Hi,

We've had our new little lad for just over a week (Jack, cocker spaniel) and at 9 weeks old today he's just been to the vet for his first injection. The vet said that he could only feel one testicle and said he would check him again in 3 weeks when he goes for his next injection, he said not to worry just yet but it's hard not to worry about it as I believe that if the testicle does not develop from the abdomen then it increases the risk of cancer.

Could anyone set our minds at ease? Are we right to worry this soon or is it a common problem in puppies of this age and breed? We've only got one other dog and she was our first, she is also a cocker spaniel but obviously we didn't have this experience with a bitch.

Any thoughts/comments would be appreciated.

my pup has an undecended testicle its nothing to worry about. it might come down. If not you can remove the undescended one and leave the other if thats what you choose to do.
I posted with concerns just like yourself and very gratefull to all who replied.
emma
p.s See i do listen.

Personally I would give it until he is at least a year old, you could try massaging round that area to try and stimulate it to 'drop',
If the vet has reccommended castration, give it time before you decide, if you dont want him done, you could get the retained testical removed and leave the other where it is so you still have the hormones to keep his coat nice etc,
I am a dog groomer and we see so many dogs with only one testical and they are fine so I wouldnt worry too much im sure he will be fine :-)
Vikki

Hiya - i had a litter of cockers back in january, the little boy i kept had this problem, vet checked him at 8 weeks and i was advised by my vet to have him castrated as soon as he was old enough cos of all the problems it would cause, however - don't worry too much - by about 4 months it was down and everything was normal, i think vets just like you to worry and spend more money, i would have left it at least a year before worrying about it.

Nikki x

I've known dogs right up to nearly a year old carry one or both inside. You have months yet before you need to start worrying. :)

Regards, John

Thanks for all your replies, you've set our minds at rest :-)

I remember from years ago a very good looking show prospect had only 1 testical, the very zealouse owning found an accomodating vet that put an implant in. The dog went on to do very well in the ring, untill one day the other testical dropped, and the dog then had three, much to the amazment of the examining judge.

Just thought I'd add to this I had my tom cat neutered last yr and was presented with 4 testicles by the vet when I went to collect him! He told me it was a bit of a shock and he was going to charge me double because it was like doing 2 boys - told him he should be paying me for the priviledge as it was such a RARE opportunity for him to exprience such a thing lol. We agreed half the normal price and a promise from me NEVER to take him a cat from the same breeder again lol.

hi guys..............late dropping /undesended testicles are inherited ''tell the breeder you got him from......it is far more likely it won't drop even if you use hormone injections like the germans do....neuter the dog and be done with it it does not keep the coat nice to keep them intact...it ruins the mind if want a sweet pet......testosterone is not a wonderful hormone that will fill our pets hearts and lives with joy....more like its the cause of all the worlds problems...testosterone driven behavior!!!!!!

Trip trap................... the 3 billy goats gruff will be along soon ;)

carolyn....why not drop the crytic messages...if you think undesended testicles are not inherited or testosterone is a terrific benifical hormone in pets i'd be interested in hearing how?...........

Hi Kelly,
As you say, it is almost certain that there is an inherited factor in undescended testicles, so the mating should certainly not be repeated. However, testosterone has a real function for the dog (or else it wouldn't exist!) - without it, some dogs become less confident, which can lead to fighting. It helps to raise the metabolic rate, helping the animal to stay at its correct weight, and the dog is likely to have a change in coat condition after castration.

It is important always to remember that we neuter dogs for our benefit, not theirs!

Must be nice to know it all, saves you tring to understand the other side of the story.

jackie that was uncalled for.
Jeangenie thank you for your advice

You're welcome, Emma :) I know a very happy, healthy 11-year old Golden Retriever who had his retained testicle removed at about a year old, and who is in all other respects a perfectly normal, handsome, masculine male Golden. He has the most delightful temperament (despite still having testosterone ;) ) and still looks like a good example of his breed.

So to all owners of pups with undescended testicles - don't be rushed into anything!
:)

Sorry, it was not directed at JG, we must have posted at the same time. Feel very strongly about glib statements such as that made by Kelly, having just buried one of my boys who suffered all his life from being castrated.

