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ANIMAL

CASTRATION

BY

A. LIAUTARD, M.D., V.M.

Professor of Anatomy, Operative Surgery and Sanitary Medicine
to the American Veterinary College, New York; National
Corresponding Member of the Société Centrale de Médecine
Vétérinaire, Paris; Honorary Fellow of the Royal College
of Veterinary Surgeons, England; Member of the Socvété
Vétérinaire d’ Alsace-Lorraine; Member of the Société Vété-
rinaire Pratique, Paris; Member of the American Veterinary
Medical Association; Foreign Corresponding Member of the
Academy of Belgium, etc., etc.

WITH FIFTY-THREE PLATES EMBODIED IN THE TEXT

TWELFTH EDITION, REVISED AND ENLARGED

NEW YORK
WILLIAM R. JENKINS CoO.
PUBLISHERS
851 AND 853 SIXTH AVENUE

COPYRIGHT 1884, 1902

By WixLutAM R. JENKINS

All rights reserved

PRINTED BY THE
PREss oF WILLIAM R. JENKINS Co,
New York

TO
HENRY BOULEY,

MEMBER OF THE INSTITUTE oF Paris,

This little practical work has been respectfully dedicated
in testimony of the continued esteem and respectful remem-
brarce of one who was fortunate in being numbered among
his former students, by

Tor AUTHOR.

INTRODUCTION TO THE NEW EDITION.

Since the first publication of my little work on Castration,
many editions have been offered to the public and have
received such kind reception that I have thought to revise
and improve it in many points. In the new (ninth) edition,
besides several minor additions, we have rewritten a few
entirely and taken advantage of the progress that has been
made in the castration of criptorchids and that of the small
animals,

We have also freely quoted from the writings of Professor
Cadiot in changing the entire chapter on abdominal and
inguinal cryptorchidy, and called upon the experience of some
of our American confreres, Dr. T. B. Rodgers, of Wood-
bury, N. J., and Prof. E. Ryder, of New York, from whom
we have obtained the articles on spaying of swine and
caponizing roosters. We take this opportunity to thank them
for their kindness in writing those chapters.

A few new illustrations have also been inserted showing
the various steps of castration in ridglings.

To our publishers, the old house of W. R. Jenkins, we
tender our thanks for their efforts in allowing us to make the
work worthy of the reception our friends may give to our
new edition.

THE AUTHOR.

March, 1902.

INTRODUCTION TO THE FIRST EDITION.

In presenting this concise treatise upon castration of the
domestic animals, it is not intended to offer new modes of
operation, but merely to collect together the various methods
in use and leave the reader to appreciate them at their value,
It is a work which, it is believed, has not yet been done in
English veterinary literature, and on this account it is hoped
will prove of interest and use to those engaged in that
specialty of veterinary surgery.

In gathering the material, advantage has been taken of
several of the most recent works of French and German
writers on the subject, and plates have been obtained from
the original and excellent wood cuts of Zundel, and Peuch,
and Toussaint.

In presenting this volume to the indulgence of veterinari-
ans, it is with pleasure that the author acknowledges and
offers his sincere thanks to Dr. Holt for the great assistance
he has kindly given in revising the manuscript.

THE AUTHOR.

CONTENTS.
Abdominal Cryptorchidy.......... ccc. ccc cece eee eens 77
Abscesses in Scrotal region... 0.0... ccc cece cece eee ee eee 111
a Ho BelvaG Cava by ies sscesenissaseids eed a nae aeleeeavens 147
Advantages of Castration in COWS...........c cece eee eee 130
Age at which Castration ought to be performed.......... 8
AIMAUTOSIS pastes hacia cet nee aaa ee aiden 125
Anatomy of the male parts... ......... cc cece eee et eee eees 15
a 8 “fermale.*~ gs dsanis'aeie serause See aes GaleeOR Db 131
BistOurnase sensi os ind sae Sswae es 6s ea sos eaeeR see's 58
Bistouiry Cah Oy iciewaccittw es 3 dakindene Sieg Mae ea ses 137
Castration of Cryptorchids..............00 2 ceeee ee ween 58
et CALS sinwes Asuewied weiss 44 6 Graetasee mews ee eae s 68
of DOOSes.csanadee ss + salsa so eieeneeese ese’ « 154
a Fashion and convenience...........-.e000s 5
se MOmMaleSies be.s5c a qadisaune see 64 Ste how ce eee ssa 128
Se PO WAS): (arn Wicneninssiass sd esd SeMeer ees tes Ces was 161
es NGGOSSI bY. sietecsisie 3s. o:e Gacatrans @aalsiemanad eevee ae 4
- Smallruminants............ 22. e eee eee eee 148
- S Wine awiee ccieieiart Mendonca cele eeaie Soe 150
CecAMPIQNON... see ee es ccce cece cee ee es cteseeessenceenees 112
ne Superficial..... 0.60... ccc cece e cece etee teens 114
ss DOC Pvss ssi nsews ted veetes ore sees eeseisies 115
Charlier’s Instruments. ... 2.6... cece eee eee teens 135, 186
oe Methods wswiesu scivenaieiseie ence Soe eae 135
ee SCISSOTS. 0... cc ccc eee eee cone ete ee ee eeees 138
Clamps... .eeeeeeeee eee eeeeee diaiN a ni iare:yestgretereieleibiaseinss: 41, 42
(6 HOUSC. oe eves ce ec eee Sacre ween sececces Sasol 35
Classification of Methods. .........ccee scene ceeeeeeceeee 19
COLIC Sa siec shod wewinaheng lass HGS ao ORO TERRE NETS Ha AatS 107

Combiued Forceps of M. Beaufils.,,.-.-srerererrrrre res 29

>. CONTENTS.

Comparavtve view of the Various Modes............004. 125
Complications and their Treatment............... .. 106, 146
Conditions favorable to the operation. .........6:....2008 180
CONStIPAtON ccc ec aleca wea ee ewee ue edie kde sae mares 148
Covered Operation...c.seci ces cee ba ctisans vee sina eens 44
Crushing of the Testicular Cord.......... eee ceeeeeeeeee 57
Curved. Clamps. sss coonecease ses ones wees sae emeaeeeds © 117
Dangers of Operation Standing Up..........ceceeeeceeee 13
Definition of Castration... 2... ccc cec cece cece eee eee ees . 3
DOGS i eicicc erga cae esgin os eemcnsheunlon 126 abe bea ioe dale eeace 154
Double Subcutaneous Torsion........ccceseee ees ee ee eee 58
ECras@urSi-cs xs caieesnsasienee.e's 0 av seeinaia s Sarees 4s os Se 82
Effects of Castration... ...cc.ccccsece scence ceeeees 5, 100, 130
Emphysema, subcutaneous. ........ceseeee cess eeeeeeeee 148
Excision....0.cecosesoeeee sc ncarus bles Bi/b- aden glapetepsbiave’ wuesde: suaray siete 20
Harmer -Mil@s cijssswisistaie's sie Sw eu gare eeieis saleseacalee wees tuwec v6)
PALIN Pasar e's ose s esa RMA Ew RE Reis ot Mirena ks Sede Cee ae 35
‘“* Forceps for Castration by.......... ccc ee ee cece ees 36
Fistula of the Scrotum.......... ccc ee cee ee ee ee cee eeeee 121
Forceps for Holding the Ovary.......... ccc eee e eee eee 138
EO WAS ec ese oie Baden terdnaco bane ausibasuane P'S Belmore eee waite da AGRE 161
Free Torsion.........eeee sibiWialg? SAID Ble w Bibe ar seid eue gate 24
Gangrene......seeeeeeee Saseweuee es pines erwid paieinn ieee 110
Hemorrhage: « sis: socaeerewevinnaeicee ceavesdes caiaans 108, 147
Hernia of Castration. ........ 0. cece ccc eee e eee ee eee oe »- 122
History of Castration... 2.0.0.0... ccc cece ee ee cere en eee 4
Hygiene and subsequent attention..............0006 eee 104
Incision in the Vagina........ ssieteigne Raia sree a wueurmaetes 139
Inguinal Cryptorchidy............ ccc cece eens eset e enone 97
sé Frniacaswiesees dase sss ae steaeatess besser: 122
LIGACUTC sn. haseaies seeeliais sae ee sew awed odinwen ce ele ree ears 51
es Garrietincsesccocayinue sey hse dae someones ss 119

