The American Beagler Forum

took one of my pups to the vet today he's 4 months old and while hunting
today i noticed he had only one testicle and it looked inflammed.the vet
stated the 2nd should drop any time and all is well! then he told me i
should consider having both of them fixed!! if i'm not going to breed them.
is this something i should think about? i'm new to the sport of beagles
and bunnies and i dont want to take the hunt out of them,i rely on this
site and the people on this site for info. all replys will be welcome.

thanks

i definately wouldnt get him fixed yet. i mean heck he could turn out to be the best dog you ever own and if you get him fixed you wont ever be able to breed him. hes your dog but i would wait awhile and see how he turns out.....just my opinion. and you know what they say about opinions lol...keith

neutering won't take any hunting ability away from the dog, just his ability to reproduce. It would also exclude the dog from an akc trial/show if this is in the dogs future. You have enough time to make that decision with a 4 month old pup. Keep watching for the other testicle to drop, if it doesn't I would consider neutering sooner than later.

Your pup is currently suffering from "cryptorchidism" a.k.a. undecesended testicle. Due to the age of your pup it could either be temporary or permament.

If it is permanent, you should have him neutered since cryptorchidism is genetic in nature. So even if he does turn out to be a good dog, it's of no use, you shouldn't breed him unless you want to get more one-nut pups!

Also, the retained testicle also greatly raises the chance of your the dog having testicular cancer.

Having him neutrered won't affect his hunting desire. Hunt is a genetic drive not affected by the status of the sexual organs! But if you want to compete in trials you might as well hang that up. Since they not not considered brood stock, cryptochidistic dogs are barred from many offical kennel club events.

Overall, I'd wait until he is 6 or 7 mos - the testicle should be down by then. If it is, no worries. If it is not, have your boy snipped. It will be the safest & most humane thing to do for your dog.

I just went thru the same thing, at 6months old the second testicle did drop, all is fine, he hooked his first female, by accident, ALLS WELL......

My vet says that ever time i take them there. But I am not going to get mine neutered i may want to breed them later on.

Your vet is telling you that for a reason!! Besides, why would you want to breed a dog w/ a genetic defect when there is plenty of healthy brood stock out there??