Rabbit lump/tumor/possibly cancer

[HiddlesKenway]

I second everyone, get it biopsied and move NOW.

And also here's some encouragement if amputation is require! This is one of my buns Loki, he's just under a year old and had his guns leg amputated (Not for the same reason, he severely broke his ankle to the point his ankle joint separated.)

 

[mollie07]

The vet at upenn Ryan hospital said she didn't want to biopsy it because she might damage some nerves that have wrapped around it. Ugh now they want either a X-ray or ct scan to see if it's attached to the bone or not ! I just want them to take it out and stop just trying to spend my money! This has been going on for 2 months now! I'm so frustrated and feel like I've gone nowhere with this... Guess now I have to find a local vet who will do a ct scan.

 

[lovelops]

The vet at upenn Ryan hospital said she didn't want to biopsy it because she might damage some nerves that have wrapped around it. Ugh now they want either a X-ray or ct scan to see if it's attached to the bone or not ! I just want them to take it out and stop just trying to spend my money! This has been going on for 2 months now! I'm so frustrated and feel like I've gone nowhere with this... Guess now I have to find a local vet who will do a ct scan.

OK but remember, find someone who can *read* the CT scan. I got two idiots who kept telling me I had nothing wrong and I was sitting there telling them I had at least 3 broke ribs and in reality I had 4 broke ribs.

I would be aggressive if the vet is holding it up because of the CT scan.

There are also some places like for human's that only do CT/MRI/Xray's for Pet's. I have found a few here in my area and wonder if there are any in your area. You just call up and get the referral for the area to be checked out from
your doctor and they do it right then and there.

Please let us know what you find out and hopefully you can get this taken care of and removed asap and most importantly ease your mind. I can tell this is really heavy on your mind and you are really worried about your bun. It seems like the vet at the university just sat and didn't do anything to make it better. I think and this is just me thinking aloud they could have done some type of ultrasound or something to avoid hitting a nerve or something. I've never heard that before, but then again, I haven't been in your situation.
I don't want to see them jerk you around and in the end you find out you could have done X early and got this taken care of. That is the worse feeling.

Good luck and please keep us posted.

Vanessa

 

[lovelops]

I second everyone, get it biopsied and move NOW.

And also here's some encouragement if amputation is require! This is one of my buns Loki, he's just under a year old and had his guns leg amputated (Not for the same reason, he severely broke his ankle to the point his ankle joint separated.) View attachment 8627

Loki is a cutie! What a sweetie!

Vanessa

 

[Usagi_Chan]

This is really frustrating.

You say this has been going on for two months. Meanwhile the growth is getting bigger. It is also more likely that it is spreading, getting into the lymph nodes which are in the armpit region. Once that happens Bun is doomed. The cancer wll spread and removing the growth or the limb will not help him.

You need to realize that to a vet Bun is just a another rodent and it's really no big deal if he dies. He doesn't begin to understand how anyone could love a rabbit. You can get another as far as a vet is concerned. Forget cat scans, x-rays, etc. If Bun is to have any chance at all, you MUST AGGRESSIVELY demand that the vet operate, remove the growth and do the biopsy and do it NOW.

I would instruct the vet to examine the growth once he has opened the leg and if he feels it's unlikely that he can remove ALL of it, then to amputate so he DOES get it all.

If you don't have a vet who will do this, then you must find one who will immediately. Call around, email, find a vet who has at least done spay/neutering of rabbits which means they know how to administer anesthesia to them. If you are well heeled, money is no problem then demand that the vet you have operate and that he quit delaying.

Insisting on or letting the vet insist on getting x-rays. cat scans etc. is just going to operate on your wallet and cause yet more delay. Meanwhile Bun's chances of survival get worse and worse with each passing day.

bob

 

[HiddlesKenway]

Two months?! I would be furious! One of my buns had an abscess recently removed from under her ear and that took two weeks and that was more delay then I wanted, although she was on antibiotics but when they finally operated (A few days ago.) it was so bad they had to remove some muscle and cartilage--this girl was in fact a rescue from back to back breeding and looked after terribly--she had probably been like it for a few months causing it to worsen severely any longer and it could of given her brain damage or killed her with infection.

Find a vet who knows what they're doing or demand they take a risk because your rabbit's life is worth fighting for.

