The most common cause of
prostate problems in dogs is a prostatic tumor and other
conditions having similar symptoms are highly unlikely.
The prostate gland is found
inside the urethra it is an almost spherical gland and
is relatively small. It produces fluids to carry and feed
sperm during the dogs mating process.
A prostatic tumor will
result in inflammation of the prostate gland and as it
continues to grow it will push against the wall of the
urethra thus making it very painful for the dog to urinate.
If you suspect that your
dog has prostate cancer you should consult your vet as
soon as possible because it will continue to inflict pain
onto your dog and will have to be removed in order to
make sure that the dog returns to normal health.
In order to confirm whether
the dog has prostate cancer or not the vet will take X-rays,
conduct ultrasound scans and may even pass a camera into
the affected area of the dog.
Once confirmed, the tumor
will have to be removed as soon as possible through surgery
but before the vet goes ahead and performs it they may
want to confirm whether or not the cancerous tumor had
spread to other parts of the body. This will be done by
same methods as were used to check for the tumor in the
first place. These include x-rays, ultrasound scans and
passing a camera through the affected areas.
Complications arise depending
on how long the tumor has been growing for. It may be
impossible to remove the tumor safely if it has grown
excessively and is near organs or vital body parts.
Most vets will still try
to remove the tumor first and then use chemotherapy and
radiation to remove the remaining cancerous cells. A histopathologist
will decide the type of therapy depending on the samples
given to them.
