Hello i have a 6 month old american bulldog and one of his testicles has not dropped.?

Question

i already saw a vet and he said it most likely will not drop.....i have decided not to get him nuetered because in fact it takes away territorialness and instinct. Is there hard evidence that he will get cancer, or any ratios you can throw at me.

Answer 1

"Testicular tumors are most common in intact (unneutered) older male dogs. However, they can occur in intact males of any age. There does not appear to be any breed predilection for this tumor. The current cause of testicular tumors is unknown. Dogs that have one or both testicles that are not descended (cryptorchid) are 13 times more likely to develop a tumor in the undescended testicle than dogs with normal testicles."

And

"Neutering greatly decreases the chances of developing:
• Prostatic disease. Over 80% of all unneutered male dogs develop prostate disease.
• Infections and disorders of the prostate glands. Prostate conditions such as prostate enlargement, cysts, and infection are all related to the presence of testosterone.
• Perianal tumors—These are tumors whose growth is stimulated by testosterone these are commonly observed in older, unaltered dogs. Perianal gland cancer is the third most frequently diagnosed cancer in older intact male dogs.
• Serious types of hernias. These are commonly observed in older, unaltered dogs and can occur on either or both sides of the anus. One of the long-term effects of testosterone causes the group of muscles near the anus to weaken or atrophy. The surgery to repair hernia complications can range from $300 to $1500, depending on the severity.
• Infections and disorders of the prepuce (the outer covering of the penis)."

Answer 2

Where are you getting these facts? First of all, fixing a dog does not change peronality for bad. A well treated dog that knows he is loved and has a good home will always be protective. I am in rescue and we spay/neuter all dogs. First, because there are too many out there without homes. But most important is the cancer risk!

If your vet did not explain that then shame on him! Cancers in dogs are on the increase. And cancers of the glands are most common. I cannot imagine that any vet did not strongly caution you of the risk being higher if that testicle stays up inside! Unbelieveable! Of course he would rake in a bundle if had to treat for the cancer later on!

Hard evidence? Well, only the many dogs, male and female that get dumped on the rescue because they already are eat up with cancer and usually too late. And now we get to deal with it and not the owner that wouldn't. And I would have to research boxes and boxes of vet bills over 14 years for the number of intact males taken in already cancerous, majority with hidden testicle.

We just had a 7 month old pup through the surgery because of this. Longer surgery/more difficult to go in and find the testicle. It doesn't remain where you'd expect to find. Long incision as it had moved up into belly area!! The body can sense it as a "foreign object" that should not be where it is and then cancerous cells form around it.

Not sure why you think a neutered dog loses instincts!!

Answer 3

I have heard that cyptorchidism can cause up to an 10% higher cancer rate, but I do not think that there is a set percent. Neutering will not necessarily take away his territorial instinct (my neutered male is way more territorial and protective than my non-neutered male) it just depends on the temperament of the dog. If you do not neuter him, be sure not to let him breed. It causes severe problems with the puppies and can even harm the mother buy causing the puppies to die in utero. plus it is unethical.

Answer 4

Sometimes it can take a full year for the testicles to drop fully, but this usually happens by seven months, your pup could have an undecended testicle, you should take him to the vet if it still hasn't dropped in a couple more months. Even if one testicle drops these dogs are usually sterile, and the undefended testicle must be sergicly removed or it will cause a lot of problems. If you bought him fully pappered and planned on breeding him take him to the vet, have the vet give you proof that he is undecended and will be sterile and contact the breeder you bought him from, they should give you a new pup, I hope you have a contract guaranting him to be free of genetic defects. If you didnt plan on breeding him the sterile thing wont be an issue but the surgery he could need to make sure the undecended testicle doesnt becoma cancerous will cost you a grip!

Answer 5

I have a german shepherd that had the same problem and I did'nt want him neutered either.Was afraid he'd be less aggressive and get lazy and fat.I did alot of research on this matter.
Then I thought that if there was only 1 in 1000 chance he'd get cancer and he was the one-how I was going to feel watching him suffer when I could have prevented it.The thousands his care would most likely cost us to treat him until we were forced to put him down compared to the $200 it would cost to ensure he never got it.So I made up my mind that I'd give it till he was a year old to drop but he'd never be bred if it did.
The surgery was done when he turned a year old and he was in sheer misery afterward.Every time he went pee it got in the incision and I felt horrible as if I'd gotten it done when he was younger he'd not have suffered so much.
As it turned out he's very aggressive toward strangers.Very territorial and the only instinct we seem to have messed with is the one that tells him he has to mate all the time.
Please get it done now while he's little and know you'll have one less thing to have to deal with later instead of being selfish and inconsiderate to him.
If you allow him to breed he will pass on this trait to his pups and they'll pass it on to their pups.His off spring will be worthless as you will be held liable for selling unhealthy pups,be forced to return any money you received for them plus vet bills and legal fees should it come to that.It's a bigger headache than it's worth.And for all your effort you're going to get the pups back-what then?You can't breed any of them as normally it's the male that passes this trait but there is no evidence suggesting that females cannot also pass it on.The males who have both testicles drop can carry the trait in their genes as well to pass on.So if you got this pup with the idea of breeding you need to be told that you have a moral and ethical responsibility to the breed as well as the buyers of your pups to sell only pups that are healthy with no genetic defects.
The only thing that kept us from suing the back yard breeder we got our dog from was the thought that a judge would force us to return the dog and those idiots would either breed him or put him down.