And I totally know what you mean how vets don't want to do operations like this on rabbits or anything along the same lines the vet I went to (Most fairly rabbit savvy and one extra rabbit savvy vet.) told me straight out that I was better off putting Loki to sleep and these were his exact words "It's very hard to adopt animals with issues." And I was just a bit gobsmacked when he said that too, putting him to sleep was not even an option in that circumstance and he will be staying with me until one of us keel over and as goes for all my other buns! I have many I've had for years. My oldest boy is five this year, I've had him since he was eight weeks old.

You fight for your bun, okay? Don't give up and try and convince them

 

[mollie07]

Thank you for all the support everyone. It really means alot and it helps to hear others stories and things you have gone through with your rabbits as well. I tried contacting the specialist I went to but she is off work today (figures). Im going to have her call my local vet and describe to her what kind of x-ray she needs to get more answers. (My local vet is much much cheaper - which is why Im going to my local instead of the specialist) I love my bun with all my heart but I unfortunately do not have all the money in the world to spend on him...I wish I did but that is not my case. I'm hoping tomorrow the two vets can call each-other and discuss and tomorrow night get the x-ray and get things moving. I feel like everyone is in la la land about this and Im the only one freaking out. The tumor went from the size of a pea to the size of a golf ball in two months! Please send positive thoughts our way. Im hoping to get some more answers tomorrow. I'll write back tomorrow.

Thanks again everyone! Send bun some love <3:bunny22:

 

[HiddlesKenway]

Good luck, Mollie! Good luck to bun too. Hopefully everything goes well and things finally start moving! It's awful having to wait to know how things are.

 

[mollie07]

Hello again!

So my local Vet and the Specialist Vet I went to at UPENN called each other to discuss what is going on. (I'm glad were all on the same page now) They both reccomended I get an xray done on Bun. This is the most reasonable first step to see if bun is a candidate of surgery or not. With the X-ray we will be able to see 1. if the mass has taken over his bone or not and 2. if the mass has spread into neighboring tissues or not. If his bone is still visible and the shadows of the tumor seem to be in one spot then it is a tumor that is easier to work with. If it has spread than there is really not much that I can do.. I'm hoping and praying that the tumor is a Benign tumor (non-cancerous) and that it has not spread into his other tissues. I'm hoping it has contained itself in one spot. (fingers crossed) So tomorrow night bun will get a few x-rays and I will get some answers.

Please send love and happy, positive thoughts to my little bun bun. He needs all the hope and love in the world. <3

 

[mjpeter]

Just read this thread...I'll be keeping your Bun in my thoughts and prayers. (You too) ray:

 

[HiddlesKenway]

I wish you good luck and that this is the last of Bun's wait to recovery.

 

[lovelops]

I feel the same I hope they can treat this and everything will turn out fine!!

Vanessa

 

[HiddlesKenway]

If it makes you feel any better I just found a massive lump on Daxtar my Sheba Mini Yak (Guinea pig) it has me worried with Jessamine recovering from an ear abscess, I just don't know when I'll have the money to get him to the vet and by then, depending on what it is it might be too late. My hope is that it's a fat tumor and not cancerous or an abscess as guinea pigs can't have antibiotics. Oh dear, I hope all are babies get better.

 

[lovelops]

If it makes you feel any better I just found a massive lump on Daxtar my Sheba Mini Yak (Guinea pig) it has me worried with Jessamine recovering from an ear abscess, I just don't know when I'll have the money to get him to the vet and by then, depending on what it is it might be too late. My hope is that it's a fat tumor and not cancerous or an abscess as guinea pigs can't have antibiotics. Oh dear, I hope all are babies get better.

I hope your baby is ok and it's not anything serious. Can you call the vet
and talk to them about it? Some times they will work with you if you are honest about the financial situation. I've had them work with me.. all in all, I hope it's nothing serious..

Take care
Vanessa

 

[lovelops]

If it makes you feel any better I just found a massive lump on Daxtar my Sheba Mini Yak (Guinea pig) it has me worried with Jessamine recovering from an ear abscess, I just don't know when I'll have the money to get him to the vet and by then, depending on what it is it might be too late. My hope is that it's a fat tumor and not cancerous or an abscess as guinea pigs can't have antibiotics. Oh dear, I hope all are babies get better.