‘© of the Cord and its envelopes: casev va vuneewcqos §2

ContENTS.

Ligature of the Cord only..........ececee ceeecece fineas's
«« of the Efferent Canal............ ek eeees re
“of the Spermatic Artery............ Sapccaliiss jase

Limited Torsion: 623 i.4 ca weaneie ies gednesmaiewemmiews oe

Linear Crushing............ee008 egies sia Siig oie visage see's

Method by the Clamps. ...........seeesaseee ohana ase

be 6 HCraseury oc css ios s ae cs ces Sold Sieeiee te disses s
ss €8 Hlanks js. cise ss sore es ces esa ieinigidnss beanies

Methods, Classification of ......... maaeare pobcuatelsadore Sbe0 ni

Modes of Cicatrization. ...... 0... cece cece cece cece eeeeeee

Modus operandi of Bistournage.............ceceeccceeees

- “s a He Ist Step... ......00.. 60,
ee “ ay ce >: rer jsiayetelerstes 62,
ss ss ss as Bd ssatic panies 64,
oS ee ss “ Ath 8S os se scare sonerae es
. hs ** Castration of Females..........- seeee
se fe “ Covered Operation..........seeseeeee
se Le “ Limited Torsion...........ecces eens
a ee “© Uncovered Operation,......e..seeee

Peritonitis............e ecco satavevcg dhe Sek eate eratrcha eee 123,

Preparation of the Patient. ......0- ceecee secceeesereves

Purposes of Castration....... wig di ok siacaorangranelaid oie'es ainve@ueeie(s °

Removal of the Ovaries........... ee Cre

Restraint, Modes of...... aisisies Wiaiae BReieieiwwlleteisings 6 & o'e oie aes

Season most favorable.......... arror es skew aitiara Gra ew Seeiares. secs

Scraping. .......cescoceee see eee eeieearere Sins: 02 aseeee me eeareres

Second Method of Castration..... Sis abeblae a aasece: areoretes® oe

Securing the Animal Down...........-+0 e+ aig6e gia arene

Softening of the Bags. ........ ccc cece oeeeeeeeeeeees 60,

Standing Up Operation............+. s+ deGiiaia ies lates ats

Me $f Dangers of.........000 coeceeeeee

Subcutaneous Twisting......... joe aa oecaemaies err

Swelling of the Scrotal Region. .....0..s.secercreeccseee

SwiDGicc csc anascees owe ae sinaunieleig a’ gtalaisrsisieletesiers cpa s aiaaretete

Tearing and Torsion... ...scssesssrserereronccrornecnees

xil CONTENTS.

Tearing of the Clamps............00+ ceeceeeeeereeceeee 107
LOCAMUS cite aiccsays sutelewe giera la ilois Gea leat eis ee Ca aeeloiete ess 124
Thimble for Castration............ ieee Ga es walbaciew ates s 138
Third Method of Castration. ............0- cesses cee ence 56
TOPsiON siwiasisiaaidis-s oe ce eae aiaavwduseieeie ede dedi ane bcos vaw We ss 23
“above the Epididimis.............c0ceceecceeeoes 24
“« below the Epididimis.................0ece eee eee 25
8" “POCO PS ys «sa viswircsawis’e she ee sie sate Mabene eee ee 26, 27
Sf AN TOS Lois e tivities ise edlad meme ues oe oseeeuae nee 24
SE LAME sso reecrcuas aie aals alee eeen eis duaganiess% 26
Uncovered Operation...........e0.ce000: ioe 85a 3 eee 47

Vaginal Speculum..............006 aig etpdaue iar coieis’y seoel86 = 187

ANIMAL CASTRATION.

CHAPTER I.

DEFINITION—ITS VARIOUS PURPOSES—AN OLD OPERATION
—ITS HISTORY—CASTRATION OF NECESSITY—CASTRA-
TION OF FASHION AND CONVENIENCE—ITS EFFECTS—
UPON THE GENERAL ORGANISM—-UPON SOME SPECIAL
FUNCTION—-UPON THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ANIMAL
—AGE AT WHICH IT OUGHT TO BE PERFORMED—SEA-
SON MOST FAVORABLE—PREPARATION OF THE PATIENT
—MODES OF RESTRAINT—CASTING—STANDING UP—
ANATOMY OF THE PARTS.

OF all the operations pertaining to the domain of
Veterinary Surgery, without doubt the practitioner
is most frequently called upon to perform—more es-
pecially in breeding districts—that of castration, the
destruction or removal of the essential organs of gen-
eration in our domesticated animals. It is, however,

4 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

not nearly so often resorted to for purely surgical
reasons as for purposes closely related to questions
of agricultural and industrial economy, by reason of
its effect upon the individuals of the various species
of animals subjected to it, in order to improve their
value and increase their usefulness to mankind. And
that this is its practical effect is no modern discovery.
As far back in antiquity as seven centuries preceding
the Christian era, it was known and practised upon
various animals. Of this we may find ample histori-
cal proof in the writings of Roman, Greek, and Ori-
ental authors, where specific mention appears of the
various methods employed, including the processes
of excision, of crushing and of tearing. Even the
castration of females was known to our less remote
ancestors, the Danes having in the sixteenth century
performed it on sheep, swine, cows, and even mares.
The spaying of cows, however, seems to have been
forgotten about the beginning of the present century,
and it was not until the year 1831 that Thomas Winn,
of Natchez (Louisiana), and afterwards Levrat (of
Lausanne), brought it to the attention of veterinari-
ans, as a means for the improvement of the milky
secretion in cows.

The operation may be considered under two distinct
heads. Under the first it is to be considered as one
of necessity, as when performed with a therapeutic
object in view; as, for example, when it constitutes
one of the last steps involved in the surgical treat-
ment of strangulated hernia, or of diseased conditions
of the testicles or ovaries. such as orchitis, epididy-

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 5

mitis, sarcoceie, hydrocele, cyst, etc. In the other
case it is resorted to for reasons of mere fashion and
convenience, and has for its object the production of
such a modification of the general organism as shall
increase the adaptedness of the animals subjected to
it to the uses to which they are applied; when, of
course, the economic becomes the paramount and ex-
clusive reason for thus interfering with the obvious
creative purpose. It is the operation as performed
under this general heading that we shall now prin-
cipally consider.

