Symptoms of Swollen Inguinal Lymph Nodes in Dogs

Your dog's lymph glands are basically small tissue masses found in various areas of your dog's body. These glands serve several functions such as filtering the blood, storing white blood cells, and various other roles related to the immune system. When your dog's lymph glands inflame and swell, this is often due to an infection, auto-immune response, or malignancy.

Just as you would have an abnormal lump in a breast checked out, a dog with an inflamed lymph node requires prompt testing to rule out any malignancies and determine the underlying causes. The causes can be several, some may not be as serious as cancer, but they all do warrant prompt attention. Following are several potential causes:

• Inflamed tissues. In this case, the regional lymph glands swell because white blood cells increase to fight a potentially infectious agent. The infection may be localized in the lymph nodes themselves or nearby tissues and may be fungal, viral, or bacterial in nature.
• An allergic reaction or an immune-response taking place in the body and causing an increase in the number of cells.
• Cancer. Cancerous cells may collect in the lymph node due to local malignancy or metastasis, the spread of cancer from another distant location of the body.

The following are symptoms of swollen inguinal glands in dogs:

• Swollen glands. Generally, dog owners will notice the inguinal swelling or feel it by touch by palpating the groin area. Normally, lymph nodes are barely able to be felt and are pea-sized. However, when they swell, they can become up to the size of a golf ball. In the inguinal area, a swollen gland may not be readily felt at times because they may be surrounded by fat. In female dogs, a swollen mammary gland may be confused for a swollen inguinal lymph node.
• Defecation may be troublesome. Due to the swelling in the groin area defecating may be difficult for your dog.
• Nausea and loss of appetite. Your dog may drool due to nausea and refuse to eat. Or he may eat and then regurgitate the food.
• General malaise, lethargy. This can be due to the body attempting to fight the infection.

If your dog has any of these symptoms, please see your vet promptly. Your vet will likely run blood work, do a needle aspirate, request x-rays or run other tests. Treatment will vary depending on the underlying cause. If there is an infection, your dog may need antibiotics. If the problem is an auto-immune disorder, corticosteroids may be prescribed. In the case of a fungal infection, antifungal medications will be prescribed. In the case of allergies, antihistamines or steroids may be needed. Surgery or chemotherapy are some options for cancer.

Please note that there are also other conditions causing similar symptoms. A dog that is straining and vomiting and with a swollen abdomen may be due to a dog intestinal blockage. Other causes of lumps, for instance, are lipomas, hematomas, and even bug bites. So please see a vet to assess and determine what may be really going on.