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My dog's fatty lump came back, now it's bigger and harder. What to do?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Miniature Schnauzer | Female | spayed | 5 years and 10 months old

My mini schnauzer had a lump on her back on the left next to her tail it was removed and there was no cause for concern, it has come back and the vet said it was a fatty lump, it is getting much bigger and harder and I'm worried!

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Amy S. Eutsey, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on October 28th, 2017

I am wondering if a full surgical excision biopsy was done on the lump when it was removed. True lipomas or fatty lumps do not typically grow back. She may develop a new one near the area. There are other types of masses that look very similar to a lipoma but are malignant. A Mast Cell Tumor can look exactly like a fatty tumor but a biopsy report from a pathologist would have been able to distinguish between the two. A Mast Cell tumor can become hard and inflamed. When these masses grow around the rear/tail/anal area or the "perineal " area, they can be quite aggressive and difficult to completely surgically excise. Belle should definitely have the mass addressed as soon as possible and it may be helpful to see a biopsy report from the first surgery.

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    Answered By Dr. Massimo Orioles, DVM, Cert AVP, MRCVS

    Veterinarian

    Published on November 5th, 2019

    Fatty lumps (lipomas) can grow up to considerable size without causing any problem, but in rare cases can turn into malignant masses (liposarcomas). A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is essential torule out this clinical suspicion. Another sampling may be needed. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

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    Answered By Dr. B. DVM, DACVIM (Oncology)

    Veterinarian

    Published on July 17th, 2018

    Lipomas can unfortunately get this big; and if they don't grow, become more firm or attached, or hinder the mobility of the pet removal may not be recommended. Typically most lipomas can be diagnosed with the test your family performed, a needle aspiration. But, sometimes I do see patients that develop a secondary tumor type within the lipoma. So it is important to periodically palpate the mass to make sure it's not changing in texture, firmness, or causing any discomfort to the pet. An xray of the area is also helpful to assess whether the mass is purely a fat density or if it may contain different tissue density that is more concerning. There are also some tumors that can masquerade as lipomas and may not be readily diagnosed with the needle cytology. If there is a suspicion of this scenario then some pets undergo a small biopsy. Unfortunately the only way to fully remove a lipoma is with surgery, although this can typically be more of a conserative surgery as these masses are benign. For dogs that are not good surgical candidates, some times we will try to see if we can shrink the lipoma with a steroid injection. So it may be worth having an additional discussion with your vet about this mass. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

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