In relation to this latter object it must be borne in
mind that the operation is followed by certain pecu-
liar effects, which may either manifest themselves
upon the entire organism, or upon some special func-
tions only. In the first instance it is quite evident
that the primary and most obvious effect of the mu-
tilation is to be discovered in the character and dis-
position of the animal, which at once becomes ina
‘double sense an “altered” creature, docile and sub-
missive, and entirely willing to become the obedient
and useful servant of his human master. But it is
not alone that we find the vicious stallion, the un-
controllable bull, the kicking jackass, the dangerous
boar, and even the hysteric mare and cow transformed
into the useful gelding, the quiet ox, the patient don-
key, and the “fatherly” barrow, the quiet working
mare and the productive cow, as the result of the
ehange which the character—the nervous system, in
fact—has undergone. Besides this, other marked
changes are to be observed of a more distinctly

6 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

physical character, such as a modification of the
entire organism, manifested in the external symme-
try, and the expressive physiognomy of the creature,
when deprived of its virility.

The animal becomes more quiet, and its general
form is modified. If altered at an early age, the
skeleton will be arrested in its growth, and the mass
of muscles attached to it will participate in the de-
fective development; the head will become elongated,
the lees will continue to be lighter, and the body
will show a corresponding lack of development. In
other words, the male animal will tend to assume the
characters of the female, in form and feature, the
celding, indeed, resembling the mare, not only in the
ensemble of his appearance, but in his voice, which
loses the resonance of the stallion’s, and his physi-
ognomy, which becomes milder and less expressive ;
while his neck is hghter and his mane more scanty,
with the hairs which compose it more fine and silky,

Alike tendency exists in other male animals to
acquire a resemblance to the female as an effect of
the operation of castration. The altered bull has a
weak and feminine voice ; his head is narrower and
elongated; his horns become lengthened and more
curved ; he has exchanged his wild and threatening
aspect for a mild and gentle visage ; his neck algo ig
lighter and his chest narrower; his bony structure
is less massive ; and he has, besides all the rest, ac-
quired a quality of essential importance to mankind
in a dietetic view, that of aceumulating fat. This
last phenomenon shows us that besides the other

}

ANIMAL GASTRATION. vi

changes referred to, there is an important modifica-
tion of the nutritive forces of the animal, or at least
a change in the direction of their action.

When thus deprived of his virile functions the
animal ceases, in effect, to exist as one of a species,
but maintains an essentially individual life, in which
the assimilable nutviment which he absorbs, instead
of being in part appropriated to the office of repro-
duction of his kind, is all devoted to his own individ-
nal conservation. In animals not used for draught
purposes, or in other labor, when the food received
js nearly always in excess of the amount required for
the support of the organism, the result follows that
the surplus of nutritive substances (found sometimes
in great abundance) becomes stored in the connective
tissue and intermuscular structure, and that in this
way the flesh assumes superior and more nutritious
qualities than that of the unaltered animal, while, at
the same time, it loses the strong and peculiar odor
frequently communicated to it by the presence of the
testicular apparatus and secretion in the entire
animal.

This property of modification of function is proba-
bly still better illustrated in the effect of the opera-
tion upon cows, where we shall find not only the power
of accumulation of fat increased by castration, but,
above all, the milky secretion insproved both in qual-
ity and quantity, and also in the duration of the flow.

8 ANIMAL, CASTRATION.
AGE.

The question, “at what age can an entire animal
be altered?” admits of a simple answer, to wit, “as
soon as the testicles can be easily reached—as soon
as they appear outside of the abdominal cavity, and
are found in the inguinal canal.” But although it
can be performed at that epoch, or deferred to any
period of after life, it must be remembered that it is
easier and less dangerous in young than in older ani-
mals, and that with the former it is a simple opera-
tion, producing, ordinarily, no noticeable alteration
in the other functions, and but rarely followed by
accidents.

A period between eighteen months and two years
is generally preferred for horses, though, according
to some authors, even a much earlier date may be
chosen, some English veterinarians being accustomed
to operate at as early a date as ten days from birth.
It is immaterial, however, at what precise time the
operation may be performed, since it is a conceded
point that the earlier it is done the better.

SEASON.

When it is possible to choose the season most fa-
vorable for the operation, and for securing the best
chances of recovery, the spring, or the early stages
of the fall, are those to which the operator should
give the preference, provided the atmospheric tem-
perature is moderate and not susceptible to sudden
variations. It is to be remembered that at some

i

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 9

periods of the year, without any known or apparent
cause, a tendency appears in wounds to take on gan-
grenous or septicemic complications which are not
so generally observed in the mild weather of spring
and early fall. Another essential condition which
surgeons will do well to take into consideration is the
general health of the subject, as in all cases of survi-
cal interference, any diseased tendency already exist-
ing (perhaps latent) in the patient, such as an anemic
condition, a gourmy predisposition, or typhoid sus-
ceptibility are likely to give rise to the development
of serious and perhaps fatal sequele to an operation
which, simple as it may be in itself, is nevertheless
not without danger, or of possible complications of
its own.

PREPARATIONS,

The preparations to which the animal is to be sub-
jected previous to undergoing the operation are the
same as those which are required in other cases of
surgical manipulation. Some portions of the prep-
arations are, perhaps, of even greater importance,
and may not, on any account, be overlooked, when
we take into consideration the peculiar position in
which the animal must frequently be secured in order
effectually to control his movements. Hence, a low
diet for twenty-four hours preceding that appointed
for the operation, and an empty stomach at the time
of castration, with a thorough washing of the sheath»
are precautions which no surgeon entitled to the
name will overlook or neglect, especially when a soli-

10 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

ped is to be subjected to the knife. It seems use-
less at the present state of surgical practice to state
that, even if the method of antiseptic castration is
not applied, it is essential that the washing of the
inguinal and scrotal regions as well as of the sheath
should be thoroughly attended to, and that with anti-
septic solutions. We shall discuss hereafter the
indications in the case of the castration of large
females.

RESTRAINT.

Two modes of restraint are employed in securing
the animals during the manipulations for the re-
moval of the testicles, one which is applied to all
the various methods yet to be described, and the
other applicable principally to the method of
amputation of the cord by use of the écraseur. In
the former, the animal is thrown down and secured
with one of his hind legs fixed in a position in
which the inguinal region is fully exposed. In
the latter he is allowed to remain in a standing
posture, and is kept quiet by the application of
a twitch upon his upper lip. As the first mode
of securing the patient is the safest for all
parties engaged in the undertaking, and from
the further fact of its applicability in all methods
of operating, we shall first consider it somewhat in
detail.

11

ANIMAL CASTRATION.

By veterinarians who employ the old method of

casting with four hobbles, the animal, being properly

Condition of the horse in lying posture. Steps to bring one of
the hind legs upon the corresponding front one.

prepared, is thrown upon whichever side corresponds

with the operator’s habit of manipulation, whether

12 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

with the right hand or the left, and the leg opposite
to that on which he is lying being released from the
hobble, is carried forward upon the corresponding
shoulder as far as it can safely be done. To effect
this a loop of rope or platelonge is passed around
the coronet, below the fetlock, the free end being
carried forward over the dorsal border of the neck,
under the neck, towards its anterior border, and is
then carried back under the same hind leg, between
the hinder extremities and over the hock, from the
posterior border, where an assistant, stationed at
the back of the animal, is ready to receive it.
(Fig. 1.)

