Cynthia wrote: > Hi Suze. > > I took you advice and took Jamie to get a sperm count. What upsetting results. When they got the collection, it was all blood. > They put some under the microscope and saw no sperm. They did a culture sensitivity and that came back normal. We are > waiting for results from the cytology and will be getting him checked for brucellosis. I have asked the owner of his dam to get > her checked as if he turns up positive for brucella the most likely way he got it was through his mother. The vet is leaning > towards Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia as the condition. The sad part is he will most likely have to be neutered and he is only > 1.5 years.
Hi Cynthia, I'm by no means an expert, but have had some experience with Goldens in this avenue. First of all, I'm going to assume that Brucellosis is probably a long-shot. But, prostate problems are not uncommon, although 1.5 years is a bit young for such an overt expression. It seems that some dogs are prone to prostate reactions when they have girls in season around....thankfully, most dogs are not. Anyway, first of all, if the collection procedure was uncomfortable for the dog.....and I'm going to assume it was........some dogs will "retrograde", meaning the sperm will go into the bladder instead of ejaculating normally. The way to check for this is by taking a urine sample immediately after the negative semen evaluation. If the dog "retrograded", the sperm will be evident in the urine. There is a drug that can be given to dogs that tend to "retrograde", prior to collection, that will tighten the sphincter muscle and they will then be able to collect normally. Secondly, if prostatic hyperplasia is the problem, neutering is not the only answer.....there are treatments available, hormonal in nature, which are NOT a cure.....but they may keep the problem under control. I worked with a repro vet (Dr. Robert Hutchison) a few years ago with one of my Goldens, and we successfully kept his prostate from enlarging for quite a long period of time (several years). Now, having said this....he was 7 or 8 years of age when the prostate enlargement became a problem, and he had proven himself a valuable contributor to the breed, so there was a good reason to treat the problem for as long as I was comfortable with it not compromising his long-term health. Eventually prostate infections were a recurring problem and it was time to neuter him for his well-being. I guess I believe the key word here is "specialist". If this turns out to be prostatic hyperplasia, a reproductive specialist will be able to advise you about the possible ways to handle this problem, with or without meds, and the likelihood of the problem persisting. For instance, one solution may be that the dog may need to visit family or friends for the times his kennel mates are in season. I think you need to review a whole spectrum of questions about a youngster of this age before an educated choice can be made. Hope this helps. Nancy Douglas Kexby Cavaliers Cleveland, Ohio ========================================================= "Magic Commands": to stop receiving mail for awhile, click here and send the email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20NOMAIL to start it up gain click here: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]?body=SET%20CKCS-L%20MAIL E-mail [EMAIL PROTECTED] for assistance. Search the Archives... http://apple.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ckcs-l.html All e-mail sent through CKCS-L is Copyright 1999 by its original author.
