I recently lost my wonderful German Shepherd. Life is not the same without him. I have found a 4 month old puppy that I have fallen in love with however, he currently has only one detectable testical. Would I be taking a great risk by taking this little one or should I continue to look? Thanks to all for any information you can provide.

hi,
just had a look in vet clinic book and the term of this condition is monorchids and cryptorchid if both testes are hidden,it only says that veterinary advice is best sought to discover the problem and also that there is no real urgency to obtain treatment unless you wish to breed or show, if that is any help to you, i am sure if you ring the vets they will advise over phone, also not sure if dogs having one teste hormons are different , that would be of interest, anyone out there with a dog with only one teste. regards tina

If you want to breed or show then I would be very wary although there is time yet for it to appear. If you want a pet then apart from the fact that for the sake of his future health the undecended one should be removed before he is adult say 18 months to 2yrs. there will be no other problem from this cause and if you really like him then I would have him but ask for the cost of the opp. that will be needed to be taken off the purchase price. It may well cost more that a castration as depending where the testical is, it can be a more difficult op. Ja:)kie

I believe that one testical will produce all the hormone the dog requires to grow normally into a full male adult dog with all the joys and horrors that intails

I dont know if there are breed differences but when I had a young dog with the same problem the vet said not to give up hope til 12 months, though the likelihood of it dropping became less as time went on. Sadly his didn't appear and he was neutered. However a week later someone who had a litter brother rang to say that she had had the same problem and wait for it... had a homeopathic remedy for him and within 2 weeks the testicle had dropped at 10 months!GGGRRR if only she had rung before it may have worked on mine, too late by then though. It may be worth contacting a homeopath or www.ainsworths.com for advice.

jackie h,
thanks on bit of info regarding hormone bit and one teste, regards tina

In my breed testicles can be slow descending. I have had a male become entire at 18 months!

Thats why I said 18months to 2 years, but if the poster wishes to show it is not only a big chance to take but the pup would be at a disadvantage until the wayward testical decided to show it's self. Ja:)kie

Flatcoats can be very slow as well - 7 months is not unusual for them to descend, but it's a bit of a nail-biting time, particlarly if you're keen on showing or breeding.

I believe homeopathic Clematis is reputed to speed things up!

Jo and the Casblaidd Flatcoats

I bought off canine chemist some "Boy Special".
This is for undesended testicles.
I had a pup with only one testicle and I was told
to try this. The best test is to up end your dog,
and stroke down his hmmmmm and manipulate around
the end to produce a testicle. How else can I say this,
it sounds so rude!!
But if one appears you stand a chance it will appear later
on. My vet told me to massage it daily. LOVELY JOB :D
He said that basically the hole that the testicle keeps
popping back into will one day close up. If the testicle is
no massaged then it stands a chance of not coming down.
I am no expert on this matter so I just go along with what
I am told.
Now I own a dog with two huge testicles. But was it the
massaging, boy wonder or just life itself. Who knows.
I think homeopathic is worth a try as we cant be for sure
if it works but its better to try something than nothing.
Nutkin

Are you blaming the size or the number on the massaging? No you were right to encourage the wayward one, they develop in much the same place as the ovaries and make their way to the outside world in their own time, hopefully before the doors shut, some don't make it, and have at some time to be located and removed. Ja:)kie

Jackie
I had to smile. No I did not blame the testicle size
on the massaging. Rather a funny thought really.
Sometimes typing down what I think comes out
the wrong way sometimes.
Would a true undesended testicle not come down with
massaging? I expect it would be too far up to come down.

Nutkin

I don't know really, but even if un-massaged they are inclined to come & go to start with, and I think in a lot of cases the door gets shut in the decending testicle face and it remains in no mans land waiting for the surgeons knife. I remember one of mine with a laze one that would appear when he was hot and disappear when cold. The temptation to grab it and hold on was very strong, even thought about a rubber band, but I didn't and he is now perfectly normal. Ja:)kie

It deoends which side of the inguinal ring the retained testis is.

A friend of mine had bought a pup to show (already had five other BSDs) on the understanding that if he was not up to scrastch for the ring in any major way, that a pet home would be found while he was still a puppy.

He had only one testicle up to five months, and they were fast getting to the point that despite common sense, they would feel unable to give him up. I suggested they have an ultrasound done to find where the tetis was. Their practice has a visiting ultrasound specialist who usually diagnoses cancer, pregnancy etc. He told her he would probably be able to do it.

Well he found that it was above the Inguinal ring, and too big to pass through at his age, so it would never come down.

The breeder put him in a lovely pet home, and my friend now has another pup from her, not a world beater, bu5t something she can show.

For those who wish to know where the Inguinal ring is, its just below the bladder & within the groin. when the testicle reaches this point it is about 2/3's of the way to it's finnished site in the scrotum. If you have or have seen a dog with a Inguinal hernia you will know where it is. Oh! & if you are begging to know where the journey begins it is just behind the kidney, 1 kidney, 1 testicle, get the picture. Ja:)kie