Testicles dropping late in life / disappearing testicles

[BigDogs & LittleHorses]

A few days ago I discovered what I thought was my cryptorchird thirteen year old stallion had two, uniformly sized testicles in the scrotum. Up until then, there had only been one visible and neither I nor the vet could ever locate the other. I was always a little bummed about his problem because I had a few inquiries about using him for breeding over the years and always had to decline on that.

I seriously would like to know if anyone else has a stallion that seems to lose one testicle occasionally, and if anyone else had one that dropped late in life, etc.

I thought that once the inguinal ring had closed up, it pretty much would have been trapped away forever. So this makes me think that it has always been there but he has the ability to pull it up and hide it or something.

Daryl

 

[crponies]

Considering that the second is the same size as the first, it was obviously there all along. If it had been up inside his body it could not have grown to its full size. I have never heard of one that revealed a second testicle so late in life though. I think this is a very interesting case. A lot of people would probably still be reluctant to use him for breeding, afraid he would pass on this tendency to drop late, but as I said, I don't think he really did drop late since both are normal size. It is strange that neither you nor the vet could find it before though.

 

[End Level Farms]

I have heard of something very similar to this.

The horse had normal descended testicles until an accident happened and the stallion was kicked. And when those people felt the horse he had one testicle. He was deemed a crypt. Where upon being sold several years later the new people found that the crypt was not actually a crypt and when they questioned the vet and people involved. They learned that sometimes when one testicle gets injured it will be tucked up really close to the body to recover. Sometimes this takes no time at all and others it can take years depending on the extent of the injury.

Also if its really cold outside when you check sometimes because they are tucked up close to the body it can be extremely hard to actually grasp and feel each individual testicle.

 

[Jill]

I am not an expert, but I do not think once a horse has dropped them, even young, they can pull them back up through the ring. I know in many yearlings I have had gelded, they do hold "them" or one of "them" very tight and close to the body and it's VERY hard to feel them, but they are in fact fully descended.

 

[Nathan Luszcz]

That's correct.. unless there is something wrong with the horse (which is incredibly rare) the ring will close down and prevent the testicle from dropping OR raising back into the body. Many "late dropping" colts are not late, if htey were, they'd be infertile. They were just hiding.

They are good at hiding.

 

[BigDogs & LittleHorses]

Well, whatever the case may be, it's an interesting event anyway. I couldn't believe it!

I don't have any plans to breed him again, but I guess I'll leave him intact for now. He has such a great personality and isn't any trouble, living at the neighbor's barn and pasture. Plus, he has Wyatt to run around with.

If anyone asks me about using him, I'll just be straightforward about it and let them decide.

The other advantage to the situation is now gelding him should be a considerably more inexpensive and safer undertaking, should I decide to do that in the future.

Daryl