Human cancer awareness campaigns are always reminding men to check their testicles for any odd lumps or bumps; early detection can lead to early diagnosis and improved success rates in the treatment of testicular cancer.

This does not only apply to humans - if you own an entire male dog then you must keep an eye on their balls as well.

My colleague, Verity, has a nine year old Vizsla called Ruban who has sired a number of handsome litters over the years. However a few weeks ago Verity noticed that there was a difference in size between his two testicles.

Now, however sensible we are as vets, we all go into panic mode when our own pets are unwell and we fear the worst. Verity managed to overcome this “vets own pets” panic and approached Ruban's case very logically, she ultrasound scanned his testicles to reveal a definite change in the structure on both sides. With a heavy heart, but knowing it was the right thing to do, she went ahead and operated to remove the two testicles.

Both were sent away for histology and after a week's nervous waiting the results came back – there were cancerous growths in both testicles but both were benign cancers and removing the testicles was curative. Verity was hugely relieved – removing the testicles had been the right thing to do and there should not be any recurrences.

This cancer did not present as a single lump but as a disparity in size of testicle – so please remember this – check your dog's testicles and if they are different sizes then get them checked with your vet.