Rat Hernia

Question
My rat had surgery to remove a fatty tumor about a little over a month ago, and I noticed almost right after her surgery another small lump appeared. I made a vet appointment and the vet told me that it could be a hernia, so to wait it out to see if it got bigger and just keep an eye on it. Well it has gotten a little bigger but it's still relatively small and its located by her right leg, but I think it's definately a hernia because it's more solid then the tumor felt that she had before her surgery. She is 17 months old, and my question is what happens if a hernia goes untreated? Is surgery the only way to fix this? I'm not sure at her age if a second surgery will be good for her considering she will most likely get another tumor down the road which will havwe to be removed.

Thank you for your time.

Answer
Hernias are fairly common and provided there isn't an abcess or infection behind the hernia, they can be left untreated. Of course if its bothering/hindering her in anyway it should be removed - but otherwise, I wouldn't worry about it. If it begins to change rapidly in any way (color, size, texture, etc.) or begins to ooze or leak, you need to get her to the vet pronto.