By careful, gradual and steady pulling upon
the rope the foot is brought forward upon the
external surface of the shoulder, and there secured
by two or three turns of the rope around the
coronet.

But it often occurs that in this position the
inguinal region is not sufficiently exposed, and
some of the steps of the operation may thus be
rendered difficult, even when the surgeon hag taken
the precaution to pose the body of the patient
and place him partly on his back, by means of
bundles of straw pressed under the side upon which
he lies.

Many operators prefer the use of the double side
line, with which, when the animal is thrown, both

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 18

hind legs are brought forward together, and he is
fixed squarely upon his back, and the inguinal
region thus brought distinctly into view. The
manipulation is thereby made easier for the surgeon,
and, it is claimed, safer for the patient.

The possibility of danger attending these methods
has led many veterinarians in Europe, and in the
United States as well, to prefer the operation with
the animal in the standing posture.

But it is to be considered that the same compli-
cations may arise in all instances, with the exception
of apprehended injury to the vertebral column,
which, though possible, is almost unknown, in fact,
at the usual age of the castrated animal. It is to
be considered, likewise, that the animal on his feet
is free to struggle as violently as he wishes, and is
thus exposed to the risk of the pulling and lacera-
tion of the spermatic cord, and a resulting pre-
disposition to enlargements of that body and the
formation of champignons.

When it is considered, again, that by the traction
of the cord the superior opening of the inguinal
canal is necessarily dilated, and the formation of a
hernia of castration is liable to take place, we
submit the point to the intelligent judgment,
whether, in the presence of these possibilities of
extremely dangerous accidents, it does not become
the duty of the veterinarian to prefer the mode of

1. Testicular envelope. 2. Posterior serous septum. 2’. White
muscular fibres of Bouley. 8. Serous membrane —portion
of the tunica vaginalis 8’. 8’. Visceral layers of the tunica
covering the cord and the testicles. 4. The testicle with its
peritoneal covering. 5. The epididymis. 5’. Globus major.
5’. Globus minor, the tail. 6, Deferent canal. 7%. Spermatic
blood vessels and nerves,

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 15

securing his patient in the supine position, both in
his own behalf and that of his employer.

It is not uncommon, however, to see veterinarians
resort also to the use of stocks, in which the animal
is kept standing and can probably be secured in a
better way.

ANATOMY.

We now pass rapidly in review the anatomical
structure of the inguinal region and of the testicular
organs. <A knowledge of these is of course essential
to a proper understanding of the description of the
various modes of operation, and of some of their
sequel, upon which we shall soon enter.

The testicular envelopes, passing from the surface
inwards, are represented by the scrotum, the dartos,
the cellular coat, the tunica erythroida, formed by
the cremaster, and the fibrous and serous or vaginal
sac (Fig. 2). The scrotum is a continuation of the
skin, and forms a complete bag, common to both
testicles, which it contains and covers ; the skin being
here thin, vascular and nervous, usually black in
color, almost hairless, and soft and unctuous to the
touch. Itis divided into two lateral halves by a raphe
or median line. It is very elastic, and easily yields
to the efforts of distention, to which it is subjected,
and when stretched over the organs it contains, pre-
sents a shining aspect, due to the sebaceous secretion
which covers it. It easily contracts to its shrunken

16 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

condition, and may be closely drawn up into the in-
guinal canal, when it assumes a thickly wrinkled
surface.

The second envelope, the dartos, is a prolongation
of the tunica abdominalis, and is a yellow, fibrous
structure, forming two distinct sacs resting upon each
other, and lying on the inside of the scrotum, to which
it isintimately adherent.

In the lateral and superior parts the adhesions are
looser, and in front it becomes continuous with the
suspensory ligament of the sheath, which, like itself,
forms a portion of the abdominal tunic. Under the
dartos is a layer of very loose cellular tissue, the
lamelle of which are so formed that it may be divided
into several superimposed layers. This formation
endows the testicle with great mobility in the dartoid
sac; and these layers may be easily separated with
the finger from the external surface of the fibrous
coat beneath, except posteriorly, where it forms a
strong band which sometimes requires even the aid
of an instrument to divide.

The next envelope is represented by the tunica
erythroida which is the cremaster muscle, and from
the lumbar region extends itself downwards into the
inguinal canal along the outside of the cord, and ter-
minates towards the superior part of the testicle in
fibres spreading only over its external face. This
muscle, by its deep surface, rests upon the fibrous
coat—another envelope of the testicle and of the cord
—-and to which it is closely adherent. To the power-
ful contraction of this muscle is due the retraction

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 17

of the testicle inte the depth of the groin, which con-
dition sometimes it is so difficult to overcome in the
first stages of the operation.

The fibrous testicular envelope which we have just
seen giving attachment to the cremaster, is a thin
membranous bag, elongated like the neck of a bottle
around the spermatic cord, which it envelopes, and
dilated below, in order to enclose the testicle. Lined
internally by the serous coat, to which it intimately
adheres, this last membrane is a duplicature of the
peritoneum, drawn downwards by the testicle when
it descends from the abdominal cavity into the in-
guinal canal. This serous envelope has, therefore,
two coats, one lying on the inside of the fibrous tunic,
and called the parietal, and that which covers the
cord and the testicle and is known as the visceral,
These two layers approximate towards the posterior
border of the cord, and, as they unite, form a sort of
fold, band, or septum which divides into two parts the
posterior portion of the vaginal cavity, and becomes
a means of solid adhesion between the tail of the epi-
didymis and the bottom of the sac.

The testicles, thus covered by the visceral layer of
the serous coat, are suspended at the end of the sperm-
atic cord, and surmounted upon their superior border
by the epididymis, the first part of the deferent canal,
which is folded upon itself, while at its posterior ex-
tremity—the “tail,” so called—it continues in a
straight course, and conveys the product of the secre-
tion of the testicles into the vesicule seminales,
lodged in the pelvic cavity.

18 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

The spermatic cord is formed anteriorly by the
spermatic or great testicular artery, which forms, in
that portion, a large number of flexuosities, caus-
ing its length greatly to exceed that of the cord to
which it belongs. It contains a network of veins, and
lymphatic vessels in abundance, which are united to
the curves of the artery by a somewhat loose cellular
tissue. A large number of nervous branches, given
off by the solar plexus, surrounds the whole.

Between the lamell of peritoneal structure which
forms the posterior septum, and which unites the
parietal with the visceral layer, there is found a band
of grey muscular fibres—first discovered, I believe,
by H. Bouley—which exerts a powerful agency in the
retraction of the testicle towards the inguinal ring.
Behind this muscle, and situated on the internal face
of the septum, are found the deferent canal and the
circumvolutions of the small testicular artery.

Having thus considered the essential points of the
anatomical structure of these organs, we shall next
seek to enforce the importance of their careful study
in reference to the intelligent and skilful performance
of the important operation which we are discussing.

CHAPTER IL.

