pet rat has a sudden lump

Question
Hi Sandra,

i just noticed a couple of hours ago that my female albino rat, Snarky, has a lump on her lower body-- near her left hind leg. it appeared overnight! it is about the size of a dime, but it does not appear round, it appears almost oval shaped. i felt it, and it is squishy not hard. it also does not seem attached to the leg or thigh, rather it is attached to the stomach(?) or something. she does NOT appear to be in any pain, not even if i touch it. she does not seem tired or anything either.

i'm really scared of this, because a few months ago, two of my other girls both got tumors and one of them died while in surgery :( the other one ended up making it through her tumor revoal surgery, but got a secondary infection about 6 weeks later and died from that. :(

i am HOPING it is not a tumor, but rather that it is an abscess or cyst. is there any way to tell if it is an abscess or cyst instead? i want to avoid surgery if possible, not only because i am afraid of it but because we are financially strapped right now, and i know my boyfriend is going to be hesitant to pay for expensive treatments (though i will cry and he will submit if it is needed). of course my first instinct is to rush her to the vet right away, but i know my boyfriend will protest if it may be something that will just clear up (i.e. not a tumor). so IF there is some way to tell if it is an abscess or cyst, and we can wait a few days then drain it, that would be really useful to us.

some more info. about her: she's rather young.. we estimate only about 10 months old. is it even possible to get a tumor that young?? she's also a very scrappy rat. she had a minor leg injury about a month ago, just a twist that healed in a couple days. she also had a minor rash on her face which cleared, and a couple finger injuries which healed. otherwise she's an active rat with a healthy diet. we don't want to lose her! any advice appreciated.

many thanks.
angie

Answer
Hi Angie

Is this lump under the thigh?  I am hoping its an abscess too. Usually an abscess will appear out of the blue and  grow huge, fast....and may have a crater in the center or a small scab which is necrotic tissue in some cases.  Does the mass have fur over it or is it fleshy?

She is pretty young for a mammary tumor but I cant say it doesnt happen, because it can happen, esp if it is genetic.  Its just not always common at this age and is usually related more to older rats that are ending their estrus cycle. Estrogen soars at an older age and promotes the growth of mammary tumors.  In younger rats it could be related to another cause other than estrogen levels rising. It could be a fatty tumor also.  Lets watch it for a few days, put a warm compress on it if she lets you, and this may bring it to a head if its an abscess.  let me know.

hang in there!

Also, where are you located?  Losing rats like you did makes me want to find you another vet. Not that its unheard of for rats to pass away during surgery or in recovery, but often there is a reason WHY this happened and sometimes sadly it falls back in the lap of the vet and the way he did the surgery in the first place.   You can make our follow up private so nobody can read what we discuss and your privacy is protected.