My dog has a lump and isn't eating or drinking. Should I see a vet?

Question

My dog has been acting really weird lately. I don't know if she's sick or what because she had this large lump on the side of her. We switched her dog food because she wasn't really eating it, so we switched her to can food. When we would go outside to feed her she would be really excited. Then when we came out to feed her like we always do, she was g excited she's been staying in her bed, she wasn't eating only drinking water just a little bit. Then urinating. Now she's not eating nor drinking. Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Female | spayed | 50 lbs

Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS · Accepted Answer

It does sound like Pepper is sick. This large lump on her side could be an abscess, cyst, benign tumor, or a malignant tumor. An abscess or malignant tumor would cause her to not want to eat or drink. It is serious that she doesn't want to drink, and I would take her into a vet now. If you wait until morning, she could become seriously dehydrated, and it's best to prevent that. The vet can examine the lump and can perform a test called a fine needle aspirate on it to diagnose it. To do this, the vet sticks a small needle into the lump to get a sample of it's cells, and examines the cells on a slide under a microscope. It's usually painless to the animal, and relatively quick to perform. The vet will also likely do routine blood tests and a urinalysis to diagnose why she is feeling so poorly, and how best to treat her.

My dog has a lump and isn't eating or drinking. Should I see a vet?

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