What does it mean when you find a small lump on the side of your cat?

Question

and dont say cancer.

I was gona take him to the vet anyway.

Answer 1

It means it's time for a trip to the vet. It could be nothing, but it could be something. I had my last cat for 9 years. One day I noticed a small bump about the size of a pea on her side. About a week later, there was a second one so I took her to the vet. He said they were tumors and I paid about 100 to have them both removed. One was cancerous. It was about 5 months from the first time I noticed the bump until the day I had to put her to sleep from the cancer. I know it's not what you want to hear, but it's a possibility. Always take your pet to the vet if you think something's wrong. My vet charges me 10 dollars to look at my pets. 10 dollars is worth the peace of mind.

Answer 2

Lumps are quite common in cats. And often they are nothing -- especially if your cat is old. The best thing to do, though, is to get it checked. That is because if it is something like cancer, often cutting it off and cutting off surrounding skin totally cures the animal, at least if it is a skin cancer of some kind. Letting it go would allow it to spread. So I would get it checked. But it may just be a fatty deposit so don't freak out just yet. In the meantime, make sure your kitty is getting enough fatty oils like salmon oil (but not too much). I have had experience with lumps, so feel free to email me. Beth

PS, it cost me only $30 to have lumps on my cat checked to ensure they were just fat. It is WELL worth the money and peace of mind to have a vet look at it under the microscope. I freaked for a while thinking it was something bad, and it was something so benign.

Answer 3

It means it's time to take it to the vet to find out what it is, especially if it hasn't gone after a few days.

This is the list of things a small lump could be:
+ insect bite
+ injection reaction
+ beginnings of an abscess (area of infection, usually from an injury)
+ a benign tumour such as a lipoma (fatty lump)
+ a malignant tumour
+ a foreign object stuck in the skin causing irritation
+ a small cut with localised swelling

Given this long list I think it's worth having it checked. An insect bite will usually disappear within a few days - anything other than that needs medical attention.

Chalice

Answer 4

Well you can't determine what the lump is until it is examined by a veterinarian. A "fine needle aspirate" might be recommened to evaluate the microscopic cells in the mass. This =/- biopsying or removing the mass/lump is the only way to determine if the cells are cancerous or not. See your vet.

Answer 5

I just found out a small lump on the side of my dog. It turned out that it was a kind of big flea ( a blood sucker ) which planted itself. It had it for three days , but just today I watched it closely and sow it had legs and it was a bug, which I removed imediatelly.

It might not be the same situation, but take a closer look.

Answer 6

It could be cancer but it could also be a cyst , and it could also be scar tissue from a wound. Has your cat been in a fight with or been scratched by another animal? You need to get your cat checked out either way. Try not to worry, chances are good it's nothing serious.

Answer 7

Some animals develop tumors as they get older. Sometimes they can be serious, other times perfectly harmless. Fat tumors often develop in older cats and are not dangerous. However, only your vet can tell you for sure.