# Cryptorchidism



## Starberry (Oct 23, 2015)

So, I took my two chis to get their blood work for their spay and neuter-babies are a little over five months now. The vet seems to think that Pinky-my male chi-has cryptorchidism since one of his testicles hasn't fully descendent. The vet doesn't think that it will descend and says that the neutering because of this will be more invasive. Has anyone had experience with this sort of neuter procedure? What should I expect. I did some preliminary reading and from what the vet has said and from what I read the neutering needs to happen since if left in tact he'd be at a higher risk of developing testicular cancer later down the road and cryptos usually tend to have more aggressive male behavior-so far Pinks hasn't marked anything but he has tried to mount his sister (though, that might've been more dominance than anything else). Honestly, having him neutered is not a huge deal for me, since I was planning on doing it anyway. But I am upset that the procedure is going to be more invasive for Pinky than it should be.


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## SinisterKisses (Sep 20, 2015)

I can totally understand that you're upset by it, though I don't have personal experience with this specific diagnosis. It's hard to find out that your babies are anything OTHER than completely healthy, especially at such a young age. When we took Finley to the vet for his very first check the day after bringing him home, we found out immediately that he has a hernia. Not a major issue, and a very common occurrence, but caught me off guard and I was a bit upset about it. And then, last month when we had his blood work done a few days before HIS neuter was scheduled, the tests revealed that our poor boy also has micro vascular dysplasia - a liver disease/condition. Very much NOT what we were expecting to have reported back and fairly significant. So I took it hard, freaked out a bit lol. After the initial shock of the diagnosis goes away though, you come to terms with it and it doesn't seem so bad. Although it will mean a more invasive procedure for Pinky (a problem Finley will have as well, since his neuter will also include fixing said hernia), focus on the fact that it's NOT a "serious" diagnosis like cancer or heart disease or any number of other things, and that it's a pretty quick and easy fix


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## Tink (Oct 14, 2009)

Never personally had a dog with cryptorchidism. My daughter however was a vet tech for a few years, and assisted at numerous neuter surgeries involving where one testicle was undescended. Yeah, it's a bit more invasive (may cost more too, depending on a variety of factors) but in the scheme of things, from the Vet's perspective anyway, it's only slightly more complicated than a regular neuter (basically because they have to go searching for the testicle and snip it while it's more in the abdominal cavity.) 

The recovery time may be a bit extended too, again based on how invasive the Vet has to be. I understand your concern, but it's not a major worry. Far more worrisome would be leaving it intact with all the potential problems that could create.


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## MelodyoftheForest (Sep 11, 2015)

My foster chi was cryptorchid. He had two incisions, one in the normal spot and one up where the thigh meets the abdomen. He recovered very fast. Honestly the worst part of the healing was the clipper burn the tech gave him. The incisions were glued and healed in no time. The clipper burn took much longer. He was a year old and 6 lb at the time.


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## susan davis (Mar 25, 2011)

Look at this surgery as a spay. It has a little longer incision, based on where this remaining hidden testicle is. Sometimes, with anesthesia, the vet can bring this testicle down into the scrotum. Hopefully that will be the case. Otherwise it is a pretty routine surgery; finding the testicle. I wonder if a ultrasound could 'find' it.?


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

Yes, a scan before surgery is a great idea. If they operate without one, they can spend a lot of time looking for the undescended testicle, which means your pup is under anesthesia for longer. a scan means shorter surgery time and a smaller incision.
Could the vet feel the testicle at all? One of my boys is a cryptorchid, I could feel the other testicle near the scrotum at 6 months, so was hopeful it would descend. It didn't, it disappeared entirely, so I wish I had had it removed when I could feel it. Hindsight is a wonderful thing lol.
There is a chance it could still come down after 5 months, so I would wait and see for now.


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## Starberry (Oct 23, 2015)

The vet said it was unlikely to descend at this point. Pinky has had a couple of appointments, and there hasn't been much change since the one descended. I don't know if the vet could feel it or not he didn't say, but the vet tech did mention I could wait if I wanted, but she too said it was probably unlikely to come down as well. I probably will go through with the surgery since his sister will be spayed at the same time-they are pretty bonded (he'll literally scream if she's not in the same room with her) and I am a bit worried about them being separated. And having them have the surgery at the same time will make it easier to deal with one of them not picking on the other during recovery time. Plus, I sort of want it out at this point because I am worried about it staying there-even though I know logically it's not going to hurt him if I do wait for it to descend . I think part of my worry is that I had another dog pass from cancer, so just knowing that it could be cancer in the future frightens me. Even though I know once he gets neutered it will be a non-issue.


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## Thia (Dec 19, 2014)

I had a dog who had it, recovered quick from his neuter.


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## Wicked Pixie (Oct 14, 2011)

I would try and work on the separation issues, look up littermate syndrome. To avoid problems in the future you need to teach the pups to be independent from each other now.


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## SinisterKisses (Sep 20, 2015)

Yes, I agree, you should start working on their independence as soon as possible. They'll only get worse as they get older and I have no doubt it will be very problematic at some point. We always made sure to take Finley out by himself when we were working on his socialization, NOT just with his pack, so that he would be would learn to be just as confident and well behaved by himself as he was with his two older "siblings" there to back him up.


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## Starberry (Oct 23, 2015)

I have tried to separate them. Brainy has no problem being alone. They are around other dogs, and are fine socially around them. Brainy pretty much prefers to hang out with my Rat Terrier to her brother. It's only Pinky who has the issues being alone. Part of the issue probably is that they are confined to a small area (they share a puppy proof room in the house). I probably will try to start working on more alone time. That scream of his though is just terrifying. The first time I heard it, I thought he was hurt or something.


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