Advice please:)

Mez1982

Hi all, We brought our 7 1/2 month old GSD to the vets Tuesday for to have him neutered, we got a call at 1:30pm from the vet who said he had ran into some complications. He said that our dog only had the one testicle decended and that the other one is still inside somewhere so he only took the one and wants to schedule him in for surgery in 3 months time, We have been asking for roughly how much it is likely to cost he doesnt seem to be getting back to us with one and we just would like to know so we can have the money saved for it when the time comes,from what i have read it seems to be based really on how long it takes for the vet to find it? Could giving him an ultrasound first be helpful in locating it? Thanks in advance:)

fatmammycat

Mez1982 wrote: »

Hi all, We brought our 7 1/2 month old GSD to the vets Tuesday for to have him neutered, we got a call at 1:30pm from the vet who said he had ran into some complications. He said that our dog only had the one testicle decended and that the other one is still inside somewhere so he only took the one and wants to schedule him in for surgery in 3 months time, We have been asking for roughly how much it is likely to cost he doesnt seem to be getting back to us with one and we just would like to know so we can have the money saved for it when the time comes,from what i have read it seems to be based really on how long it takes for the vet to find it? Could giving him an ultrasound first be helpful in locating it? Thanks in advance:)

Everyone I've spoke to about GSDs ( I have one, 10.5 months now) says it can take up to a year for GSD's testicles to drop, so I'd wait until then before I'd neuter him at all. Of course I am not a vet, but I do have a genuine problem with how quick vets are to neuter big dogs like GSD before they are fully grown or have reached maturity.

DBB

fatmammycat wrote: »

Everyone I've spoke to about GSDs ( I have one, 10.5 months now) says it can take up to a year for GSD's testicles to drop, so I'd wait until then before I'd neuter him at all. Of course I am not a vet, but I do have a genuine problem with how quick vets are to neuter big dogs like GSD before they are fully grown or have reached maturity.

I'm with you on this one fatmammycat... the evidence is pointing strongly towards leaving large breed males pass their first birthday at least, before neutering them. This research doesn't seem to be disseminating down to many vets, for some reason.
OP, I'm a little surprised the vet didn't know there was a testicle missing before he operated! Surely at that stage, he could have told you to wait and lob the two of them off at the one time? By doing it the way he did it, your youngster is going to undergo two general anaesthetics within a few months.
I'd be a tad annoyed with the vet, I'll be honest. You brought the dog in for a procedure that has only been half done, and this could have been avoided had the vet examined the dog beforehand to check that the two testicles were down!
I think I'd be looking for a considerable reduction in the cost, given that the vet kinda messed up on this. For the record, it is absolutely obvious when there's only one testicle down: a quick feel is all it takes. A good feel around the groin will often, though not always, locate the second, undescended one.

fatmammycat

DBB wrote: »

I'm with you on this one fatmammycat... the evidence is pointing strongly towards leaving large breed males pass their first birthday at least, before neutering them. This research doesn't seem to be disseminating down to many vets, for some reason.
OP, I'm a little surprised the vet didn't know there was a testicle missing before he operated! Surely at that stage, he could have told you to wait and lob the two of them off at the one time? By doing it the way he did it, your youngster is going to undergo two general anaesthetics within a few months.
I'd be a tad annoyed with the vet, I'll be honest. You brought the dog in for a procedure that has only been half done, and this could have been avoided had the vet examined the dog beforehand to check that the two testicles were down!
I think I'd be looking for a considerable reduction in the cost, given that the vet kinda messed up on this. For the record, it is absolutely obvious when there's only one testicle down: a quick feel is all it takes. A good feel around the groin will often, though not always, locate the second, undescended one.

Aye, I walk my dog in a pack most week day mornings– he's intact– with an older male lab (8) also intact, and a variety of other dogs, but mostly bigger dogs, and we're constantly talking and researching 'wisdoms' that have changed over time.
Most people we meet out are amazed that 'intact' dogs can be social, easy-going and NOT the pack boss (our pack boss is a much older neutered lurcher). It's been interesting and educational to see hierarchy at work, and how swift and pretty pain free the occasional skirmish has been. The manners my own dog has developed since being part of a pack is remarkable, especially since he is a forward dog. Physically I can see the difference between my intact male and a friend's male who was neutered at 6 months (same breed, related litter). Even their faces are developing differently.
IMO large dogs need their hormones for plate growth and muscular development. Being intact does not mean a dog will be aggressive or some kind of wild beast to handle. And without ragging on vets, neutering is good money, and of course the word on the street is ALL male dogs benefit from it. :rolleyes:

Anyway, this is a derail, and I'm sorry about that. It just irks me to read young pups are being operated on thusly, when the vet ought to have checked the dog for BOTH testicles, and waited a little longer.

Mez1982

OP, I'm a little surprised the vet didn't know there was a testicle missing before he operated! Surely at that stage, he could have told you to wait and lob the two of them off at the one time? By doing it the way he did it, your youngster is going to undergo two general anaesthetics within a few months.
I'd be a tad annoyed with the vet, I'll be honest. You brought the dog in for a procedure that has only been half done, and this could have been avoided had the vet examined the dog beforehand to check that the two testicles were down!
I think I'd be looking for a considerable reduction in the cost, given that the vet kinda messed up on this. For the record, it is absolutely obvious when there's only one testicle down: a quick feel is all it takes. A good feel around the groin will often, though not always, locate the second, undescended one.[/QUOTE]

Thank you for your reply DBB, the vet said there was no way to tell before he had him 'opened up' which to me had us thinking why didnt they do an examination first also. we are certainly peed off with this vet as he had him there under the anestheic and could have done it there and then instead of having the poor dog go through another recovery later on. Also when he rang he had the decended one out we never got an option either to go ahead with the op as if we had of known then we would have definitely waited and got both removed at the one time later on down the road! When Zeus was collected that evening the vet wouldnt even come out to talk to us about it..should have realised somthing as amiss. These vets are local to us and as we have no transport of our own it wouldnt have been practical to get to our dog to a different vet and if things had of been different they definitely wouldnt have crossed my mind...it just seems now that it was a case of getting more money out of us charging us full hack for half a job and then god only knows how much else when he goes back to take the other one in 3 months...

@fatmammycat Thank you also for your response , We didnt know that they can still drop at a year old the vet said that once its somewhere in the abdomen that its highly unlikely to come down itself. he also mentioned it giving him a higher risk of cancer but he never said how high if significant at all..I think using scare tactics tbh

boomerang

I would have thought that both testicles drop at the same time, unless one is retained? At least the vet is right on one thing - there is a greater risk of testicular cancer in a cryptorchid dog.