Hi. My name is Dr. Marc and I'm filming for Pets Best, answering some dog health Facebook questions for you guys at Broadway Veterinary Hospital in Boise, Idaho. This question comes from Sherry. Sherry has a 13 year old Sheltie. She says he has a quarter-sized hemorrhoid next to his anus. She first noticed this a couple of months ago. She kept an eye on it, and it hasn't changed in size, and it doesn't seem to bother him. Her question is, "Should I be concerned or not?"
My concern for you, Sherry, is that this has the potential to be something besides a hemorrhoid. This could be something even as serious as a tumor or something else. Generally with these problems, the earlier you get them diagnosed and treated, the easier they are to actually treat and the more favorable the prognosis is going to be.
Hemorrhoids in dogs aren't as common as you would think, and usually they are the result of some sort of intestinal disease. A lot of times with these dogs, you'll see diarrhea or strain or something else that actually produces the hemorrhoid. Hemorrhoids alone, if they are left unattended, can actually become more problematic as well. If that intestinal tissue dies, you're really dealing with more of a serious problem. Because of the low incidence of hemorrhoids and the higher probability that we see of tumors and other types of disease in that area, I would certainly recommend being seen by a vet as soon as possible.
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