Disclosing cryptorchidism - Page 1

I’m in Ontario. We put a  deposit on a male GSD puppy from a litter. The breeder selected the puppy for us. We drove 7 hours to pick him up when he was 8 ½ weeks old. We paid full price for this puppy.  A few days later, I noticed there was only one testicle. I contacted the breeder by email and she admitted (in email) that she was aware of the puppy's condition.   When we picked up the puppy, there was at least one available puppy from the same litter for the same price.  If she had disclosed the bilateral cryptorchidism, we would have taken a different puppy.

There were some emails back and forth about the bilateral cryptorchidism and when he was 1 year old after mentioning he was a lot of dog with a lot of drive, she suggested,  I return him in exchange for a puppy.  She also trains and sells dogs.  We had bonded with our puppy and invested a lot of money  and time in his training.  Returning our puppy for a different puppy was not a solution for us since the breeder knowingly concealed his condition at the time of purchase.

Our vet said the testicle is in his abdomen.  I asked the breeder to contribute towards  the testicle removal which requires an ultrasound, or consider it a partial refund for overcharging us for a puppy with a defect.   Her response was she does not pay vet bills and  there is no money back, and we can return him "if we are not happy with our dog".    

Isn't the  time to offer an other puppy at the time of purchase, not when he is 1 or 2 years old?  Alternatively she could have disclosed his condition,  and offered him at a lower price or made an arrangement that there would be money back if the testicle didn't drop.   

Any advice would be appreciated. 
Juno

Quite clear that you have had a bad deal. I think that in law by admitting that she knew of the defect and did not declare it you have a case for misselling or fraudulent selling. A lawyer should be able to get a full refund plus his costs.

Mackenzie

As you're in Canada, I don't know what your laws are but I should think you'd have a small claims court case. She failed to disclose a significant defect to you before you made the purchase, and a missing testicle is a disqualifying fault in all breeds.

I'd also suggest you contact the Canadian Kennel Club, assuming that's the entity she registers dogs through, as I believe that organization has much stricter requirements for breeder ethics than the AKC has here in the US. Maybe they'll put a hold on her ability to register dogs and litters until she compensates you for the difference in price between a cryptorchid pup ad one that's fully intact. Can't hurt to try.

You didn't ask, but I'd suggest holding off on neutering your dog until he's at least 18 months; removing the hormones prior to that will have a negative effect on his physical development. If you're only having the retained testicle removed, that won't matter and can be done now without any negative effect on his growth because the retained testicle is contributing little if anything. When both testicles are removed earlier than 18 months, though, the dogs tend to grow up to be tall and lanky, not fully filled out in the chest and hindquarters and not as well-muscled.

Thank you both for the suggestions.

I’ve always kept my males intact, not for breeding but for drive and good health. I didn’t need to drive 7 hours and pay that much money for a neutered male.

I think I could have shown him in confirmation but he would be disqualified from the regular class and I can’t show him in the altered class without neutering him.

If the breeder was honest and disclosed his condition, I would have taken one of the other available puppies. She picked this puppy, I didn’t. Judging by a few posts I’ve read, she doesn’t sell crypto puppies at a lower price. My guess is she sells crypto puppies to buyers that have long travel times, so less likely of a return.

Four months prior to getting this puppy, we had to euthanize our 2 senior GSDs in a 2 month period. Our female had aggressive mammary cancer. Our male had DM and we kept him going with weekly physiotherapy sessions and swims for 2 1/2 years. I provided the breeder with a list of qualities I wanted in a dog and good heath was at the top of the list.

Juno

This has nothing to do with honest breeder or not! The person bought the dog on a non breeding agreement. Usually a second testicle can still come down later. I do guarantee for hips and elbows. I don't guarantee for anything else unless dog is purchased for breeding. I did offer the lady to take puppy back right from the beginning and exchange for an other puppy. However there were no other males available and she wanted a male at that time. She could of took a female and return that puppy. She never did. There is no money back or paying vet bills.
Not everything this lady puts in this post is how it was...we are talking back spring/summer 2023 that is when she purchased the dog.

This has every thing to do with honesty. The breeder guarantees in the purchase contract that a vet health check will be done prior to the puppy leaving the litter but she concealed the results of the health check. The vet check was done at 8 weeks and we picked him up when he was 8 1/2 weeks. Nothing was noted about the missing testicle on the health check record.

No the breeder didn’t offer to take the puppy right back.
This is a cut and paste from the email received on July 27, 2023, after contacting the breeder about the puppy’s crypto condition. Breeders response “…vet told me that it should come down soon. So at your next vet appointment both should be down, yes it can take a few month, sometimes they are not down at 7/8 weeks.” An email from the breeder later that day”….just wait and see second testicle will come down sooner or later.”

Aug. 29, 2023 from the breeder. “In regards of the testicle it does happen that one will only drop very late up to 6 months, it could also be that one never drops yes that can happen. It is in the genetic from the german shepherd. Talk to your vet at your next appointment.’

May 26, 2024 email when our puppy was 1 year old. Breeder: “yes i have received your email. At this point I have still not a vet estimate as my vet clinic is very busy. Look if you are unsatisfied with your dog then you can return him and I will replace it with an other puppy”.

The time to offer another puppy was when we were at the kennel,

I wasn’t sure if I wanted a male or female when I sent the deposit. The breeder said we could leave it open. We would have been happy with a female. The breeder had other litters and has lots of litters throughout the year so if we wanted a male we could have waited for another litter. We weren’t in a hurry to get a puppy.

I have been back and forth with the breeder since summer of 2023 asking for some compensation since we paid full price for a cryto puppy that the breeder selected for us.  Everything I posted is true and I have all email correspondence. I forwarded the breeder some of the email correspondence on December 10th,2025 but no response. I have not disclosed the name of the kennel or posted on any other forums except I posted here in November, 2023.