Lumps and bumps and when should we worry about them – that is what I want to cover this week.

Both dogs and cats can be prone to getting lumps on their skin or just under their skin and, understandably, these can be of great concern to owners.

The majority of these lumps will be benign, but it is always worth getting them looked at by a vet. Some lumps, such as warts, we can identify by simply looking at them, but some need a little more investigation.

The quickest and least invasive way to try and identify a lump is to take a “fine needle aspirate” – this is where we suck a few cells out of the lump using a needle no bigger than one you would use for an injection.

The aspirate is then examined down a microscope – the advantage of this method is that it is quick and easy and can be done with the patient conscious, the disadvantage is that the results are only as good as the few cells that we harvest, and the lab cannot always give us a definitive answer. If we are still unsure what we are dealing with then we need to either biopsy or completely remove the mass and send it for histology – this must be done with the patient anaesthetised.

Sometimes if we know that a lump is benign, we will leave it well alone and only look to remove it if it grows very large or becomes an issue by getting damaged, infected or in the way when the patient walks.

No two lumps are the same and no two lumps are in the same position so always get them checked out – prompt treatment is always the best option.