Tick or Skin Tag on Your Dog? How to Tell Up Close

Tick, skin tag, nipple, wart or scab?

Bump	Legs	Color	Attachment	Changes
Tick	Yes, near the skin	Red-brown to dark brown; grey or bluish when full of blood	Attached at one point, head end buried	Grows over days as it feeds
Skin tag	No	Skin-colored or slightly darker	Part of the skin, often on a narrow stalk	Stays the same for weeks
Nipple	No	Skin-colored or pink	Flat or slightly raised, part of the skin	Stays the same; has a matching one on the other side
Wart (papilloma)	No	Pale or pink	Firm, rough, cauliflower-like surface	Common on the lips and muzzle of young dogs
Scab	No	Dark red to black	Flat and crusty, lifts at the edges	Flakes off as it heals

How to check the bump

1. Get good light. Room lighting is rarely enough in thick fur. Use a flashlight held to the side so the bump casts a shadow.
2. Part the fur with your fingers or a comb so you can see where the bump meets the skin.
3. Look at the base. This is where a tick’s legs and mouthparts are. On a skin tag, skin continues smoothly into the bump.
4. Magnify. At 5x to 10x, the legs on even a small tick are easy to see. A phone magnifier lets you keep both hands free to hold the fur.
5. Check for a twin. If the bump is on the belly or chest, look for a matching one on the other side. Pairs in a line are nipples.
6. Touch gently, do not squeeze. A tick feels hard and separate from the skin. Squeezing a tick can push its fluids into your dog.
7. Take a photo. If you are still not sure, a clear photo helps your vet, and lets you compare in a few days. A tick grows; a skin tag does not.

Signs it is an engorged tick

A tick that has fed for a few days swells into a smooth, grey, bluish or tan bean, sometimes as large as a coffee bean. The legs stay small and are bunched at one end against the skin, which is why an engorged tick is easy to mistake for a skin tag. Look closely at the end that touches the skin: you will see a small dark head and legs.

If it is a tick

Remove it promptly with fine-tipped tweezers or a tick removal tool. Grip it as close to the skin as you can and pull straight out with steady pressure, without twisting or squeezing the body. Clean the spot, and note the date. Our guide to checking your dog for ticks covers where ticks hide and how to remove them.

When to call the vet

• You cannot tell what the bump is.
• A skin tag or lump grows, bleeds, changes color or bothers your dog.
• Part of a tick stays in the skin and the area gets red or swollen.
• In the weeks after a tick bite, your dog seems tired, lame, feverish or off food.

This page is general information, not veterinary advice. Your vet can examine any lump, and some need a sample to identify.

Checking regularly

A quick look after walks in long grass or woods catches ticks before they swell. Focus on the ears, around the eyes, under the collar, the armpits, between the toes and under the tail. LoupeLens keeps the light on while you zoom, so you can look into fur and ears at night and save a photo for the vet. See also how to check your dog’s ears and checking pets with a magnifier.