CLASSIFICATION OF THE METHODS—THREE CLASSES—
FIRST, IMMEDIATE AMPUTATION--SECOND, AMPUTA-
TION AFTER APPLICATION OF HEMOSTATIC MEANS
UPON THE CORD—THIRD, WITHOUT AMPUTATION, BUT
DESTRUCTION OF SECRETING POWER OF THE ORGAN
—SIMPLE EXCISION—-SCRAPING—-TEARING AND TOR-
SION — TORSION — FREE AND LIMITED —- ABOVE OR
BELOW THE EPIDIDYMIS—LINEAR ClhUSHING—FIRING.

THE methods of performing the operation of cas-
tration may be variously classified, though in each
class a varying number of modes will come under
our notice.

The first class will include the operations by which,
the envelopes having been cut through, the vaginal
sac opened and the testicle exposed, the organ is
separated by an immediate section of the cord. A
number of different processes are included under
this head, among which are those of scraping, of tear-
ing, of torsion, of linear crushing, or by the ecraseur,
and of firing, or the actual cautery.

cra)

20 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

The second class has also for its first or prelimi-
nary step, that of the first, viz., the incision of the
bags, the opening of the vaginal sac, and the expos-
ure of the testicle. But instead of removing the or-
gan by the division of the cord, we proceed as a
second step, to the application of an apparatus de-
signed to operate by producing compression along
_ the length of the cord, and in this are included but
two modes of operating, that by the ligature and that
by the clamps.

The third class, according to our category, presents
to our view two further operations, both of which
are essentially bloodless and dispense with the in-
cision of the bags, consisting of certain peculiar
manipulations which insure the destruction of the
testicular structure, and consequently of its secreting
power. They comprehend the process of the crush-
ing of the spermatic cord, and that of subcutaneous double
twisting—the bistournage of the French.

We now enter upon the consideration of each of
the separate modes we have thus enumerated.

SIMPLE EXCISION.

This is claimed to be one of the oldest modes of
operating, and though to a great extent discarded by
practitioners of the present day, still finds its appli-
cation in the treatment of the smaller animals. With
larger patients, however, though still strongly recom-
mended by some practitioners, it isnot generally em-
ployed on account of the profuse hemorrhage which
necessarily follows the amputation of the cord. Stilt

‘

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 21

it is conceded that this hemorrhage, as in many cases
of the clean, transverse section of arterial blood
vessels, will cease spontaneously by the contraction
of the vessels on themselves, and the formation of a
clot at the divided end, as well as in the surrounding
cellular tissue. However, there is a possibility of the
continuance of the hemorrhage for some length of
time, and the bad effects of excessive depletion are
not to be overlooked, especially in an animal whose
general constitution has from any cause suffered im-
pairment. If there is any one of the various modes
of operating in which the standing position is allow-
able, this, in our opinion, is the one, the steps
of the process being so few and so short, and
admitting such simplicity and rapidity. These con-
sist in making a free opening in the bag, reaching
with a single stroke of the knife into the vaginal
cavity ; grasping the testicle and pulling it gently
downwards ; and cutting the cord right across, from
the front backwards, above the epididymis, the cord
returning of itself into the vaginal sac—the division
being made, of course, on both, sides. The animal is
then kept quiet in his stall and left alone until the
hemorrhage subsides.

SCRAPING.

This operation, which is said to have originated in
India, is but a modification of the pr paedinp, In-
stead, however, of using a sharp edged instrument
to divide the cord, the surgeon, on the contrary, em-
ploys a dull knife, with which the coats of the artery

22 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

and portions of the cord are scraped until the sepa-
ration takes place. They are thus placed in good
condition for their temporary closure. This method
is probably attended with a diminished amount of
hemorrhage, and if carefully performed, it may be
entirely absent, the clot closing the artery, and the
condition of the lacerated threads of the vessel acting
favorably, as well, in preventing it. The manipula.
tions are similar to those accompanying the simple
excision, though it is better and more safely effected
when the animal is on his back. The testicles being
exposed by the incision through the envelopes, the
posterior septum of the cord is cut through by a
transverse section, and the scraping of the anterior
fasciculus of the cord then performed, by a slow
movement from above downwards, along a certain
extent, in order to effect a solution of continuity by
a sort of wearing through the tissues. This opera.
tion is slow and requires a careful hand for its execu-
tion. Butas if may in some cases be followed by
severe hemorrhage, it cannot, for that reason, be
recommended for large animals, for solipeds espe-

cially.
TEARING AND TORSION.

These two modes of operation may, to a great ex-
tent, be considered as identical. Indeed, the mode
of torsion may be said to have arisen principally as a
modification of that of tearing, which is the older.
Tn tearing, the cord was subjected to a certain amount
of torsion by the hand, aud then torn apart at a given

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 23

point in its length; while in the process of simple tor-
sion, as properly performed, we obtain a.division of the
cord by twisting it with instruments, which enables
the operator to effect the separation. at a definitely
determined spot. Tearing differs, then, from torsion
only in the fact that after giving several twists to the
cord in order to gather its fibres into a more compact
mass, and to diminish the resistance of the more
superficial layers, it is divided in its continuity by a
violent traction upon its fibres in the direction of its
length.

In this process, especially applied to ruminants,
the testicle being exposed, the operator secures the
cord firmly with the thumb and index finger of one
hand, to prevent the traction from taking effect too
far upwards when being made by the other hand,
after the cord has been twisted a few times on itself.

TORSION.

In this method of castration the cord is twisted
with sufficient force to cause it to break of itself at
the point of the greatest violence. Its design is to
accomplish the removal of the testicle without drag-
ging or excessive traction upon the cord, and thas to
avoid the hemorrhage following the torsion of the
spermatic artery, as a mode of hemostasis sufficient
to prevent the flow of biood attendant upon the rup-
ture of the cord. The operation may be performed
either above or below the epididymis, or may con-
sist simply in the torsion of the artery alone. At
first the hands only were called upon to act in the

24. ANIMAL CASTRATION.

manipulations, and the operation was from this
cause known as /ree torsion, until about fifty years
ago, when instruments were introduced into general
practice, and gave rise to the plan of limited torsion.

FREE TOMS{ON.

Free torsion, ov that in which the hands alone are
employed in the operation, may be performed, as
before stated, cither above or below the epididymis.

Above the Epididymis,—The first is one of the oldest
modes of castration known; one which must have
been practiced contemporaneously with the use of
clamps, or in the first age of surgery. The first steps
of the operation required for the exposure of the
testicles are the same as havo already been detailed.
When this is accomplished the steps of torsion and
rupture are then performed in the following manver:
The operator, grasping the testicle, carefully draws
out the spermatic cord, and with a pointed bistoury
makes a transverse incision, above the tail of the
epididyimis, through the posterior septum of the
cord, involving what we kuow as the white muscle of
Bouley, the efferent canal, and the small testicular
artery. He then seizes the anterior fasciculus of the
cord between the thuinb and index finger of the left
hand, squeezing it as tightly as possible, and having
with the other hand seeured the cord at a short dis-
tance below the point where the left hand has already
been placed, performs the torsion by a rotatory
movement viven to the testicle itself, the motion.
having for its result the twisting and tearing of the

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 95

cord when long enough continued to overcome the
tenacity of its fibres. Fifteen or twenty turns of the
organ will usually be found sufficient to effect the
rupture. A considerable degree of strength in the
fingers is required in this movement, and for this
reason the torsion may take effect further up than
taay be desired, and beyond the point designed,
which may result in an unnecessary amount of irri-
tation and injury. When the torsion has gone so far
that the rupture of the cord has been effected, the
stump is released, and retracts in the inguinal canal
to a certain height limited by the presence of the
posterior septum, which holds it in place, and to a
great extent prevents its return through the superior
orifice of the inguinal canal.

