Freddie the Golden Retriever puppy had a problem

Maeve has owned Golden Retrievers before and she knew about the importance of choosing a high quality animal from a genuine breeder. She found a reputable breeder in the west of Ireland with puppies that were soon to be ready for a home.

maeve met both of the pups parents

Maeve was able to visit the premises, seeing exactly where her pup had been born and reared. She met both the father and the mother of the pups, which gave her an understanding of how the pups would turn out: they were friendly, good-natured dogs. And the breeder showed Maeve veterinary certificates which confirmed that both father and mother had undergone tests on their eyes and their hips to demonstrate that they were free of inherited disorders. So far, so good. Maeve was happy that she had done as much as possible to be assured that she was buying a good quality puppy.

She chose a male pup, and that’s when the issue started. The breeder asked her if she wanted to breed from him, and then seemed relieved when she said “no”: Maeve only wanted the dog as a pet. She felt that it was a bit odd to be asked this question, but thought no more of it.

The pup, named Freddie, is a gorgeous bundle of fluff, and as soon as he arrived home, everyone wanted to visit him and play with him. When Maeve’s sister came to visit, Freddie was rolling around on his back, playing, and that’s when the question came up: did he have the normal “male tackle”? None of Maeve’s family are used to checking out this type of detail, so Maeve brought Freddie up to see me.

freddie came to the clinic

When I examined him, the problem was obvious: Freddie had “retained testicles”. In a normal puppy, the testicles descend into the scrotum and can be seen when the pup rolls on his back. In Freddie’s case, there was no scrotum, and no testicles. There’s only one possible reason for this: the testicles had not descended. When male pups form in the womb, the testicles develop beside the kidneys, but in the first days or weeks of life, they normally descend into the scrotum. In some pups, like Freddie, they don’t descend: instead, they remain in the abdomen. This doesn’t cause any short term problem, but there are three long term issues.

First, you can’t breed from male dogs with retained testicles, since it’s often a hereditary condition, and there is a high chance that any pups born to Freddie would also have retained testicles. 

Second, dogs with retained testicles need to be castrated. If the testicles are left in the abdomen, they are likely to become cancerous. The warm surroundings of the abdomen cause the testicular cells to multiply more rapidly than in the normal, cooler area of the scrotum, leading to a risk of cancer.

Third, the operation to castrate a dog with retained testicles is more complicated (and so more expensive) than a normal operation, because a hunt has to be carried out inside the abdomen to locate and remove the undescended testicles.

For these three reasons, puppies with retained testicles are less desirable than normal pups, and they are normally sold at a cheaper price. The breeder didn’t mention this to Maeve, but she feels that this may be why she was asked if she wanted to breed from him. As a result, she feels a little hard done by: it would have been preferable if the breeder had mentioned the issue, and given Maeve a small discount in recompense.

Freddie may not be a perfect pup in every way, but as far as Maeve is concerned, he’s still going to be the ideal pet for her home.

Tips

• A vet check up is important after buying a new puppy
• There are sometimes issues that new owners may not be aware of
• It’s worth paying a little extra for a healthy pup but you need to be sure that this is the case