Fred is a fourteen year old Shih Tzu who is all ears. In fact, his a left ear was a little too big as a firm mass at the base continued to grow.

His owners decided to proceed with surgery even though Fred was a senior and cancer was likely. I removed the mass at Barton Heights Veterinary Hospital.

A week later, the mass was revealed to be a trichoblastoma. Previously called basal cell tumor, a trichoblastoma is a common benign tumor derived from a hair follicle. They are often found in Poodles and Cockers who are six to nine years of age. They’ll normally develop on the face, head, and back area.

Fred recovered within minutes after surgery and is back to his old self!

Dr. Phil Zeltzman is a traveling veterinary surgeon in Pennsylvania & New Jersey. An award-winning author, he loves to share his adventures in practice along with information about vet medicine and surgery that can really help your pets. Dr. Zeltzman specializes in orthopedic, neurologic, cancer, and soft tissue surgeries for dogs, cats, and small exotics. By working with local family vets, he offers the best surgical care, safest anesthesia, and utmost pain management to all his patients. Sign up to get an email when he updates his blog, and follow him on Facebook, too!