A little bit of what I learned about melanomas today. They occur, at least in horses, mainly on dark (black) skin. So arabs, since many are grey, are particularly susceptible. Melanomas can be malignant or benign, but are usually only removed when they will interfere with functions (bodily or otherwise). This would include melanomas that appear on the girth (because the owner wouldn't be able to saddle the horse without causing discomfort or ulcerations), the eyelids (the horse today had one on her third eyelid), and the rectum (she had many around her anus and had quite a bit of reconstructive surgery in that area once the growths were removed). Melanomas, as far as I know, also occur in people, dogs, and some pigs.
Anyway, that was everything for today! (And yes, the surgery did take the entire 2 hours! Not including prep and clean-up). More next time!
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