Doggy benign cyst, £1,000 to remove. WWYD

[SlouchingTowardsBethlehemAgain]

We have a lovely 3 year old Staffie type dog, who has developed a golf ball sized cyst on his shoulder, it does not bother him - just unsightly. 3 vets have had a look and say is is a benign cyst. Our usual vet has estimated £1,000 to remove said cyst. If the blooming thing was on my shoulder I would be sticking warm compresses on and gently squeezing the fucker, not paying £1,000 for an op. We can afford to have the op for the dog and don't want to him to be at any risk. WWYD.

That is quite a big lump.

What are the risks of leaving it alone? Have the vets actually taken a sample to know it's just a cyst and if it wasn't would it change your decision to leave it alone?

My dog is 6. We have had a lump removed and tested and it was benign but where it was we had no option to leave it. We have another where we are leaving it alone as whether it is benign or not does not affect our treatment decision and it is not impacting him like the one we had removed was.

Only you can decide with vet advice. Is it just the money that is stopping you? If so then maybe ask for another opinion/cost at another vets?

If yohh up have the money I would get the operation done . It’s quite routine and straight forward . These type of cysts can keep growing and if knocked or over groomed can burst . The problem then is infection . This could end up costing even more to treat and remove

Our dog had a big lump, we did a needle biopsy and it came back inconclusive but it was thought it was a benign cyst. When he was going under for something else we decided to get the lump removed to be sure. It turned out it is a cancer , unfortunately not clean margins but it is a slow cancer ( I'm not very good at describing). He seems much more active with it removed.

I would get it removed before it grows, it can also then be sent for histology to confirm if it is benign or not, if you have not done so already. Especially given his young age, I would just go ahead and get it dealt with now.

Are you mad, you cannot squeeze a golf ball size cyst? If it bursts it will be terrible and you’ll have to rush the dog to the vet anyway to get the hole cleaned and closed up.

Cysts can often become inflamed/infected, then it will be much more than a straightforward removal op. It will incision and drainage, need packing and multiple visits and sedations for dressings changed, antibiotics, painkillers etc, and will cost a damn sight more than £1000. If you can afford it why are you not just having it removed anyway? Is the dog not insured?

Would you really be squeezing a golf ball sized cyst on yourself?! Really?!!!! I don't think a cyst of any size is something you should be squeezing.

You need to ask your vet whether it should be removed. I would assume yes as it may keep growing, may get knocked, may get infected, may need to be removed to be certain it is benign etc etc. But the vet is your best guide, not a bunch of unqualified strangers who haven't even seen your dog.

Sounds like you don't have pet insurance. If you did, would you be hesitating about having it removed?

Does insurance not cover it?

I’d get it removed in a heartbeat. Obviously if money is tight it’s difficult but if you can afford it why wouldn’t you give your young dog a better quality of life?

Around 6 months ago I spent around that on surgery for my whippet’s corn. He’s back to 100% and it was worth every penny.

The op was referring to the standard advice received in sporner corner - Mag sulph hot flannel and squeeze the fucker. And video it.

I would remove it seeing as you have the cash and age. On mine who's now 12 I wouldn't even if I had the money.

Just bare in a benign has the chance to turn bad, so I would do the op. The amount I have paid on one of my is not even worth counting up, I would cry, but she is my lovely little girl and I would do anything for her.

Yeah, for a zit or a boil or an ingrowing hair. Not for a golf ball sized cyst!

Your dog needs to have it removed, I'm afraid.

That's a very big lump on a dog the size of a staffy, and if it gets knocked or infected it will cost you even more money.

Of course you get it removed, it’s a no brainier. I personally believe no one should be allowed to own a dog without relevant insurance.

What I did was have it removed. In my dog's case it was causing a lot of discomfort and the needle biopsy was inconclusive. It turned out to be cancerous so I'm glad I did it

Could it grow back? I think some lumps are prone to growing back. I would want to know a bit more about it first before I made a decision I think.

Surely your insurance covers it? If it was my dog he would have the op.

You wouldnt be able to squeeze a cyst, its not the same as a boil or spot

I would just get it removed, get it over and done with. I dont think thats much money for that to be honest.

We've never had insurance for any of our pets we would just pay as it comes up. We had a lot of outlay when one of ours damaged his leg and back quite badly, with visits, xrays,, treatments etc but we just stuck it on a credit card/overdraft combi.

Its the cost of having pets

The dog is still young, I would get it done.

Thank you all for your (unanimous) advice. Ringing the vet again tomorrow to book him in to get the cyst removed. You are all quite right - it is too big to mess with.

My dog had a tennis ball sized cyst behind her ear, the vet prescribed two courses of antibiotics and it shrank, after about 3 weeks it was the size of a 10p piece, then it burst, she was fine.