Yesterday while walking him I noticed a small lump just to the right of the rectum on my GSD when he lifted his tail (excited about going after a stick). It is about the size of a pea, on the "skin" area of his rectum just before it turns back into fur. I have been monitoring it closely and this morning before I left for work it appeared to be smaller, but that could just be me, I don't know.

I am wondering if I should immediately make an appointment with the vet or monitor it for a few more days to see if there is any change. I'm hesitant to take him in since I know he's going to hate it and, of course, the vet bill.

After doing some research I ran across this page:

http://www.oaklandvh.com/showpracfaq.cfm?FAQID=86&Private=0

and am wondering if this could be the culprit. He is almost six years old, and is intact. The lump is the same color as the skin, not bleeding or anything, and the skin over the pea sized lump is still loose, not taut.

If I don't notice a change tonight I will probably make an appointment, but I wanted to check with the folks here to see if you had any similar experiences.

Thank you!

-Lee

I would first make sure it isn't an impacted anal gland.

If it is not, I'd schedule a trip to the vet.

 Quote: alyssa myracle

I would first make sure it isn't an impacted anal gland.

If it is not, I'd schedule a trip to the vet.

How would I check for that? Aren't impacted anal glands mostly very close if not right on the rectum itself?

This lump is maybe 1/4"-1/2" to the right, just before the fur area starts.

Even if it is an impacted anal gland, that's usually something a vet needs to deal with and not something to wait on. A ruptured gland is a no-joke PITA to deal with.

Oh, and I forgot to mention there is no change in behavior. Not scooting, licking, biting or scratching near the rear area, good poops, etc. I did feed him some pork neck bones the other night that were a bit on the bony side so he had a couple stools that were dry. That got me to wondering if this might just be some kind of doggie hemorrhoid...

Thanks!

If he's had hard stools lately, it's probably not anal glands, and your discription makes that seem less likely too.

Like Sarah said, you'd probably end up with a trip to the vet, regardless.

This isn't one of those, holy crap drop everything and head straight for the e-vet, in my unqualified, unmedical opinion. I would see about scheduling him for a checkup within the next week or so.

You can try bathing him, and while he's in warm water, expressing his anal glands (the web is full of instructions).
You may also get an indication of whether or not the area is tender, that way.

Has he had bad constipation? Dogs can have hemorrhoids, yes, but far less often than humans, and it wouldn't be my first guess unless I had seen a reason for it.

Not bad constipation, he still poops twice a day. It is just the last two days he had some really dry stools and seemed to have to make some extra effort to go. This morning he had a very small dry stool to start with and then every thing came out normal. The last time he had the really bony neck bones was Tuesday night.

 Quote: Lee_Reicheld

Not bad constipation, he still poops twice a day. It is just the last two days he had some really dry stools and seemed to have to make some extra effort to go. This morning he had a very small dry stool to start with and then every thing came out normal. The last time he had the really bony neck bones was Tuesday night.

Straining can do that.

However, impacted anal glands are not something to guess about, and I agree that it needs a quick vet-look.

Thanks for the input all! I'll be taking him up to the vet on Saturday then to have his tires rotated, fluid levels topped off and air filter changed out!