Lump on dogs neck

[Aria20]

Found a lump on my 2yo dog's neck on Saturday. I'm almost certain it wasn't there Friday as I thoroughly brushed her after she got covered in burrs from sticking her head in a bush.

It's a bit bigger than a marble, firm but moveable and doesn't appear to be causing her any pain as she's not bothered when I stroke her and when I've been feeling it! She's also eating and drinking, playing, toileting as normal so I'm hoping it's nothing sinister but I've barely slept fearing the worst that she's got cancer and will need to be put down when she's only 2!

I am going to call the vets and try to get her seen today - has anyone had similar and it just been a fatty lump? Will the vet just feel it and say keep an eye on it or will they do an aspiration? Any ideas what that costs - of course there is no indication on their website of costs! If they do an aspiration do I claim on insurance or does this then mean I can't claim again if it turns out to be something more sinister? I've never claimed on her insurance before so I'm clueless but I know insurance companies try to wriggle out of paying if they can... it's "Purely pets" lifetime policy I think 9k cover....

Sorry this is long, just worried and have no one to talk about it with in real life!

With a 2 yr old it’s way more likely to be a random lump or a wee abscess or something.

I was with purely pets with my last dog, they were indeed awkward to get money from as his health got bad, but to start with they were pretty straightforward.

But no, if you claim for it, you can still claim for the same thing later on, the amount of cover resets yearly but you can claim over and over for the same thing if needed until you hit that 9k every year.

Also, if you don’t claim, it still counts as a pre-existing condition anyway, so you’re as well to claim if it’s over the excess because you’ll need to tell them about it.

If it might be something expensive, check your policy, they have a pre-approval clause over a certain amount.

If I was betting though, I’d bet on something fairly straightforward given her age and how quickly it’s appeared.

Fatty lump
Histiocytoma

Both possibilities in a young dog and quite harmless.

Grass seed under the skin. More of an issue and can get very serious but many are easily sorted or sort themselves.

If she's not bothered by it then fatty lump would be my guess.

My dog's had so many different lump over the last few years and none have needed anything other than a basic check by the vet and then left to their own devices.

Thank you for the replies. I did wonder about a grass seed as she did have lots on her and I thought I'd got them all but I guess you never know. Still trying to get through to the vets for an appointment!

@tabulahrasa thank you for the info about purely pets. We were with petplan for the first year which have a good reputation for paying up but they doubled the premium despite me never claiming a penny so I had to swap and then now typically something comes up!

Finally got through to vets and they can't see her until next week! Said as it's not bleeding or pus it's not urgent...
if it were a grass seed how would I know and is that something you can claim for if it's expensive to remove? @SoftAsABearsElbow

Grass seeds sometimes come out again on their own (cheap!) and sometimes need scans etc to try and track them down (expensive!) - they are a bit of a mixed bag.

Whether or not you can claim will depend on your policy, but mostly you can.

If the lump isn't sore though, a grass seed would not be my first suspicion. Mostly a grass seed causes irritation and pain as it gets infected.

A lump that is smooth, moves under the skin when you push it and doesn't cause any reaction at all from the dog when you touch it. I would think it's just a fatty lump and all the vet will tell you to do is keep an eye on it and flag to them if it changes, gets bigger, starts to irritate the dog etc.

We had a growth removed from our pooch about 3 weeks ago as it was growing quickly (trebled in size over 3 months). Removal was in region of 500. Lab analysis of removed growth around 200. Insurance are paying (sainsburies) and most importantly, we got an all clear within a week, no cancer. Fingers crossed for you.

@SoftAsABearsElbow thanks for the reassurance I've noticed she occasionally is scratching it with her back leg, but is not constantly bothered by it or bothered when I've prodded it!

@Treecreature great news the lump was not serious and safely removed quickly! These pets honestly worry us so much!

Update - the lump is smaller but I kept the vet appointment anyway and they suspect a swollen lymph node. All other lymph nodes were normal and the fact it has got smaller suggests it was maybe an infection that's now passed. They said keep an eye on it and if it's still there or got bigger again in 2 weeks to go back and have it tested. Hopefully it will be gone 🤞

hey there
i faced similar experience with my chihuahua dog and she has been affected with the same symptoms, at first we don't take that much seriousness in that but later it got bigger and we clearly can see she is in trouble so my husband takes her to the vet for medication and after its course she is more energetic and we can clearly see she is free, so i would recommend you to go for a dogs medication or consider seeing a vet.