My dog has a lump on his paw. Can we avoid surgery for diagnosis?

Question

My Malamute has a small lump on the side of his back paw, doesn't bother him at all, vet isn't sure what it is,maybe a cyst. He's been given a course of antibiotics and steroids for 2weeks, if this doesn't help vet wants to go ahead and remove lump. Im not sure I want my boy to go through this as he's not great under anaesthetic! Looking for any other options please. Thanx. Pet's info: Dog | Alaskan Malamute | Male | unneutered | 6 years and 9 months old | 108 lbs

Dr. Heidi DVM, CVA, CCRT, CVTP, CVSMT, CVCH · Accepted Answer

It's a little difficult to tell from the pictures how large the mass is, but anytime a new mass is noticed, I always recommend having it evaluated to see what it is and if anything needs to be done about it. Unfortunately, we can't tell anything about a mass by just looking at it. If your vet has not already done a fine needle aspirate (FNA), I would recommend asking about that as the next step since that does not require anesthesia. Your vet can use a small needle to collect some cells from the mass, then look at them under the microscope. They may even need to send the cells to the lab for a pathologist to examine them, so we know what the mass is. If it is benign, you might not need to do anything about the mass at all, but if they see cells that worry them, they might recommend removing the mass at that point. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

My dog has a lump on his paw. Can we avoid surgery for diagnosis?

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