These tumors are benign, but again surgical removal and biopsy should be done to distinguish them from sebaceous gland adenocarcinoma. Complete excision is recommended to prevent recurrence. Warts are usually caused by one of two papilloma viruses. The other type causes warts to appear on the face, neck and limbs. Warts may also be caused by some noninfectious irritants which produce a solitary wart.
Viruses usually cause multiple warts.
Younger dogs are more likely to be affected by papilloma viruses, but after they recover, they are usually immune to further infection. Surgical crushing of some of the viral warts speeds remission. Affected dogs should be isolated from other dogs to prevent spread of the infection. There is no danger to other species. There are a number of other skin problems found in dogs that are not tumor-related.