by Janet Farricelli CPDT-KA

Created on: April 26, 2009

Lymph glands in dogs tend to enlarge for several reasons. In order to better understand the causes of swollen lymph glands it is helpful to better understand how the lymph glands function and their role in defending the dog's body by intrusions.

The main function of the lymph glands is to protect the dog's body from intrusions such as bacteria and viruses. Because lymph glands play an important role in the dog's immune system, often when they get inflamed this is indicative that dogs are fighting an infection, an inflammation, or are responding to an immune system trigger.

Basically lymph glands excrete lymphocytes which are white blood cells that fight illness. When they are triggered to fight back, they tend to swell and become tender.

Dogs have several lymph glands. They can basically be divided into two categories: external and internal.

The external lymph glands are easily detectable when they appear swollen .A veterinarian may easily palpate them by running his/her fingers on several places where they are located. Below are the following types of external lymph glands.

-Submandibular

Found under the dog's jaw.

-Prescapular

Found in front of the dog's shoulders.

-Axillary

Found around the dog's armpit area.

-Inguinal

Found inside of each posterior leg.

-Popliteal

Found on the back of the dog's posterior knee.

Various internal lymph glands are found in the dog's thoracic and abdominal area. These cannot be palpated usually, therefore, the only way to actually visualize them is through exploratory surgery.

Some of the most common lymph glands that present as swollen, are the glands found right where the jaw meets the throat. These as mentioned, are the submandibular glands and they often indicate some issue going on around the head region. This could be caused by various inflammatory conditions such as tooth abscesses, sinus infections or salivary gland infections.

Once the inflammatory condition is properly treated, the lymph glands may return to their normal size.

When various lymph glands are presenting as enlarged, veterinarians should suspect lymphoma. The best way to rule this serious condition out is by fine needle aspiration. A needle will basically withdraw some fluid from the swollen lymph gland and the fluid will be evaluated by a pathologist. If the sample comes back inconclusive, a biopsy is often recommended.

Treatment

The underlying cause of the enlarged lymph nodes may be addressed. In case of infections, a course of antibiotics may suffix. If the glands appear very swollen, steroids may be prescribed. Dogs with swollen lymph glands due to lymphoma require removal of the lymph glands and if the cancer has metastasized, chemotherapy.

Enlarged lympg glands are proof that the lymph glands are properly working. If only a region appears enlarged, very likely your dog is fighting off an infection located nearby. However, it is best to have a veterinarian assess the dog properly to rule out lymphosarcoma for peace of mind.

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