"Neuticles"

[CaliTerp07]

Is it really all that surprising? People color their mismarked dogs, rip hair off their dogs, hide defects, etc. Just the next level, I guess.

[yoko]

Is there a reason a dog can't be neutered/spayed?

Is there an obligation to breed if your dog does good at shows?

[Laurelin]

No, you don't have to breed if you show. Beau finished his championship with some nice wins and was neutered. Never bred.

[Aleron]

Originally Posted by CatStina

I, personally, think it is unethical and essentially "cheating" or "false advertisement." Also, I'm sure it's against the rules, right? I can't imagine it would be allowed.

It's definitely not allowed per the rules. That isn't to say people don't use them of course but generally I would guess they are used on an otherwise quality male who had a retained testicle (more so than to continue to show a neutered male). I actually strongly suspect that is why Neuticals were created in the first place.

Originally Posted by Fran101

well that's insane!
I thought the whole point of shows was showing off the best example of the breed.. wouldn't the best of the breed not be dysplastic?!

The whole point of conformation showing is a competition of how closely the dog physically looks like the breed they are per the standard. Conformation shows have existed far longer than health testing. I remember sitting around after a show with long time breeders, judges exhibitors sharing stories of the lengths people go to to "fix" problems in otherwise show potential dogs - setting tails, removing unpigmented inner eyelids, neuticals in cryptorchids, fixing color DQs, etc, etc, etc. A newbie was like "I thought conformation shows were to evaluate the best of the best for breeding purposes". And everyone else was like "Awww...honey...that's cute"

Really though, it's a game people play with their dogs...a bit of a gambling game really. It's fun and exciting to win and definitely to win big. But winning big is not the be all end all of what makes a dog breed worthy. Plenty of show people find health testing extremely important, along with proper temperament. There's plenty of people who show and are extremely devoted to the breed they involved with in all ways. And like in any sort of competition, there's people who are more interested in the competition than the dogs and people who can and will do whatever they think they have to in order to win. It's really, really not that different from other games people play with their dogs other than the scenarios.

Conformation showing is also fairly expensive (sometimes extremely expensive) and most people begin showing their dog before any health testing would be done. If you've already invested a lot of time, energy and money...and more money into your dog's show career then the dog turns two and you find out the dog is dysplastic or the dog turns four and fails to re-CERF do you just say "forget it" and stop showing? Keep in mind showing doesn't equate to breeding.

Then there's also the consideration of breeds which are largely affected by a certain problem. If Pugs had to pass OFA to show, according to OFA's database that would rule out 66% of dogs of the breed which were submitted for hip ratings.

[OwnedByBCs]

Originally Posted by Aleron

It's definitely not allowed per the rules. That isn't to say people don't use them of course but generally I would guess they are used on an otherwise quality male who had a retained testicle (more so than to continue to show a neutered male). I actually strongly suspect that is why Neuticals were created in the first place.




The whole point of conformation showing is a competition of how closely the dog physically looks like the breed they are per the standard. Conformation shows have existed far longer than health testing. I remember sitting around after a show with long time breeders, judges exhibitors sharing stories of the lengths people go to to "fix" problems in otherwise show potential dogs - setting tails, removing unpigmented inner eyelids, neuticals in cryptorchids, fixing color DQs, etc, etc, etc. A newbie was like "I thought conformation shows were to evaluate the best of the best for breeding purposes". And everyone else was like "Awww...honey...that's cute"

Really though, it's a game people play with their dogs...a bit of a gambling game really. It's fun and exciting to win and definitely to win big. But winning big is not the be all end all of what makes a dog breed worthy. Plenty of show people find health testing extremely important, along with proper temperament. There's plenty of people who show and are extremely devoted to the breed they involved with in all ways. And like in any sort of competition, there's people who are more interested in the competition than the dogs and people who can and will do whatever they think they have to in order to win. It's really, really not that different from other games people play with their dogs other than the scenarios.

Conformation showing is also fairly expensive (sometimes extremely expensive) and most people begin showing their dog before any health testing would be done. If you've already invested a lot of time, energy and money...and more money into your dog's show career then the dog turns two and you find out the dog is dysplastic or the dog turns four and fails to re-CERF do you just say "forget it" and stop showing? Keep in mind showing doesn't equate to breeding.

Then there's also the consideration of breeds which are largely affected by a certain problem. If Pugs had to pass OFA to show, according to OFA's database that would rule out 66% of dogs of the breed which were submitted for hip ratings.

Totally agree. Showing is a fun game! Not a basis for breeding.

[HappyPuppy]

It's my understanding that judges 'give 'em a squeeze' anyway, so they woudn't work for showing -- but they would give some overly-masculine man a better feeling about the dog his wife/girlfriend made him neuter, tho!

[Emily]

Originally Posted by HappyPuppy

It's my understanding that judges 'give 'em a squeeze' anyway, so they woudn't work for showing -- but they would give some overly-masculine man a better feeling about the dog his wife/girlfriend made him neuter, tho!

How is a judge going to know the difference between real testicles and neuticles? Pretty sure judge's education doesn't include "testicle texture".

[Aleron]

Originally Posted by Emily

How is a judge going to know the difference between real testicles and neuticles? Pretty sure judge's education doesn't include "testicle texture".

LOL you are absolutely right on that.

[adojrts]

There have been cases of conformation show horses that were discovered to be cryptorchids and had a surgically implanted testi. One QH years ago was discovered when his broke and he had deflated on the one side at a show. This was a proven stud if memory serves me right and I would be curious as to how many crypt's he produced.

[puppydog]

When I neutered Trav (who is a CH with some fab wins) Paul wanted neuticles because "his boy still needed to feel like a man". I was like o.O