Hello,

I have a full male GR who is 2 1/2. I have never had a full male before as my old boy was castrated at 9 months! But I decided to leave this boy whole for a few reasons - he is on the shy side and so I thought that the testosterone would help his confidence and also being a GR is obviously at high risk of developing bone cancer and there have been a number of recent studies out that say if you neuter before maturity they are at greater risk of this.

Anyway, what health checks should be done to ensure the testicles are in good health?

Just make a note if anything looks abnormal for him, the size and texture should not change, same as you would for a man.

Elderly males like their human counterparts can be prone to Prostate enlargement, this can be dealt with chemically if anaesthetic is not a good idea (say for a very elderly dog with weak heart), or by castrating if causing issues with weeing.

Most males will have no issues to the end of their days.

I also have a good look and feel of the testicles around once a week when I am doing one of their grooms. My breed have a very long heavy coat so I am grooming almost everyday but every Saturday, I part the hair, have a look around them and feel them to make sure there are no lumps or bumps to cause concern. My last old boy used to get eczema on his testicle sac and it used to cause discomfort so cream had to be applied regularly. I also inspect the penis to make sure that there is no redness or swollen bits around it.

Not particularly enjoyable (for me!) but necessary.

Thanks!

Is testicular cancer rare in dogs?

Yes, prostate cancer occurs more often and most often in NEUTERED males.

Quick question - my boys skin has recently got darker on his testicles. Is this just part of growing up? Or something to be worried about?

Can't speak for all breeds, or individuals for that matter, but generally speaking with my Basset puppies they had pink testicles.  I've just checked (LOL) my 4.4 year old boy here and his are now pink with black pigment (mottled - nice!) just as he has elsewhere on his body.    I'd suggest B-e-c-k-y that if you are concerned about what's going on with your lad, you mentioned this to your vet next time you visit.   Any abnormal skin texture, or of course, lumps and bumps must be checked.

We've had a couple with prostate flare-ups (quite possible the result of living around bitches coming in and out of season in our small show/breeding kennel) in later life.   If this happened, I'd normally had them castrated to prevent this from keeping on happening.   One I had chemically castrated to avoid surgery.   And that appeared to work too.  None of this involved cancer.    The only cancers I had in my males, most of whom remained entire, was lymphoma in a 12 year old and oral cancer in one at around the same age.

I'd suggest that bone cancer tends to run in breeds (Rotties lots at the moment), castrated or not.   As far as I'm aware, it's normally the bone growth that's affected if a dog/bitch is neutered too young.