Monorchidism - Anyone?

I would love to hear your experiences with this if anyone would like to share ....

I'd love to give an experiance except I don't know what monochidism is!?! I'll look it up though your better believe it -lol

Monochidism-absence of both testicles?
I guess I have lots of experiance because I have no testicles-hehe!

Actually, the way I read it monorchidism is the incidence of only one testicle ... cryptorchidism would be having none - the reason I ask is that I have a male kitten going on 15 weeks old who only has one testicle descended. The vet thinks he is monorchid, but I am told a true diagnosis cannot be reached until the kitten is at least 8 months old with no second testicle descending.

oh-hmmm my lack of knowledge of testicles, what ever will I do -lol
anyway, will he still be fertile having only one descended testicle?
Is that somethig like having a proud-cut horse?

He's probably fertile as I believe the testicles don't rely on each other to produce sperm. However, its a genetic deformity so could be hereditary.

Monorchids may or may not be fertile, however they should never be used in a breeding program. It is passed from the female to offspring and it is recessive.

I had a whippet who was a monorchid. It is best to get them neutered and get the retained testicle out of the body cavity due to it is very likely that it will become cancerous.

Thanks, Bullit - from everything I am reading, that's the best thing to do.

Several years ago, one of our Siamese kittens ended up having only one testicle that descended. Our vet referred to him as being cryptorchid.

The one testicle was removed in the normal manner, while the undescended one was surgically removed through his abdomen.

That is our only experience!

Adrienne, thanks for sharing your experience. Just for kicks, I looked up the word "cryptorchid" and this is what I found"

"Developmental defect marked by the failure of the testes to descend into the scrotum"

And for monorchid, I found:

"having only one testis or only one testis descended into the scrotum"

... so I think your vet may have been mistaken in referring to your kitten as cryptorchid. Wouldn't he be monorchid as defined?

Here is a website that is written by a veterinarian....that's where I found the definition.

http://www.2ndchance.info/cryptorchid.htm

I guess either word could be right then when describing this condition ... ?

Originally Posted by gayef

I guess either word could be right then when describing this condition ... ?

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I think so the definition I got for monochisism was one or both testicles.

I do know that those males should be neutered and never used in a breeding program. It's a big genetic fault. And you have to make sure the vet knows so when neutered they will be sure no sperm or hormones are produced.

Sometimes hormones can still be present where the cat thinks he's a breeding male and will still display all the signs and habits.

Yup. My recently desexed ten month old Exotic boy was monorchid. One was decsended and the other was tightly wrapped around his guts. Explains why the poor boy wasn't growing.

Unilateral cryptorchidism is relatively common (from my experience it affects maybe 1-2% of male cats), and yes, it is extremely important to find and remove the undescended testicle because they pretty much inevitably become cancerous. Plus as long as the testicle is retained they will have the full complement of male hormones and all the associated issues.

Most often, the undescended testicle is in the groin and easily located and surgically removed. Less frequently, it's somewhere in the abdomen and may require an ultrasound to find.

True monorchidism is very rare, though it definitely can happen.

Originally Posted by bengalbabe

I think so the definition I got for monochisism was one or both testicles.

Click to expand...

I would think that the prefix "mono-" would mean "one".

Originally Posted by semiferal

I would think that the prefix "mono-" would mean "one".

Click to expand...

That's exactly what I thought too.

The vet at the feral cat clinic refers to it as Unilateral cryptorchidism. The boy is laid out on the board like the girls and the undecended testicle is removed through the abdomen.

Katie