Dear Dr. John,

Our female Pointer X is almost 7 years old, and our male dog is a 1 1/2-year-old Hound X. We just had both dogs examined by a vet. Luckily, both are in good health, but the young male dog did have a peculiar finding: oral papillomas. The vet commented that he did not typically see the findings in dogs that age since it was usually found in puppies and dogs under a year of age. What is your experience with these lesions? I was also told that this is a viral contagious wart and that they go away on their own after a few months. Should we be concerned that our other dog will also get it and should we consider having them removed? Your thoughts?

— M.F.

Dear M.F.,

I have seen plenty of dogs with oral papillomas and have not written about them in some time. Usually, owners are unaware that they are even in the mouth unless they appear on the outer lips. This is because they rarely cause any discomfort or issue to dogs. I also usually see these in dogs under a year of age, but the literature does state that they are typically seen in dogs under age two.

The papillomas are due to a dog’s exposure to the virus from another dog or things that the dogs chew on and because their immune system is still not fully matured. The papilloma virus causes the development of these small, raised white to grey warts in and around the mouth that are totally benign yet highly contagious. These warts usually disappear by spontaneous regression after 1-3 months. After initial exposure, the incubation before the warts develop is usually 1-2 months. Your other dog may still develop oral papilloma warts as well but she may already have immunity to the virus so time will tell. What I would suggest is that you avoid having your dog or dogs exposed to others until the lesions completely resolve. While you could consider surgical removal, it really is unnecessary.

Dr. John de Jong is President of the World Veterinary Association. He owns and operates the Boston Mobile Veterinary Clinic and can be reached at 781-899-9994.