Strange Growth on Tail

As some of you will know, Stumpy doesn't have a proper tail, but just a stump. She is a rescue with no known background, so we have no idea whether she is a natural bobtail or whether she's had it docked, either as a pup or when older.

Anyway, on Friday she started getting at her stump and pulled all the hair out overnight. Now that its almost completely bald, we can see that she has some sort of growth on the end of it

I have no idea how long it has been there because normally she's very hairy and you can't see the end and I've had no cause to examine it recently. So it could bet as much as 6 months since I last saw the end and can say that the growth wasn't there then.

Took her to the vet yesterday. He says he's never seen anything like it before but he also says that somehow its managed to have nerves growing through it - she can clearly feel it when he touches it and seems to be in discomfort.

Its almost like her tail is trying to grow back

Luckily the tail bone doesn't go right to the end of her stump and the vet is confident that he should be able to remove it quite easily. His gut feel is that it is not cancerous, but he will send it off for tests once removed.

I'm still really nervous of the op and recovery afterwards as tails can be so problematical (though that is usually when the bone is involved), but I don't think we can risk leaving it as she is clearly uncomfortable, so she's booked in for Wednesday.

Has anyone with docked dogs ever heard of anything like this before?

does it move about and squidgy or is it hard?

Its not squidgy as in feels like its full of liquid - it feels about the same as the flesh of her main tail.

I've just been googling and it seems that this might well be 'tail dock neuroma'.

Don`t think her being docked will have anything do with it , looks like a growth / infection to me.

Hope the investigated goes well!

Thanks JB, but the vet seemed to think there was a good chance it is linked and now that I've done some of my own research, I really think this is Docked Tail Neuroma (same as amputation/trauma neuroma in humans)

"Amputation neuromas (traumatic neuromas) are non-neoplastic, disorganized proliferations of peripheral nerve parenchyma and stroma that form in response to amputation or traumatic injury. They are most commonly identified after tail docking in dogs or neurectomy in the distal extremities of horses. The most common clinical presentation is a young dog that continuously traumatizes its docked tail. In horses, such a lesion appears as a firm, often painful swelling at a neurectomy surgery site. Excision is curative." from http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/in...m/bc/72219.htm

Ohh interesting and add!! Poor girl. Fingers crossed for easy removal and speedy healing

my vet once told me that if it is squidgy and moves about it's likely to be a fatty growth

if its really hard and doesn't move well then it can be more serious

your doesn't sound like either