Help! Need advice on sick rooster with large black lump on his neck/wattle.

[Amber White]

I have an 8 month old Dominique Rooster that started showing signs of an illness about 10 days ago. Last Saturday I noticed some of his neck feathers were plucked out and missing, but he would not allow me to get too close to him that day. The next day I got close enough to him to notice that he had a quarter sized black lump on his neck near his wattle. A neighbor advised that since he was still eating, drinking, acting normally it was likely just an injury from something and that the black spot was likely a scab that was trying to heal. He had a normal appetite for those first few days and seemed to be eating, drinking, pooping, and following the girls around the yard normally. However, a few days later (about Wednesday) I noticed he stayed inside the roost area when I had let the other girls out of the coop to free range...he had never done that before. As of yesterday his energy was WAY DOWN! Today he is not acting well at all! He let me pick him up today (a testament to how sickly he is feeling) and I I tried to clean his spot and apply hen healer (blue) ointment to the area to discourage more pecking. I have been trying to google his symptoms and everything I am coming up with points to this being something fatal (squamous cell carcinoma). Any advice or thoughts for me? He was such a lively, active rooster up until recently. It just makes me sick that he is so ill right now & I want to make sure I am doing anything I can to help him, but I don't want him suffer needlessly either.

The rest of my flock is fine. All 9 hens are happy, healthy and laying eggs like crazy with no signs of any sickness, so this particular disease is isolated to just my poor rooster.

Thanks for your help!

 

[Eggcessive]

Yes, I think that may be a squamous cell cancer, unfortunately. Those can be found on different parts of the body. Can you see any other lesions under his feathers? I would be tempted to see if my vet could remove part of the wattle, or possibly band it, so that it died. Here is some reading a out this:
https://www.researchgate.net/public...squamous_cell_carcinoma_in_a_backyard_rooster

 

[Eggcessive]

How is your rooster doing @Amber White ?