogs may also develop heart problems or nervous system disease after being infected with B. burgdorferi.

Dogs do not develop the typical rash or the circular area of redness around the bite (erythema migrans) which is seen in people."

-peteducation.com

Oh that's interesting to know! My rash was pretty impressive!

If the head was left inside it can be pushed out of the body by being grown over and 'encapsuled' with skin first. It's the body's reaction of getting rid of a foreign body.
But I'd check it out anyway, any kind of growth I'd go to the vet. My dog Wassily once had a big hard tumour that grew larger over time (though it was benign) but had to be removed in the end.
At the beginning it looked a bit like this pic. It might be something like that and the location could be unrelated to the tick bite.