dog swollen cheek gland

my 2 year old lab bull terrier cross ***** has a huge swelling on the side of her face/cheek which started as a 3 cm loose lump in the tissue below her jaw b eside her wind pipe.. She has had it before while she was with someone else. Her lip is also swollen along that side of her mouth. she doesnt appear to be in any discomfort. The swelling is very firm and she doesnt complain when it is squeezed slightly. Hany ideas comments would be appreciated. cheers.

[Red931]

You need to take the dog to the Vet ASAP. That has to be drained to see what it is. Even though it does not hurt is could be an infection or something worse.

Please let us know how you make out.

[boar]

Thanks for the response and the advice Red931. I shall take her to the vet today and I will let you know the outcome. cheers.

[Red931]

Okay. I hope everything turns out fine.

[boar]

Had a bad weekend .. No vet available .. the whole left side of her head swelled up .. eye closed .. lips swelled .. still no complaining. I had to lance it myself on Saturday and Sunday to keep draining it. Finally got to a vet 100 km away on monday. Drained and antibiotics. no obvious cause .. possibly a sharp bone pierced side at rear of mouth into neck tissue .. causing infection .. however no apparent wound from which it could have drained itself. Two broken front teeth .. right side removed .. not associated with problem. To go back after 3 days .. vet will check neck after swelling gone down to see if glands enlarged.
thanks for your concern and advice.
cheers.

[Red931]

It is too bad that you don't have a 24 hr. Animal Hospital nearby. Doing a procedure such as that yourself is quite risky, unless you are a doctor.

Has the swelling gone down significantly since the dog has been on antibiotics? Did the Vet have the fluid checked to see what it was?

I hope the antibiotics solves the problem as I was sure that the dog had some type of infection but for it to progress so quickly it was more serious than I had imagined.

Please let me know how she is doing later in the week.

[boar]

I have had to drain a similar infection before when a vet was not available. I am a former military paramedic and had a fairly good idea how to do it. Brings instant relief to the dog. The swelling has gone down significantly and has almost returned to normal state. We have yet to see if there is a solid mass the size of a hens egg which was under her jaw before it started to grow, and to ascertain whether that initial lump was a calcified lump from a previous abcess (abscess) or a swollen gland. Will let you know final outcome.
cheers.

[Red931]

That is good news. It is great for your dog that you have this experience. I have EMT training as well as I am a police officer.

I am glad to hear that she is doing better and looking foward to the update. I am sure it is nothing serious. (I hope.)