My cat has a large, growing, draining lump on her belly. What is it?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. This is likely from her mammary gland. There is no way of knowing for sure without an examination though this represents a reason to seek veterinary care. This is usually determined with an examination and a fine needle aspirate (FNA) or a biopsy. Treatment depends on the findings up to that point. I recommend you have Dahlia evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. Good luck and have a good night!

Hi, and thanks for your question. Although a picture of the lump would help to give you more specific answers, this growth should be ideally examined by your veterinarian to have a definitive diagnosis. Your vet will examine it and possibly perform with an FNA (fine needle aspiration) or a biopsy. Differentials would include skin cyst, infections or benign or malignant type of tumors. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Poor Tummy! Possible causes for a lump are: an abscess, a skin mass, or an internal mass in his belly. If Tummy has lost weight or is having any other change either behaviorally or appetite wise I recommend having him evaluated by your Vet. If the mass and in the skin (not the belly), is soft it is likely an abscess or a cyst. Sine this is a new finding I recommend having him seen by your Vet to be safe. I hope this helps and feel free to post a picture if you think that would help us better. Have a great day!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding XiaoMi. It appears that she has a skin infection on her abdomen. Mammary tumors grow out of the mammary gland under the skin. The exception is if the tumor becomes large enough, the overlying skin can ulcerate and rupture. This does not appear to be the case though from the attached pictures. I do think that she should see her veterinarian. She will likely need antibiotics and a medication to control any itching. She will likely have to wear an E-collar to prevent self trauma as well. If the cause of the infection (if that is what it is) can be determined, this can help to prevent future recurrences. Allergies are common ok the abdomen. I hope this information helps!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This may be a benign or malignant growth. This could even be an infection. This cannot be completely assessed just by looking at pictures and usually requires sampling such as fine needle aspiration to determine its origin. Sometimes a biopsy is needed for a definitive diagnosis. I recommend that you have her evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. I am really hoping for something benign. Good luck and have a good day!

If tom is an indoor outdoor cat it is possible that he has a small abscess or wound due to interacting with other animals. I would recommend taking him to a vet to help determine what the lump is. A vet can do an aspirate and look at the cells under a microscope to determine what has caused the lump and determine the proper treatment for them. I hope that toms lumps can be easily resolved. hope that helps

This kind of lump/growth needs to be ideally assessed by your veterinarian to have a definitive and specific answer. Usually there are two ways your vet can do that a part from examining it directly during physical examination. A biopsy can be taken under local or general anesthetic, otherwise a smaller sample through a fine needle can be aspirated (this technique is called FNA= fine needle aspiration). Differentials include skin cysts, infections, benign or more sinister type of tumors. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.