Sores.

I have a 9yr old male Siberian Husky named Chance, He has boil looking spot that bleeds on occasion, Vet said it was harmless it has not grown since but still bleeds from time to time, and just looks horrible. he also has a bump near his penis, and one on the base of his tail, the vet said it was from not being fixed? What exactly can I do to fix this, or is it something that we deal with because of his age?

[Aleda M Cheng, D.V.M., C.V.A]

Although your dog may be in late middle age or is an early senior citizen, your dog may have several good years left so please don't consider his age as a factor.  I have seen unneutered dogs at 6 years of age with perianal fistulas or adenoma's.

As for your dog's other dermal lesions: the one important lesson that I have learned about rashes and dermal lesions in my years as a veterinarian is that all dermal lesions can be great imitators.  A benign looking tumor can just as easily be a bad cancer as a vicious looking tumor can be a totally benign or a noncancerous tumor. Additionally, nasty looking tumors that look like cancer can still be cancer.

The best option may be to have  biopsies of all tumors, especially the ones that look bad and bleed and may become infected.  These tumors can be a nuisance even if they are  benign due to the pain of the wounds, the mess they make, and, for the possible infections that they may cause.

The perianal adenoma, or perineal fistulae, or other perianal lesion that your dog has will continue to be a problem unless you have your dog neutered.  The perianal lesion can be surgically corrected during the time of neutering surgery.  Additionally all the dermal masses can be excised during the neutering surgery so that your dog will not have to undergo an another anesthesia.  This will save time and the cost of an additional anesthesia.

Your vet should of course be your guide.  For the safest outcome please have pre-anesthetic blood work performed,  and, an ECG and Chest X-Rays, if necessary.