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My 6-year-old dog has a hard leg lump. What could it be? Is biopsy needed?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Dutch Shepherd | Male | neutered | 6 years and 4 months old | 65 lbs

My 6yo Dutch Shepherd has had a decent-sized lump on his upper hind leg. When we first noticed it (January), we took him to the vet who had no idea what it was but offered to take a (very expensive) biopsy. We live in a small town and aren't very confident in this vet but we have no road access outside (Alaska). We've monitored the lump and it hasn't gotten bigger in the past 4 months. It's fairly hard and very protruding but not painful. What could this be? Should we get it biopsied or removed?

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1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on November 11th, 2019

Endi is at an age where there is a potential a lump could be malignant. It's not as high as chance as it would be in a senior dog, but the possibility exists. I do think it's worth having the biopsy to be safe to find out what it is.

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