I hope your baby is ok and it's not anything serious. Can you call the vet
and talk to them about it? Some times they will work with you if you are honest about the financial situation. I've had them work with me.. all in all, I hope it's nothing serious..

Take care
Vanessa

 

[mollie07]

So here's the latest on Bun:

We got the Xray done and his bone is still visibly there which means the tumor has not started to eat it away yet. The tumor is surrounding his bone though.. I sent the X-ray to upenn and they reviewed it but are still requesting a CT scan before surgery. I have the CT scheduled for this wednesday then hopefully soon after we can do surgery and get this thing out. My only concern is the vet still thinks she will have to amputate his leg where as Im more so hoping we can just cut the tumor out around his bone.. I really just dont want to remove his front leg.. I know rabbits have survived before with 3 legs but it just sounds so awful to me to do that too him.. Im pushing towards just removing the tumor and leaving the leg. Im hoping the surgeon can do it but we will see. As far as bun.. He's still doing ok. He's perky and eating and drinking. The tumor is almost the size of a tennis ball id say so I can tell he is becoming uncomfortable.. He is on a pain medication which seems to help relax him.

What would you do if your rabbit had a tumor this large? Would you amputate his front leg to hopefully save his life? Im so torn about it. Im rly rly rly hoping and praying that they can just remove it without removing the entire leg..

As far as costs.. Vet said could be anywhere between $2500- $3100!!

I know it sounds like a whole lot but idk what else to do at this point.. And putting him to sleep is not an option in my book. I just love him so much.

 

[Usagi_Chan]

I believe I stated what it cost to have the tumor removed from Pegasus and to have it biopsied: $273 US Dollars, total. (Vet in Raleigh NC)

From your description I strongly suspect that Pegaus's tumor and Bun's tumor are identical. Personally I'd find another vet who isn't looking to you for the next payment on his Lamborghini.

If I had it to do over, I would use the very same vet. I would have insisted that they amputate if they weren't 100% certain that they could get all the cancer. If they didn't amputate I would have scheduled visits every month or two to examine him to make sure it hadn't returned. If it returned I would have insisted on amputation. I suspect that Pegasus would still be here had I done that, but I did the best I could with what I knew at the time.

The tumor is almost certainly cancerous, considering its rapid growth. The longer you delay, the more likely that it will spread to heart, lungs, etc. When that happens, it is too late,

Doing a bunch of tests just adds delay. Tests results aren't going to tell you or the vet what is really going on. The fact is you and they still don't know. The only way to know is to operate, see if the bone is invaded, then remove either the tumor or amputate, whichever is then obviously indicated.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

bob

 

[lovelops]

I would ask for them to remove the tumor. Doctors will always go the path of least resistance, or the easiest route. I have seen this personally. Insist that they remove the tumor from around the bone. It's not only their opinion it's also your call since you will be paying for the bil. If they go into surgery and find it's not possible then they can tell you. I've had vets call me in the middle of surgery before for decisions. It's not unheard of.

I would not amputate when they can remove it. If it was the last choice or death, then it's different but it does not sound like it to me. It's another case of what is easiest for the doctor to do and they will almost always do this.

I had to pay $5000 for Buttons MRI's and maxed out a $10,000 credit card when he became paralyzed but I felt that he was worth it. Hopefully they can work with you on payments, credit cards, something. I agree with you on not putting him to sleep. I don't see that as an option unless they are riddled up with cancer and can no longer function and even then it's a tough choice knowing there is aggressive cancer treatment out there.

Good luck and insist on getting things done your way. You pay you drive the action. Not the doctors. They have no stake in his what so ever and you need to remember this. Ask them if it was THEIR pet what would they do. I bet you get a different answer. I have on more than one occassion and not only with pets but treatment for my mom.

Vanessa

 

[mollie07]

Ya that is really really cheap. My primary vet said she didn't feel comfortable doing surgery on bun because she wasn't completely experienced with rabbits and she was afraid she would loose him during surgery..Which I appreciate her honestly. There really is not a local exotics vet that is fully experienced with rabbits.. And at this point I dont rly have time to fuss and search for another vet and have to explain everything again. Ive come to the fact that I'm going to spend some money but I at least know he is in the best possible hands.

 

[mollie07]

Yea im laying my fist down about the surgery. I mean if they say they cant get it out without removing it then thats a different story but i want the amputation to be a 2nd step..not the first. I want a phone call if they decide to do so..