undescended testicles

Question
I have a 6 month old un-neutered male dwarf and 2 un-spayed females.  He has one undescended testicle.  What are the chances that he will still be fertile if we remove the one testicle?  He is very much interested in mating and has to be kept separate from the females.  I want them to be able to live together.  I can't really afford to get both females spayed and I imagine the male would still be mounting them all the time if he stays intact.  Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Answer
Dear Amanda,

The cryptorchid (undescended testicle) in his body cavity cannot produce viable sperm, but I would still ask the vet to remove it for two reasons:

1.  it could descend and become fertile
2.  it has a high risk of becoming cancerous if left inside the body

Testicles are not "designed" to live at the high temperature of the peritoneal cavity, and this can promote cancer of the testicular cells.

Unfortunately, bunny cryptorchids are often tiny and very hard to find--sometimes little more than a streak of tissue.  So I hope you can find a very rabbit-experienced vet to do this surgery.  You can check the list linked here:

www.rabbit.org/vets

Also, I'm sorry to have to say, it's very important that the females be spayed.  Unbred, unspayed female rabbits have a *very* high risk of uterine adenocarcinoma (cancer), and it's just not worth the risk.  So start saving those pennies now, and you can--I hope--eventually be able to get the girls the life-extending surgeries they need.

You may also be able to contact your local rabbit rescue group:

www.rabbit.org/chapters

and find out if they have a low cost spay/neuter program, to reduce the burden.

Hope that helps!

Dana