Lumps on back of 3 year old cat

[Anjelika]

We have found a couple of lumps on our lovely boy's back - one kind of egg shaped to the right of his spine and feels close to the bone, the other round in shape and much further down his back. I took him to the vet's yesterday but came away quite confused. The vet I saw didn't know what they were and basically said it was up to me how to proceed. They could either try and take samples from both and send them off but there's only about a 55% chance that the samples will be good enough to give a definitive answer or I could just get them removed. Obviously I don't want to put him through unnecessary surgery so not sure what to do really. He's as right as rain but I know that might not count for anything. Do you think I should get a second opinion? He's not insured so I'd be paying whatever it cost. I just wanted more guidance/advice as opposed to a couple of options with no suggestion on their part as to which would be the best.

This seems a bit off that she's saying she doesn't know what they are and the testing isn't accurate enough to find out? That doesn't sound right.

Could you take him elsewhere? Or a more senior vet at same practice if they're usually good?

I mean it could be cysts, boils, even at worst cancer? But it's not nothing. Your instinct would be to remove them but they could go away on their own.

Thanks for replying @BillieWiper. My options are to take him back to the same practice but book an appointment with a different vet (easy to do online). I have done that before when I wasn't convinced by what I was told about another of my pets by the first vet. In all honesty, whilst the woman I spoke to was knowledgeable e.g the success rates for the sampling, I am wondering whether she was more of a triage nurse than an experienced vet.

My other option is to go somewhere else completely and I'm kind of veering towards that as he is only a young cat and I don't want to get it wrong!

My pleasure. Yeah I'd say go elsewhere. You've already noticed they seemed inexperienced about something else and you're questioning if the person was even a vet. And this very inaccurate test? Red flags all over the place.

Have you researched online if this test is meant to be so unreliable in general for cats?

Sounds like they're a bit crap overall.

I hope it's nothing serious and he is a happy little fella x

I would go back for a second opinion, and get the lumps sampled.

Hopefully it's nothing but as he's a young cat and there are two lumps I'd want to find out.

Go to a completely different vet. You got a wet and disinterested answer.

99% of vets are ace but 1% are not - like the locum who filled in for our usual vet about 20 years ago when my cat had been attacked by another. He had to have an operation and I asked what the prospects were. He said. Verbatim. "Well if he comes through and lasts the night then you probably won't be taking him home in a box." Who even talks like that? And he really couldn't have cared less as he took my credit card.

Vote with your feet.

What do the lumps feel like @Anjelika ? Squishy or hard? And what sort of size? And is the smaller one on his back quite firm, smooth and bald, so basically just a skin coloured lump?

Sorry for all the questions! I don't have cats any more but I've had several lumpy ones in the past - one had a lipoma (soft, squishy lump that you can sort of get your fingers around, iyswim) and one had several histiocytomas during his lifetime.

Obviously definitely get your boy checked out by another vet, but if you Google those things I mentioned above it might ease your mind a little in the meantime until your appointment.

@Arlanymor that's absolutely dreadful, what a cruel thing to say ☹️.

Unfortunately in our case the vet was right
My lovely dog had biopsies and ultrasound done and nothing was found. It progressed and was clearly a tumour even though the biopsy showed nothing.

At your cats young age I'd do everything possible though, and probably go for removal, at least then they will be able to fully examine what they remove. Best wishes its nothing sinister.

How big are the lumps and how long have they been there?

Thanks love - if it was now I would have given him what for, but I was in my twenties and terrified and it was two days before Christmas (also my mum's birthday!) But it did make me determined that if I take any animal anywhere then the vet needs to at least seem as if they care as much as I do.

@CarrieMoonbeams the one next to his spine feels quite hard and the one further down is much rounder in shape and the "vet" said she could get her fingers round that one whereas the other is very close to his bone.

So sorry about your dog - I think I've been leaning towards getting the rounder one removed and, whilst he's under, getting a sample from the other one but I would welcome the opinion of another vet. My boy is only 3 and is eating and hunting and behaving exactly the same. DS discovered both lumps at the weekend and they can only just have appeared as DCAT is everyone's baby and always being cuddled and stroked.

Get a second opinion.. Our locum told me my ddog had an infection(mammaries) .. Twice. 2 lots of £80 antibiotics over a month... Phew I thought.
Our actual vet took one glance and said cancer.
2k later and we had her for another year. I was quite resentful of that £160 extra spent tbh!

I'm a vet nurse , a nurse is not legally allowed to diagnose so i imagine you saw a vet, it wouldn't be the norm for reception to book a mass check with a nurse.
Usually when presented with an unknown mass we will suggest a fine needle aspirate -a needle is inserted into the mass and cells are drawn off ,sent to lab for interpretation.
When the mass is a lipoma which is a fatty lump usually harmless ,the cells that we squirt from the syringe leave a greasy sheen on the glass slide so we can often confidently say its a lipoma without further investigation.
I wouldn't agree with the 55% results outcome ,that is not my experience ,not many tests come back without a diagnosis.
If you go down the fna route and get a diagnosis this will give you a clearer plan of how to proceed going forward.
If you have a trusted vet at the practice you use ask them for a second opinion, no one will object to that , they should want to do the best for you and your pet.

My daughters cat was really poorly, she took her to the vets for ---- (shan't say the full name) several times had lots of unnecessary expensive tests and the poor cat was just getting worse. My daughter went to another vet and was diagnosed almost straight away. The poor cat nearly died whilst they were making their money.

Years ago DCat was very poorly. Didn't eat, drink or move for days, I was feeding him by hand, his fur had no gloss. Then one day he got up, ate 3.5 pouches of cat food and was fine. He lived for years afterwards.

I was too scared to move him to take him to the vet but I dread to imagine what it might have cost.

@tsmainsqueezethanks. This is just the kind of advice I was hoping to get yesterday when I took him to the vets but she just presented it as one possible option with not particularly good results, hence me coming out feeling very confused. Def going to book another appointment with either someone else there or at a completely different place.

Would totally advise a completely different place. Hope you get some comforting news soon.

it could be cutaneous lymphoma which is what my cat had - it was a hard lump on her spine about the size of a baby potato. Please find a better vet and get a biopsy done ASAP to give your boy the best chance.