Below the Lpididymis.—This, the fourth step of the
operation, consists in the separation of the testicle
from the epididymis and the torsion of one upon the
other. The testicle being exposed, the operator,
taking hold of its appendix, the epididymis, with the
left hand, and of the gland with the right, their cellu-
lar serous attachment is divided by the thumbs from
the posterior to the anterior extremity, from the tail
to the head of the twisted efferent canal. If this
cannot be done with the hand, the convex bistoury
must be called into action. This accomplished, the
head of the epididymis is firmly secured with the
fingers of the left hand, and the right hand, left free,
gives to the testicle the number of rotatory motions
necessary to separate it from its excretory canal—
that is, from eight to ten. When the testicle is thus

96 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

severed, the stump of the end, with the epididymis,
is pushed back into the vaginal sac, where it is con-
fined by the application of a suture upon the middle
of the edge of the scrotal wound.

LIMITED TORSION.

Limited Torsion Above the Epididymis.—As we have
seen, this is the operation by which the division of
the spermatic cord is effected by torsion made upon
a given point in its length, and limited by the use of
special instruments.

We have already called attention to the difficulty

Fie. 3,

FIXING FORCEPS FOR TORSION,

A.—Renault and Delafond pattern,
B.—Perier.
C.—Reynal,

ANIMAL -CASTRATION, ; a7

of the operation of free torsion, which requires a
great deal of strength, and which, besides, may be
accompanied by a serious inflammatory condition of
the parts, through rough manipulations of the cord.
It is for this reason that this mode of procedure
must have been reserved for small animals, as, if
performed upon the larger kinds, it can only be by
men whose muscular force is sufficient to enable
them to overcome and bring into subjection the
struggling subjects of their operations.

It was in 1883 that two French veterinarians,
Renault and Delafond, of the Alfort school, intro-
duced the use of instruments in the operation, as an
improvement upon the manual methods and their
effects on the sequele, though it is said to have been

Fig. 4.

MOVING FORCEPS FOR CASTRATION BY TORSION.
Renault and Delafond pattern. Reynal pattern.

28 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

already practiced in Germany as far back as the fast
century. The instruments employed are two forceps
of peculiar construction, and which were more or
less modified, one of which (fixing forceps, Fig. 3,)
is to be applied upon a fixed point of the cord, where
it is suffered to remain, and the other (moving forceps,
Fig. 4,) is employed to accomplish the rotation of
the testicle and the lower end of the cord. Those of
Renault and Delafond or of Reynal are now in gen-
eral use. Those of Beaufils (Fig. 5) are, we believe,
too complicated for general use.

Modus Operandi.In the first step of the opera-
tion, the ordinary manipulations of the division of
the envelopes, the opening of the sac and exposure
of the testicle being accomplished, and the envelopes
being carefully pushed upwards, the torsion and ex-
cision of the cord are effected in the following man-
ner: The entire cord isembraced by the fixing forceps
(see Fig. 6), or only its anterior fasciculus if the poste-
rior septum has been cut, as in the process by free
torsion above the epididymis. An assistant, seizing it
from before backwards between its open branches
and strongly closing them, holds it firmly, without
pulling upon the cord. The operator then grasps
the cord with the moving forceps above the testicle,
and a little below the point held by the assistant,
leaving a small space between the instruments, and
closing his own tightly, begins the movement of tor-
sion, which he directs from left to right. For this
he sometimes requires both hands, ons of them Aeep~
ing the instrument in place, while the other continugs

G

Fic. 5.
COMBINED FORCEPS OF M. BEAUFILS.

IN

MA

30 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the rotation as described. Ten or fifteen turns of the
forceps are usually sufficient to complete the rupture

NOISUOL GALINIT dO NOILVUEdS

oi the cord, the artery, owing to its facility of elonga-
tion, being the last part to give way. The testicle

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 81

then separates, being held in the branches of the
moving forceps ; the fixing forceps are removed, and
the cord is drawn upwards into the vaginal sac. It
is important in this operation to caution the assist-
ant against drawing on the cord during the struggles
of the animal, consequent upon the pain caused by
the first appleation of the instruments, and the
pressure upon the parts when held between their
inflexible iron jaws ; but on the contrary, to maintain
it as closely as possible against the inguinal region.

This process of castration is one of the most rapid
of all the forms of operating. The only hemorrhage
likely to occur is merely that of the small testicular
artery, if it should happen to be divided when the
torsion is confined to the front portion of the cord.

Below the Epididymis.—This process differs from
the preceding only in the fact that instead of holding
the cord between the fingers, it is held by the fixed
forceps, the use of the moving instrument being ren-
dered unnecessary by the slightness of the adhesion
of the seminal gland to its appendix.

LINEAR CRUSHING.

The originator of the use of that peculiar instru-
ment, the ecraseur (Fig. 7), so .valuable an adjunct
in the operation of castration, is Mr. H. Bouley,
who brought it into use at a date as early as the
year 1857. Tt is not, therefore, an American inven-
tion, as has sometimes been claimed. The function
of this instrument is to effect the division of living
parts without hemorrhage. The original ecraseur

82 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

of Chassaignac has received many modifications, all
of which, however, operate upon the same principle.

Fia. 7.

VARIOUS KINDS OF ECRASEURS,

While those represented in Fig. 7 are used by a
greater number of veterinarians, there are others
which count many advocates and have given them

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 33

great satisfaction, such as those represented in Fig.7a.
The essential design of all is to produce a general
constriction of the blood vessels, by which their in-
ternal and middle coats being first divided, may con-
tract within the cavity of the vessel in such a manner
as to close their cavity and form a sort of stopper to

Fig. Ta.

el

the artery, while the external cellular covering, the
last to undergo division, is so stretched, under the
action of the instrument, and so closely adapts itself
by its ends, that insufflation through the free ends
of the vessels fails to remove the closing arrange-
ment of the two coats first divided.

Modus Operandi.—The operation is comparatively

84 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

a very simple one. The testicle being exposed, as
in all the other methods, the chain of the iustrument
is so placed around the cord that the pressure takes
place upon the greater mass of tissue, in order that
it may continue the longer; which being done, the
lever of the instrument is brought into action, and
the constriction caused by the chain slowly kept up
until the definite division of the tissue is accom-
plished. The essential condition of success in the
operation, having in view the desired hemostatic
effect, is to act slowly. According to Prof. Bouley,
an interval of several seconds should be suffered to
elapse after each rotation of the wheel which moves
the chain. If the tissues are divided too rapidly,
the section of the artery is apt to be too clean, and
a hemorrhage is likely to be the result. This objec-
tion, however, though made by one of the highest
authorities in veterinary surgery, does not seem to be
justified by the results obtained by American opera-
tors, most of whom both recommend and practice its
execution as rapidly as possible; and according to
their own statements a serious hemorrhage is seldom
encountered. The fact that it has been observed in
any case, however, confirms the wisdom of the recom-
mendation of Prof. Bouley, and as most of our Ameri-
can confréres prefer the operation with the animal in
the standing posture, the reason of their neglect of
the prudent and more truly surgical process can be
readily appreciated. To avoid the hemorrhage Dr.
House invented a clamp which he applied upon the
cord previous to the amputation with the écraseur

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 85°

(Fig. 8). This mode of castration has not been very
extensively practiced by European practitioners uj
to late years. But since the visit that Dr. House
made in Europe, when he was called in many in-
stances to exhibit his modus operandi, it seems to have
been accepted in the general practice of quite a
number of veterinarians. However, the essential

HOUSE CLAMPS.

necessity of safety which so protracts its performance
will probably prevent its admission by the majority
of practitioners.

