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My 9-year-old dog has a marble-sized leg lump. What should I do?

Updated on September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | American Cocker Spaniel | Female | spayed | 9 years and 8 months old | 21 lbs

My dog has a lump on her leg roughly the size of a marble. She is a 9 year old cocker spaniel and is very healthy otherwise.

3 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on February 4th, 2018

Thank you for providing a picture of Mia's lump! It could be a benign tumor, a cyst, or a malignant tumor. Unfortunately in a senior dog, there is always a chance it could be malignant. Any suspicious lumps should be examined by the vet. The vet can perform a test called a fine needle aspirate on it. To do this, the vet sticks a small needle into the lump to get a sample of it's cells, and examines the cells on a slide under a microscope. It's usually painless to the animal, and relatively quick to perform. I would take her into the vet in the next couple of days to have this lump examined and diagnosed so it can be treated as needed. Good luck, I hope this helps!

1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

Related Answers from Veterinarians

Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS
Veterinarian
Published on June 27th, 2017
Thank you for providing a picture of Kelly's lump! In a senior dog, there's always a chance it could be a malignant tumor, but it could also be a benign tumor or a cyst. Any suspicious lumps should be examined by the vet. The vet can perform a test called a fine needle aspirate on it. To do this, the vet sticks a small needle into the lump to get a sample of it's cells, and examines the cells on a slide under a microscope. It's usually painless to the animal, and relatively quick to perform. I would take Kelly into the vet tomorrow or the next day to have this lump examined and diagnosed so it can be treated as needed.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful
Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS
Veterinarian
Published on June 25th, 2017
Unfortunately in a senior dog like Libby, there is always a chance this lump could be a malignant tumor. It could also be a benign tumor, but the only way to know for sure is to have her seen by a vet. Any suspicious lumps should be examined by the vet. The vet can perform a test called a fine needle aspirate on it. To do this, the vet sticks a small needle into the lump to get a sample of it's cells, and examines the cells on a slide under a microscope. It's usually painless to the animal, and relatively quick to perform. I would take Libby into the vet tomorrow to have this lump examined and diagnosed so it can be treated as needed.
1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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