Wwyd? Elderly cat and operation

[Ripriderockit]

My 16yr old cat developed a huge lump on his neck 3 weeks ago. About golf ball sized and appeared overnight.
Didn't seem to bother him in anyway. Eating normally etc. And I know cats mask but he is definitely a sulker so gut feeling says he's not in any pain?
Anyway I took him to the vets. It was drained and he was given 2 lots of meds. Within 1 - 2 days the lump came back. Not quite as bad but still big. I've waited until all meds finished and then I was on holiday so not been able to get back any sooner.
Now the next stage is an operation to investigate what it could be. Vet said when it was drained it had a brown liquid rather than the normal pus so was unsure if it was an abscess.
I'm torn over what to do. He hates the vets with a vengeance. I worry about putting him through all that at his age and can't decide if it would be better to let him go with dignity instead of him potentially struggling with recovery after anaesthetic.
He's insured so cost doesn't come into it.
Opnions gratefully received so I can have a sleepless night mulling it all over.

A kg is a lot of weight for a cat to lose in three weeks.

A kilo in three weeks isn't likely to be slightly reduced calorie intake, is it? That's a large proportion of his overall weight (my cat is

The weight loss is likely to be his thyroid levels aren't quite right. I'd run blood to check that. But honestly I'd do the op. It could be something easily fixed and they generally do really well under anaesthetic

@45redballoons

My 21 year old just had some mouth treatment under GA. They did blood tests first to try and check she'd be OK with it. In this situation she is like a different cat, it was absolutely worth it, although it was a risk.

My 14 year old cat didn’t wake up from the anaesthetic under similar circumstances- pre-op blood tests to make sure etc. As it happens I think it was not a terrible time for him to go and so we probably wouldn’t have done anything different but any GA is a risk from when they’re mid-late teens.

OP, I think I’d probably go for it but you do know your own cat best in these circumstances.

We had a cat who was utterly miserable for weeks after an op, and we said we wouldn't put her through another after that. But if he hasn't reacted badly to previous ops, even if that's because he hasn't had them, it sounds like it's worth a shot.

That huge weight loss would give pause for thought, but it might be the lump that's causing that and he'd be able to recover once it's sorted.

Let your cat have the treatment, 16 isn’t old.

Your vet should be offering you a full blood test beforehand to check liver and kidney function as these organs are responsible for metabolising anaesthetic drugs.
I would also ask for a thyroid blood test to check whether any thyroid medication is working efficiently.
A kilo is alot to lose in 3 weeks. Id personally be more worried about the reason behind this as rediced food intake for a bit wont cause that much weight loss, even with a thyroid issue.
Bloods will help with this.

If bloods are all normal then absolutely yes, have the lump removed. Anaesthesia is very safe these days and 16 isnt exactly old for a cat.
It will improve your pets quality of life in their golden years.
(Side note, brown liquid could be a really manky abscess or a cyst).

My 17 year old cat was sedated recently to have some matted fur shaved off, and was fine afterwards. And my neighbours cat was over 20 when he had a tooth removed under sedation, he lived another couple of years.

@Ripriderockit

God forgot to add also I asked the vet her opinion and she said to do it. If he was 20 she'd say no. But this is a chain of vets I use. Never ever had issue with them with other pets either but no personal rappure with them as lots of vets.

I have always asked what the vet would do too. I hope your mog is ok and the outcome is good.

Thanks everyone. I've provisionally booked him in for Friday. I still feel very apprehensive but either way he needs to get the full bloods done to check his thyroid levels which he hates. So at least he will be sedated as they'll do it all together. I guess it's just the recovery and if he'll be ok.

Vet will check his heart and lungs will take anaesthetic. Cats come round very quickly afterwards. And it’s not a hugely invasive operation. I’d go for it if it was my cat.

Not with thyroid issues.

But with proper feeding and medication can be regained.

OP - I'd have the exploratory. Yes he hates the vets but it's not the end of the world if it's fixable