My Bunny Has A Lump On Her Side – Awaiting Biopsy Results

[Bow Tilly]

Hi everyone <3

Our 6-year-old spayed girl Ta has a little pea-sized lump on her left side by her ribs. A few months ago I thought I felt something there but when I asked my partner to feel it he said it was likely her microchip (she was chipped before we adopted her). It’s been about 6 months since that first feel and now it’s obviously a lump, and it’s bigger. She’s such a happy and healthy girl not showing any signs of illness or discomfort but I thought it best to get her checked over. So off we went to the vet today, much to Ta’s annoyance as she HATES the vet and me for taking her 😛

The vet said it’s definitely a lump just under the skin and not attached to anything, it moves around as you feel it and is medium firm to touch. The vet said it’s clearly not botheiring Ta and as she is in overall great health we could just leave and monitor her, or do a fine needle aspirate to take some cells and identify what’s there. We went with the second option as we were already at the vet which is a mission by itself, it was relatively non-invasive and we decided that more information is better.

She was such a brave little bun for them and the vet got the cells they needed to send to the lab. We’ve got a 7-14 day wait now for the results and I’m a bundle of anxiety and fear. When I asked the vet how common this is, the likelihood of it being cancerous/life-ending, what the most likely result would be etc she just said we needed to wait and see. I respect her way of working and not jumping ahead of ourselves but equally, it would have been good to know a bit more about what to expect. I feel very much in the dark at the moment.

I suppose I’m writing just to share with others who understand the stress of it all, and who may have had similar experiences with their buns. If you have please share as there’s so little that’s helpful online and I’m extremely short on knowledge. I’d be interested to know how things turned out for you and your little loves.

With thanks x

[LBJ10]

I’m sorry. It must be awful having to wait so long. So the vet was able to get cells from living tissue? Because my first thought was maybe an abscess. If it is a tumor though, then they can do x-rays, etc. to make sure it hasn’t spread. A lot of times, they can just remove the tumor and the bunny is good to go for quite some time afterward (assuming it hasn’t spread, of course).

[Bow Tilly]

As strange as it sounds I was hoping it might be an abscess when we first went in as I know those are fairly easily treated. Unfortunately, it wasn’t an abscess. Vet was able to get some living cells from the lump with a needle. The procedure thankfully didn’t seem to bother Ta at all. So reassuring to hear that you can remove tumors!!! I didn’t know if that was possible with rabbits as they are so delicate. I’m hoping it’s not a cancerous tumour and instead a fatty growth or something harmless. But if it is the worst it sounds like we have some options 🙂 Thank you so much for your reply x

[Bam]

It’s a very good sign that the lump is freely moveable and not attached to anything. If its round and even in shape, that’s a good sign too.

I think it was very wise to go for the fine needle aspiration. If it is something that needs to be removed,  the sooner, the better. If it comes back clear, you can keep an eye without having to be so worried.

Fingers very crossed!

[Bow Tilly]

Hi Bam, thanks so much for taking the time to reply! Your message offered a lot of reassurance which I needed. It definitely moves around when you feel it, as you press it moves from under your finger if that makes sense. It’s also round and even in shape/feel. Whatever happens, it sounds like we took the best step forward with the fine needle aspiration which is good to know. It’s just a case of waiting for the results now.

Ta is happily sleeping with her boyfriend Bou as I type this (she lost her sister very unexpectedly last year and we adopted and bonded her with a little boy who’s a similar age). She’s none the wiser about any of this, and the vet visit on Tuesday is a distant memory. It’s lovely to see her relaxed and happy 🙂 Thanks again for your reply  x

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