Health issue, mass or tumor?

[AKMarmot]

Has anyone ever heard of a dog Having a mass or growth that wasn’t’ a tumor. A month ago our Weimaraner was coughing so we took her in. Vet did chest xray & found out she had pneumonia & bronchitis. In addition the xray showed an incidental mass on the lower lobe of the lung that is about the width of a rib & length of 2-3 ribs. We treated her with a couple general antibiotics & one round of wormers. Then came back in a two days did full blood panel, & I believe a trach wash as well in hope of finding something with a lab culture. This turned up nothing, blood panel was fine.
Because we had be in SD this last November the vet said it was possible that the mass was a parasite, or fungi & the body sometimes would isolate it or section it off . However last week went back in for another xray & while the pneumonia has cleared up & the bronchitis is almost gone the mass had not changed. It wasn’t bigger or smaller & they really have no idea what it is. So they recommended one of the pet emergency offices in town that has an Ultra Sound & could do a biopsy & possibly remove this lobe.
However, I don’t like the Emg. Vet that was referred, & I can’t get past their vet tech in trying to find out an estimate & she is no help. & just says I need to schedule an appt. with their specialist. I kind of think I would like a second opinion from other vet whether or not an ultra sound /biopsy is the best next move, or if we should just watch it. Don’t know if there is another ultra sound in town or not will have to find out.
Has anyone heard or experienced similar?

[tailwind]

First question: How old is your dog?
I have heard of many growths on dogs that were non-cancerous.
Generally a vet tech knows very little. But remember, your veterinarian is a for profit buisness, and IMO most are money driven.

[AKMarmot]

She will be 9 this spring.
The for profit part is getting irratating. After three vists, three antibiotics, blood work, a lab culture, & sending x-rays to a radiologist & now I need to start over from square one with a new vet. I have the cd of the x-rays & dont' think more blood work is necessary since less than a month ago the results came back fine.

[tailwind]

Hey bud, if she is nine, and they can't say for sure what is going on, take some time and see how she does. Life expectancy for weims is ten to twelve years, so the doc isn't going to be extending things much in either scenario. Sometimes it is best to enjoy the time we have with our best friends, rather than subject them to invasive and traumatic medical treatments. I know that is a hard pill to swallow, I feel for you right now. Please keep us posted on progress. Got any pics of her?

[ak rhubarb]

I have to agree with Tailwind, but then again I don't know your situation from just a paragraph. I put around $3,500 into my dog before I saw that it wasn't really helping anything or improving the quality of his remaining time. Every situation is different, and that may not be your best move.
My only experience with lumps on dogs has been cancer, and that was the case with the dog previously mentioned above. He was my first dog, and honestly I think the vet realized that and took full advantage of my emotions.

Best of luck with you dog.

[savageak]

my dog a mix about 80 pounds has a lump on her chest started out about the size of a garden pea and now is about like a golf ball cut in half just had it biopsied to find out what it was .turns out its a fat wad a localized fatty acumulation....think positive,you should be able to find a vet that wont drag you through the coals in your aera to give you an answer.

[AK Explorer]

Biopsy sounds right to me, that is, if you want to know if it is a tumor and whether or not it is malignant, but heck, call around and just ask for a ballpark figure in different places, or even an old vet and ask what to expect as far as cost. I just ask them straight out - I always get the feeling that the vet is looking at me sideways like I don't love my dog if I ask about cost, but I say screw 'em, it's my money and I don't have an unlimited supply, so I want to spend it wisely. Not to mention, if they charge twice what everyone else does, I will be going elsewhere. My last vet back home was the only one I ever met not in it for money to some degree. He was older and semi-retired and just liked animals. Other than getting them fixed which was still only like $100, I don't think I ever left there paying more than 50-60 bucks, and usually it was about 25-30.

But IMO, if a doctor or vet (or anyone else in business for that matter) refuses to be straight about cost, they won't have me for a client much longer. It is one thing for something to be expensive, but if they aren't straightforward, I feel like they are trying to rip me off. Just took my pup in bc of diarrhea and feel like they did a bit too much for something non-life threatening, but I am the owner and when I was satisfied, I decided where we stopped. They want me to do more tests, but as long as she is as energetic and healthy as she is, I don't care what they want. It is my dog and my money. Just my $0.02.

In your case, 9 yrs old, I agree with the above - I would watch her. You know her well by now and should be able to tell pretty easily if she isn't her normal self. It could be a tumor, but it could also be scar tissue from a major fall or something much younger. If it doesn't seem to affect her, I wouldn't go nuts over it. Personally I would do the biopsy if it was a reasonable cost, but if things were really expensive, I'd just wait and see if she gives any indication of something wrong. If it ain't growing, that's good.