Mammary Tumour in Dog

Hi all, I took my 5yr old to the Vet today about her paw & while we were there got her to look at a lump she has next to her nipple. As she's from a Rescue & was Vet checked before I got her I assumed it was already noticed & deemed ok, so had never really thought anything more of it. My own Nurse saw it & said it was just a Fatty Lump.

Anyway the Vet said it's not a Fatty lump but a Mammory Tumour & I asked if it's likely to be benign or malignant & she said likely malignant but slow growing & ok to be removed in April when she's spayed.

Anyone got any experience of this? I'm keeping an eye on it in case it gets bigger before then, but the Vet & Rescue said it'll be ok to come out when spayed & may not be able to be removed + it may come back later in life. I thought malignant lumps were solid & grew fast? This moves about under the skin.

hi
so sorry to hear about your little girl. what a worry.

my mum and dad had a GSD and she had mammary tumours,

although she was 13 yrs of age and it was a while ago... they removed them has they came, but they really could not keep up with how fast they came and she eventually lost the use of her legs and had to be put to rest, but as i said she was an old girl and it a about 8 yrs ago, things have come on a lot these days and yours is still young... if you are still not reasured by your vet i would pop back and tell him how worried you are and see if they can operate sooner

michele xx

It should be fine removed when she is spayed.

When you are grooming your dog or bitch you should check the strip down either side of the dog from the nipple in the armpit area to the one in the groin and check for any pea size lump, if you find one tell your vet and it can be removed before it causes any problems. And yes, it can effect dogs as well as bitches.

Years ago, my 16 year old Border Terrier bitch was diagnosed with a mammary tumour, it didnt look much but my vet informed me it was the tip of the iceberg and it was actually huge inside, it was too far gone to be removed so I had to have her PTS, it was a very quick growing tumour.

See I want it out now but the Vet said in April when she's spayed is ok, if it gets bigger it's coming out now tho. If only her previous Owners had spayed her

Has the vet aspirated the lump? It's not possible for the vet to give a definitive answer as to whether a mass is benign or malignant purely by gross examination. An aspirate (where a needle is inserted into the lump and a sample of cells are removed) would give a far better idea of what the mass consists of and this would allow you to decide whether to wait until her spay in April or not.

Spaying a bitch will reduce the incident of that particular problem but will not remove it altogether and as with dogs it may increase the chance of other problems in more difficult to find areas.

Why do you need to wait till April to have her spayed, why not bring both ops forward to the present.

If this is a tumor (and he can't tell till he does a biopsy) surely leaving it for another 3 mths may be depramental to her health.

I would want it removed now... never mind what the vet says.

I agree with that you are paying the bill so if you want it done now then have it done now but talk it over first with the vet as they may well have good reason to wait until a certain point in her cycle. Agree the vet will not know exactly what the tumor is without a biopsy.

My previous (spayed) GSD bitch developed an aggressive mammary cancer. Luckily,like you, we spotted it early and after a mammary strip (removing the glands on one side) she recovered fully and there was no re-occurence.
Your vet will know what sort of cancer it is. If is is slow-growing I can understand choosing the best time. My dog`s cancer was the most aggressive type so it was done the next day.
I hope your girl recovers fully.