That's okay, Jackie - I know you and I are both in favour of surgery for medical reasons, not routine convenience.
:)

Jackie sorry to hear of your lost. I need as much info from all sides to make an informed decision so i don't end up regretting it. In the area i come from there is underlying pressure to have the dog castrated especially as he is a boxer (calm him down), but im not so sure i don't want him to loose his charector or his coat (which is so shiny you can nearly see your face in it).
The vet said get him done at 6 months (ah no) the bigger he gets the more expensive it is (i will just save a little longer).
The other advise is that if he is done he will fail to have a defined body.
Its not a decision i can make lightly if i go ahead i can't get them put back if im wrong.
emma

I am not replying about the testicles as such but to your response about the neo x rottie that they arent right in the mind (or something like that)
You can not possibly blame testerone for everything....you wrote..."testosterone is not a wonderful hormone that will fill our pets hearts and lives with joy....more like its the cause of all the worlds problems."
..

I think some dogs if fixed early do not grow as they would of if intact. T-Bone female her vagina is nothing like her moms it is very tiny, but she is bigger in size, build then her mom and was spayed at 5 months. Not fat at all has a very nice tucked up belly and very active she weighs 24 pounds. Dozer male who was fixed at 5 months same thing his private part is smaller then his dads and small in build but is tall almost as tall as T-Bone, his brother from the same litter is intact and filled out nicely very nice build. Dozer is not fat either tucked up belly and very active. Fixing them has not slowed them down at all. Their coats are all very nice and shiny, my vet just loves how they shine.

Maybe if u are planning on fixing him wait until he is mature....the one thing I noticed is that they do not mark as much as the intact one not near, Junior marks every where :D Dozer seems to still squat alot sometimes he will lift his leg he's 2 years old.

ttfn :)

"it ruins the mind if you want a sweet pet"

bit of blanket statement there - I have had entire dogs who are very sweet and very well mannered and well behaved dogs! castration is NOT the answer to everything.

it would of been to a cheeting boyfriend i had a few years ago.
regards
bunny boiler

Sorry this is long, Emma asked me about my dog so here it is, I have a number of males but this was the only one I have ever castrated. so I do know both sides.

Fred was castrated at 13 months old and the first thing I noticed was after about 6 months his coat was changing. He had a double coat and the undercoat was becoming felted and difficult to groom. We then noticed that he began to smell and had a yeasty deposit on his skin. I realised that his skin was always damp and it was not long before he had itchy sore skin and continued to have through the rest of his life requiring various treatment at various times. Next it was noticed that his head was not developing and never did and around his neck where there should have been a main of hair he developed a roll of fat, the head and the fat did not worry him but it was not how we wished our dog to look.

Then he started to have more serious health problems, starting with early onset arthritis that required medication for the rest of his life. Followed by what proved to be the biggest problem both to him and us. Other dogs, including ours, started to treat him as if he was a bitch in season, not good when you have sore joints to have every dog you met jumping on you. So we had to put him on hormonal treatment, again for the rest of his life.

Now the amount of drugs and hormones he was taking started in their turn to take a toll, due to reduced immunity, and he began to have recurring infections, some minor but some major. The worse was lung infections and demodectic mange. Needless to say in the end, with the cocktail of drugs, he succumbed to liver and kidney failure.

Now a few dogs suffer no changes at all when castrated, most have some effects, but not too serious and most owners do not realise it is an effect of the castration. Then there are a few like Fred who suffer a good deal. I would never do it to another of my dogs except for medical reasons and by that I do not mean the chance of testicular cancer (of course, you can’t get a tumour in a gland you don’t have) or prostrate cancer that is so rare in dogs it is not even worth considering. I feel vets would be better employed explaining to owners how to check for tumours in their dogs rather than talking people into removing the glands that produce about a quarter of the dog’s hormones. Most dogs manage without but some don’t, and were they humans and suffered the loss of their testes or ovaries at a young age they would spend the rest of their lives on HRT.

Jackie, thanks for sharing your experience of castration - I have to agree with whoever says it's done for the owner (and often the vet :-( ) not the dog. Re prostate cancer - it's not common in dogs but the majority of cases are in neutered dogs so castrating is certainly not a health benefit on that score.
Incidentally, I had a dog with an undescended testicle who died of other causes at 16 - I think it is the vets who scaremonger because it benefits their bank balance.
Caro

Caro, a pleasure, you sound as if you know what you are talking about I hope I did not talk down to you, but I expect you hear the prostrate cancer thing as much as I have and it is so rare and as you say most who do get it are castrated anyway. Did not say that as I don't like to upset people who have already had it done, for what ever reason. Until you have had a bad experiance you are inclined to believe those who are saying what your want to hear, and ignore those who say the opposite. Such is human nature.