Exposure to cadmium (Cd) reduces sperm quality and induces oxidative stress in the testis. Rutin is an effective antioxidant flavonoid. We studied the effect of ethanol (EtOH, 5 g/kg b.wt.) intake on Cd (50 mg/kg b.wt.)-induced testicular toxicity with or without RUT pre-treatment (25, 50, 100 mg/kg b.wt.) in rats. At the end of the 15-day oral treatment, co-treatment with EtOH decreased the activities of glutathione (GSH), GSH-peroxidase and superoxide dismutase resulting to slight increase in the testicular MDA level compared to Cd-treated rats. The Cd+EtOH animals had higher levels of abnormal spermatozoa, decreased epididymal sperm number and serum testosterone levels (p < .05) compared to the Cd-treated animals. Rutin co-administration protected against the EtOH effects in a dose-dependent manner, with the Cd+EtOH+50 mg/kg RUT- and Cd+EtOH+100 mg/kg RUT-treated animals having higher GSH and GSH-Px activities beyond the control values (p < .05). In a supplementary study, animals treated daily with RUT alone (25, 50, 100 mg/kg b.wt.) for 15 days dose-dependently increased testicular GSH-peroxidase and GSH activities by 9.38%, 31.25%, 56.25% and 7.14%, 32.14%, 60.71%, respectively, compared to control values. Therefore, RUT induces GSH and GSH-Px activities to protect against Cd+EtOH-induced testis oxidative stress in rats.