Answer 6

"WHAT IF A DOG HAS AN UNDESCENDED TESTICLE?

Undescended testicles have an increased tendency to grow tumors over descended testicles. They may also twist on their stalks and cause life-threatening inflammation. For these reasons, neutering is recommended for dogs with undescended testicles. This procedure is more complicated than a routine neuter; the missing testicle can be under the skin along the path it should have descended to the scrotum or it may be inside the abdomen. Some exploration may be needed to find it thus there is often an incision for each testicle. The retained testicle is sterile and under-developed. If there is one descended testicle, this one will be fertile but since retaining a testicle is a hereditary trait, it is important that the male dog not be bred before he is neutered."
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_canine_neuter.html#Undescended-testicle

http://www.bcrescue.org/cryptorchid.html
http://ndrc.tripod.com/tonuter.htm
http://www.newtownvet.com/spaycast.htm
http://www.upei.ca/~cidd/Diseases/urogenital%20disorders/cryptorchidism.htm

You need to neuter him! The reasons you presented are not good reasons not to neuter.

Answer 7

This condition is called being Monorchid, if neither drop it's called cryptorchid. I suggest you get him neutered, simply because it reduces his need to mark everything. The fact that you WANT your dog to be territorial worries me. You don't need an attack dog that won't let people in your yard or house. Neutering doesn't take away his basic instincts, it just takes away his sexual impulses. He won't mark as much and he won't hump things as much. Please consider neutering him. It really is the best for both him and you.

Answer 8

'it takes away territorialness and instinct' ?!

SAY WHAT? Ur dog is definitely at higher than normal risk of several cancers, including prostate, testicular, and a couple of others that are androgen- or testosterone-stimulated; IOW, in the presence of male-hormones, the more male-hormone, the faster these cancers grow.
this is no different than the fact that some kinds of breast-cancer tumors are stimulated to grow faster in the presence of female-hormones; hence the increased-risk of breast-cancer among women who took 'hormone-replacement therapy', or HRT, for the symptoms of menopause. at one time, PMU-derived hormones WERE the single most-prescribed drug in the USA - but women dropped them when they found out the hazard they represented.

i would STRONGLY suggest that U desex Ur dog:
* Yes, he is at higher risk of cancer;
* Yes, he is USELESS for breeding:
the only thing he needs testes for... so why are U keeping them?
he has an excellent chance of passing on this problem to any of his pups, and even his F offspring can carry this damaging trait - so no one wants to breed their dam to Ur dog, or if they do, they are very ignorant of dog genetics and the damage of this heritable trait.

and last and MOST important: NO, desexing Ur dog will NOT prevent him from 'defending his territory', which is what i'm ?guessing? that U meant by 'territoralness'.

even police-canines are now routinely de-sexed; the only thing it does is keep them focused on their jobs, and less interested in leg-lifting, hunting up other dogs to fight, looking for females in estrus, and other distractions.

Male pups NORMALLY have both testes dropped by 5 weeks - and by 8 wks, ALL M pups should have both testes down in the scrotum.

the retained testis is kept at too high a temperature to form normal sperm, so fertility in these dogs is much reduced; the number of abnormal sperm is also HIGHER, and sperm motility is lower.

take it all around, there is EVERy reason to de-sex Ur dog, and No Good Reason to keep him intact.

Given that he will be more inclined to FIGHT other male dogs, roam in search of female dogs, AND BITE, why are U so determined to keep the testicles that he can't be allowed to pass on to any progeny?!

(HSUS statistics summarized that the most-likely dog to inflict a serious bite is an intact male dog of two years age, who is untrained and has never been in an obedience class).
Please do the right thing: de-sex Ur pup, AND take him to an obedience class!!
American Bulldogs need a GOOD IMAGE, that of well-behaved, well-cared-for pets, with RESPONSIBLE OWNERS - and U can do something to enhance that image.

keeping him intact only adds ammo to the argument that Bully-owners are only macho jerks, who don't take proper care of their dogs and don't bother to make well-behaved community members of their dogs, but rather keep them only as ego-enhancements and all too often allow their dogs to fight or threaten other dogs or people.

please don't give AmBulls a bad name!

Answer 9

Neuter him! It will not change his personality or his other behaviors and he will have a long and happy life.

Answer 10

I had a Sharpe' who only had one nut and his never dropped and he didn't get cancer it just a thing he'll be fine.lol