Clitorectomy for the Management of Os Clitoris in a Dog

Introduction Disorders of genital development occur in all species of mammals (Cribiu and Chaffaux, 1990; Passello-Legrand and Mowat, 2004; Weng et al., 2005). In female dogs, the clitoris develops from the genital tubercle, as the penis in the male. The enlargement or ossification of clitoris may be caused by an abnormality of chromosome differentiation, by exposure to androgens or progestins during gestation, or by exogenous androgens administration (Johnson, 2003). Dogs with disorders of sexual development are usually infertile. Several conditions in which the abnormality is noticed such as a clitoral enlargement resembling a penis with a bone, an abnormally shaped vulva, a caudally displaced prepuce, a penis with hypospadias, or bilaterally cryptorchid have been recorded during physical examination of the affected dogs (Meyers-Wallen, 1986; Meyers-Wallen, 2001). The present communication deals with the successful surgical management of os clitoris in a female Labrador dog.