FIRING.

This mode of castration consists in the application
to the cut end of the testicular cord—previously

80 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

divided with the bistoury, or by the cautery—
as a means of hemostasis, of an iron heated toa

Fia. 9.

DOUBLE FORCEPS FOR CASTRATION BY FIRING.

white heat—the actual cautery. This is claimed to
be one of the oldest modes of operating, Vegetius

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 37

and Absyrtus describing it as a common process of
castration. Itis much in favor in England, and in
some parts of Germany, though less practiced in
some other parts of Europe. The instruments es-
sentially needed for the operation of castration by
firing are two; the first, a peculiar forceps for hold-
ing the cord and securing it while the application of
the cautery is being made; and the second, the iron
or cautery itself.

These forceps, or nippers, are either single or double
{Fig. 9), and may be made either of wood or of iron,
and more or less modified in form, according to the
fancies of the different operators. But they all werk
on the same principle, and effect the same object.
With the single forceps but one cord can be treated
at a time, but with the double instrument both cords
may be secured at once, and may be divided and
cauterized at one step. In this way the possibility
of disturbing the eschar caused by the cauterization
of one cord while manipulating the second, is quite
obviated.

When the testicles, either or both, have been ex-
posed, the mass of the cord is fixed between the jaws
of the forceps, from before backwards, at about one
inch above the tail of the epididymis, and firmly se-
cured. This may be effected either by tying it
tightly with a string wound about the handles, or by
means of a spring crank with which some instru-
ments are furnished. The testicle is then amputated,
either by a stroke of the bistoury, or with the sharp
edge of the cautery carried across and at a right

88 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

angle with the direction of the cord. This done, the
operator applies the broad portion of the iron over
the entire surface of the stump of the spermatic cord,
and cauterizes (or sears) the part thoroughly. It
must be remembered that to insure the safety of the
cauterization, the iron must be very hot. Otherwisa,
when it is removed, if it has cooled off, it may ad-
here to the carbonized surface, and the scab formed
at the end of the blood vessel may accompany thq
instrument. The application of pulverized rosin ta
the end of the cord, previous to the cauterization, im
recommended by some practitioners.

A very proper precaution, and one on no secount
to be omitted, is the protection of the surrounding.
parts from the radiating heat by covering them with
wet cloths.

When the operation is completed, the forceps
should be opened with great care, in order to ascers
tain whether all hemorrhage has ceased, and the
cord may be allowed to retract. If any oozing o2
blood appears at the point of the operation, the cau-
terization must be repeated at the point indicated.

A free application of cold water, in the form of a
douche, after the operation, will contribute t: the
formation of a clot in the cauterized artery.

CHAPTER III.

METHODS OF THE SECOND CLASS— CLAMPS—COVERED
AND UNCOVERED OPERATION—INSTRUMENTS—FOUR
VARIOUS STEPS—OBJECTION TO THIS METHOD—TIME
TO REMOVE THE CLAMPS—LIGATURE—OF THE CORD
AND ITS ENVELOPES—OF THE CORD ONLY—OF THE
SPERMATIC ARTERY—OF THE EFFERENT CANAL—
SUBCUTANEOUS OPERATION.

Having completed the consideration of the various
methods included in the first class, we propose next
to examine those entering into the second, which
embrace those in which certain means of pressure
are applied and suffered to remain upon the cord
previous to the amputation of the testicle. These
are two in number, and consist of the process known
as that of the clamps, and that which involves the
use of the ligature.

THE METHOD BY THE CLAMPS.

This is an ancient mode of operating, having been
transmitted to us through many ages. It has re-
ceived the sanction of long practice, and, if not

(39)

40 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

absolutely superior to all others, is possessed of
qualities and adyentages which all who have em-
ployed it will freely acknowledge.

It is performed in two ways. One is the process of
the covered, the other of the uncovered testicle. The
covered operation is that in which only a portion of
the testicular envelopes are divided, the scrotum and
the dartos, the gland being left covered with the other
envelopes. On the other hand, in the uncovered
operation, all the enveloping membranes are divided,
and the testicle is made to protrude outside of the
vagipal sac. The first three steps of this mode of
operating are understood to have been perfcrmed in
the methods which we have already considered as
generally preliminary in all cases, in order to obtain
access to the cord.

The instruments necessary to operate in this case
are a very sharp convex bistoury, a pair of clamps,
some strong twine, a castrating forceps and a pair of
scissors, The clamps are wooden or metallic pincers,
formed to embrace the cord and to be applied firmly
upon it, in order to hold it securely, and to confine
the artery tightly enough to prevent the occurrence
of hemorrhage. The form most ordinarily used, and
probably most convenient, is made of wood, and con-
sists of twosemi-cylindrical pieces (Fig. 10) joined at
one end and resting together by a flat and sometimes
grooved surface, and measuring about six inches in
length. The material is a light but strong wood.
They are rounded at the extremities, in order to avoid
chafing the soft tissues. A groove at each end is de-

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 4i

signed to receive the twine, which is part of the ap-
pliance. Before being used they are tightly tied
together at one end, in such a manner that they

Fia. 10,

INTERNAL FACE OF CLAMPS,

spring open if closed. This point is one of the first
importance. It requires considerable exercise of
strength to place them tightly enough on the cord
they ave to hold, but this firm juxtaposition, so ob-
tained, facilitates their removal, when that is required.
The groove which they carry on their flat surface
is sometimes filled with some merely lubricating
greasy substance, usually simple ointment, fresh
lard, butter, or cream, though some veterinarians
use a caustic paste. This last mode of proceeding
is strongly opposed by some authorities, as likely to
induce unnecessary inflammatory action, through

42 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the formation of a scab, which may require for its
removal a process of sloughing, which may in some
cases give rise to serious complications. As I have
stated, the clamps are not always made of wood, and
very many alterations and improvements, so called,

Fig. 11.
VARIOUS SHAPES OF CLAMPS,

Screwed Clamp. Spring Clamp of Brandt. Hinge Clamp.
have been from time to time broughtforward. In Fig.
11 a few of these clamps are presented. The oldest
form is the simplest, and possesses the further ad-

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 43

vantage of being always easy to be obtained, while the
more complicated contrivances are not always easy
of access.

The castrating forceps (Fig. 12) are used for bring-

Fie. 12,

FORCEPS TO HOLD THE CLAMP VISE FOR THE SAME,
TOGETHER.

ing the clamps together while they hold the spermatic
cord between their branches. There are several kinds
of these, but in default of obtaining them readily, the
operator may find an eligible substitute in the black-

44 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

smith’s nippers or the gasfitter’s tongs. We have
used this latter for a good many years, and have
found it very well adapted to the purpose required,
by the presence of its set of double curved and grooved
jaws. The twine which it is necessary to use to
keep the clamps closed when they have been brought
into perfect contact with the castrating forceps, must
be soft and strong. A piece of fishing ne, previously
waxed, will answer the purpose very well. In order to
facilitate the traction which may be necessary to keep
the clamps in place, it is a good precaution to attach
the ends of the twine to small wooden handles
to protect the hands from cutting by the string. It
is well, also, to prepare a reserve of clumps and twine
against accidents from breakage or the mislaying of
these articles.

