blood filled lump on my guinea pig

Question
QUESTION: I have a female guinea pig approx 2 yrs old. About 5 months or so ago I noticed a small lump on the side of her groin area. It has gotten quite large and I am very concerned.  I took her to the vet and he aspirated some of the fluid from the lump. It is filled with black blood, a small amount of puss and some white blood cells.  I forgot the medical term the vet used, but he suggests this can not be removed and the best thing is to put her down.  If this is what is best for Abigail, (before she has to suffer) I will have to make that choice.  She otherwise seems happy and healthy. That makes it all them much harder to make this choice.  Is this common in these little guys. I know they are prone to different lumps and bumps, but I can not find any info on one of this type.  I believe the vet thinks it is some type of vascular cancer.  I will have to call him today to get the correct name he is using.  I can not afford the bloodwork it would take to find out.  Any info you could give would be great.  Thank you.

ANSWER: Susan,

I'm sorry to hear about Abigail, and I am also sorry but I can't find anything at all on a lump like which even comes close to the description of the lump in which Abigail has. Without the name of the lump I am unable to find anything about it.

Guinea Pigs are prone to different lumps and bumps, though a lot of them are treatable by sugary or even just medication. It is very uncommon for a lump not to be treatable, though it does happen.

If it is cancer there are some fresh foods that you can try feeding Abigail to help in reducing the the size and help in a kind of healing of it. My dwarf hamster has cancer and the vet said she would live maybe about 3 more months, I started feeding her fresh foods the are said to help with cancer, and now the lump has gone down and it has been about 6 months since seeing the vet. Here is a list of some of the foods that are safe for Guinea Pigs to eat that you may want to try. It may help as a type of treatment for the lump and maybe just keep her from suffering. Here is that list,

Broccoli,
Mustard Greens,
Bell Pepper,
Collard Greens,
Kale,
Cauliflower,
Strawberries,
Spinach,
Tomato,
Pumpkin,
Grapes,
Summer Squash,
Raspberries,
Carrots,
Apple,
Cucumber,
Asparagus,
Winter Squash,
Celery,
Peas,
Watermelon,
Oranges,
Curly Kale,
Parsnip,

All of this is good for a Guinea Pig to eat and also been proven for help in healing of cancer. So you may want to feeding her some of these, though it may not heal the cancer totally, it should help in reducing the size and help her to live a somewhat normal life without suffering.

  Take Care Now,
         Jules

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you for your help.  I usually feed my piggys lots and lots of fruit, carrots, cucumber, and broccoli all the time.   The vet is calling it a Humangeo something.  He is not sure but thinks it is cancer and that the tumor is filled with blood vessels.  It is ashame that vets have to charge so much for office visits and blood work for animals that are so small. It makes it very difficult to make a decision on maybes and could be's.  The vet who aspirted the cyst believes it is a tumor and is cancer. He thinks it may be filled with lots blood vessels and that is why this tumor is filled with black blood. He believes that it will eventually break an she will hemmorage to death.  I certainly don't want to take that chance, but she just seems fine otherwise.  I know I can not find out what this is for sure without doing further tests, but I was sort of hoping someone else has heard of something similar. Thanks again for your help.  I love Abigail dearly and certainly don't want to make the wrong decision. I want what will be best for Abigail.
ANSWER: Susan,

I am sorry, but I still can't find anything on it. It must be pretty rare then. As I have tried everyone of my resources and then some to try and find something with no luck.

If vet visits didn't cost so much I would suggest that you might want a different Exotic vet to look at. But knowing how much vet visits cost I am not sure how much better it would be. All I can truly say is that the choice is yours and yours alone to make. You are the one who knows Abigail the best and loves her very much.

I am sorry I couldn't be of more help to you and Abigail. I hope everything works out for the best,
    Take care,  
         Jules

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for trying. We are truly heartbroken and very confused at this time...... sometimes loving animals can be so hard!!  

Answer
Susan,

I am truly sorry I couldn't be more help to you. I know how hard loving animals can be, it is no harder to love an animal then it is a person. I've had to make tough choice to over the years for my own animals, and it is hard to do but in the end you have to think about what is best for them. Again I am truly sorry I couldn't be more help to you.

     Jules