Lumps and Bumps in Dogs

Lumps and Bumps in dogs are not normal.  Simple.

"So how long has this lump been there", I ask.

"For a long time, doesn't cause her any pain", the owner says. " You said it was nothing and that it was ok to leave it."

"Well, I have no record of it from her last visit 12 months ago." I state.

" It has only been there for 3 or so months. Started off real small, and now it is the size it is now" he points to something the size of a tennis ball."

Ok. I last saw your dog 12 months ago. The lump only came up around 3 months ago, and you are telling me that I told you that it was OK to have left it, and done nothing about it. Sounds logical to me (not).

In all fairness, the above scenario doesn't happen often, but it does happen. 

Some people, rather than being honest with themselves, justify their lack of taking action on a third party... in this instance, me, the vet.

I would, and most other vets wouldn't ever say that a lump was ok to leave unless we were darned sure what it actually was.  In the world of lumps and bumps, size does not matter, where the smallest of lumps can be the nastiest of things.


We are always here to help you, help your pet.

Want to know more?  Go to our lumps and bumps page. to find more about what we can, at Russell Vale Animal Clinic, and especially what I can, as Dr Liz, can help.

Is love enough?

There are alot of songs out there about love.  In fact, I would take a leap of faith and say that probably 80% of the pop songs are all about love.

"All you need is love"  Really? 

"Love is a Many Splendoured thing" You think?

"Love, Love will keep us together" Not convinced.

Is the love of what you do enough to keep you doing it?  Is the love of your family enough to keep the family together?  Is loving your pet enough when serious welfare decisions need to be made?

People often use love as an excuse to not do the right thing.  They are under the misbelief that all the love in the world is enough.

It's not. 

The love of what you do is  not enough if it doesn't  pay the bills, or put food in your children's mouths.  I once knew a person called Linus.  He was a social worker as was his wife.  They were passionate about the welfare of teenagers and especially those from troubled households.  I didn't know him when he was a social worker.  I knew him as a postie - the guy who rides the motorbike delivering the letters.

Love was not enough to keep him in his field of helping people. Society does not pay these guys well enough. Society pays movie stars, racing car drivers, tv reality stars, footballers well - but how do they improve our society?

Love of the family is often not enough to keep families together when the parents fall out of love.  Many couples fall into the trap of thinking love is all they need, and when they fall out of love with each other, they divorce.

 If you listen to the oldies who reach 50 plus years together, most of them say the secret is not love, but respect, and trust, and just fixing the things that get broke. 

But is loving your pet enough?  ( Sorry, but yes, it is always  about animals for me.)  Too  often, I see people making decisions on their pet's veterinary care based on the love they have for their pet.  And this can cloud the decision making process.

"I can't do that, I love my pet too much"   "I can't think of putting my pet through that again, because I love it too much."   These, and many other excuses are given by pet owners all the time as reasons on why they will or will not do something.

What all of these owners have in common is the "I".  They make it about them (or their wallets).   But it should all be about the pet.  If your pet could talk, would it agree with the decision you make?

Love is not enough... respect and trust is also  what is needed to make the decisions that need to be made in the best interest of the pet. 

I love animals, but I do what I do as a vet for more reasons than just love.

Love is not enough.

Creaky Joints? Solutions to stiff joints and sore muscles.

Cold weather brings tight muscles and joints, for our pets, and also for us. Looking after our joints (and the rest of our bodies) should be simple, and part of our daily living routine.  Joint care for my pets is divided into two main camps - those who need Everyday Care, and those who need Advanced Care.

Everyday care is for those dogs and cats (and everyone else) who are otherwise normal and active, with no obvious signs of joint or muscular issues. Our aim in these pets is to provide nutritional support for the joints and muscles for normal wear and tear that occurs from daily activity. Without the food for joints, the joints struggle to repair themselves. Our joint products available at animalclinic  are seperated into Everyday and Advanced to make it easier for you to know what you need to get.

Does your pet need Advanced or Everyday Joint Care? Go here to find out more.

Advanced care is for those who you can see have their moments, where getting up is just not as easy as it should be, and perhaps, after a really long walk, they just don't want to do much for a day or two afterwards. You really need a vet to examine your pet to find out what combination of things you need to do (just as physical massage, exercises and medications) to ensure your pet is painfree and happy.

Don't leave it until your pet struggles to go up and down stairs, or cannot get up, before you seek medical attention.  The earlier we can start on multiple therapies (which are really dead easy... trust me), the longer, happier life your pet will have. They are not on this Earth for a long time, so let's make it a good time !

Dr Liz