COVERED OPERATION.

Modus Operandi-—-The animal being thrown on
either side, as already described, and kept as
nearly as possible on his back by bundles of
straw packed under him on the lower side, and
the right hind leg secured in its proper position, and
the instruments placed within easy reach, the’ sur-
geon proceeds with the fourfold steps of the opera-
tion, consisting first, in the prehension of the left
testicle, or lowest in position ; second, the incision
through the envelopes; third, the enucleation of the
testicle ; and fourth, the application and constriction
of the clamps.

first stey.—The operation must always begin with

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 45

the prehension of the gland which corresponds with
the side—the lower—upon which the animal is lying,
This obviates any danger of interference by any little
hemorrhage which might oceur, and so facilitates the
application of the clamps. Then, placing himself
toward the back of the patient, the operator reaches
over and grasps the lower testicle with both hands,
bringing it downwards in such a manner as to stretch
the scrotum over its surface. This manipulation is
not always of easy performance, the contraction of
the cremaster muscle being sometimes so powerful
that the gland successfully resists all the operator’s
efforts of traction. It is sometimes necessary to di-
vert the attention of the animal, in order to facilitate
this part of the process, by pricking him with a pin
on the lips or about the anus, the effect of the new
sensation being such that his opposition is withdrawn;
and the contraction ceasing, he suffers passively the
traction of the envelopes over the organ. Or, the
same advantage may be obtained by the inhalation
of a little ether or chloroform. Then grasping the
cord with the left hand and bringing the organ well
forward, the surgeon proceeds to the

Second step, or that of the incision of the envelope.
Holding the sharp convex bistoury in his right hand,
he takes, with the thumb, a point @appui upon the
prominent organ, and carries it carefully over the
surface of the scrotum in a direction parallel with
the median raphé (described in the first chapter), and
following the great curvature of the testicle, and be-
ing careful with the first movement of the instru-

46 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

ment to divide only the scrotal skin and the dartos,
until the most superficial layers of the cellular tissue
of the third testicular envelope are reached. The
skin and the dartos being divided, the edges of the
wound separate, and the testicle, still pressed down-
wards and outwards with the left hand, protrudes
more or less, still included, as it is, within its fibrous
covering. A careful dissection, with a few light
strokes of the bistoury, or laceration with the thumb
nail of the hand, now suftices for the separation of
the fibrous envelope from its external covering, an
eutire separation of both of which can thus be easily
obtained by pressing the most external layer up-
wards through the laceration of the cellular coat
which unites them.

Third step.—The operator now relieves himself of
his instrument—uot, we may venture to suggest, by
placing it between his teeth, as some careless sur-
geons are apt to do, but by handing it to an assistant
—and, changing his position, places himself in front
of the inguinal region, and facing it. He then pro-
ceeds to the enucleation of the testicle, by separat-
ing the adhesion which exists between the internal
face of the dartos and the external surface of the
cremaster muscle and of the fibrous tunic. The
separation being completed, and the scrotum and
dartos being carefully pushed upwards, the patient
is now ready for the last step of the operation.

Fourth step—tThe testicle, well enucleated from its
superficial envelopes, but still covered by the fibrous
coat, and the vaginal sac still remaining intact, the

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 47

operator, facing, as before, the inguinal region, pro-
ceeds to the application of the clamps. The cutane-
ous covering and the dartos being pushed well up-
wards, the clamp is placed upon the cord above the
epididymis, from before backwards, the assistant,
armed with the castrating forceps, taking both of its
branches between the jaws of that instrument, care-
fully bringing them together, and closing them as
tightly as possible. The instant of the pressure of
the clamp upon the cord is marked by very severe
pain, and the suffering animal is excited to powerful
struggling. It is important that the assistant should
be aware of this, and he should be forewarned to re-
frain from pulling on the cord, and reminded, in
order to avoid injury from this accident, to keep the
clamps and the forceps steadily in contact with the
inguinal canal. It is probably with a view to the
avoidance of this possible injury that the use of a
peculiarly constructed vise or forceps has been rec-
ommended. The forceps being in place, and tightly
confining the branches of the clamps, well adjusted,
the operator now applies the twine, and after taking
several turns around the grooves of che free ends of
the clamps, secures it carefully with a double knot.

The operation is then repeated on the right or up-
permost testicle in the same manner, and with the
same precautions.

UNCOVERED OPERATION.

The four steps of this operation are the same as
those of the previous method, the first requiring the

48 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

same manipulations and observing the same order,
but the second involving some variations. In this
the same careful dissection is dispensed with, and
one free incision suffices, including all the various
envelopes, in order to expose the testicle freely and
at once. The incision is made with one free stroke
of the bistoury extending from the posterior to the
anterior extremity of the testicle, and dividing at
once scrotum, dartos, and the fibrous and serous
coats. Though this is to be done without hesitation,
it is by no means necessary to adopt the practice of
some operators, who not only divide the envelopes,
but even make a large incision in the testicular
structure itself, inflicting thus an unnecessary amount
of pain from which the animal might, with a little
care, have been spared.

When the surgeon reaches the third step of the
operation, and seizes the testicle with the right hand,
in order to draw it downward and outside of the
vaginal sac, he muy encounter great resistance to his
traction, from the powerful opposition of the white
muscular tissue running along the posterior septum
of the cord. He must then slowly and steadily draw
the testicle down, and at a given moment, with a
single stroke with a sharp pointed bistoury, divide
the serous band of the posterior septum, cutting at
once the muscular fibres, the efferent canal and the
small testicular artery. This being effected, the re-
sistance will terminate, and the testicle may be
drawn down without further difficulty. The division
of the septum is not always resorted to. Still, the

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 49

verdict of experience is strongly in favor of the meas-
ure. The application of the clamps (Fig. 13) is

Fig. 13.

CASTRATION WITH UNCOVERED TESTICLE.

effected in the same manner as in the covered opera-
tion, but in this instance the clamp is placed higher
on the cord. For this reason the assistant must be
especially careful during the struggles of the patient
when the clamps are tightened, the danger of inguinal
hernia at this point being too serious to be overlooked.
The clamps being in place, and properly secured,
the testicles are either left in place and allowed to
slough away, or are amputated a short distance be-
low the clamps, as the case may be. The parts being
carefully washed out, the animal is allowed to rise,
and is returned to his stall.

An objection frequently urged against this mode of
operation is that it requires a second visit of the sur-
geon when the time has arrived for the removal of
the clamps. Estimating this objection at its proper

50 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

value, we consider that it is more than balanced by
the advantages attendant upon this special mode of
castration, and while we fully appreciate the difficulty
and inconvenience to which the surgeon may be sub-
jected by this second visit, we cannot approve of its
omission, either from a surgical point of view or in
that of the interests of the employers, in whose be-
half all care and responsibility should be exercised,
until the patient is at least enjoying a fair prospect
of recovery.

The question now arises, at what time can the
clamp be removed with safety? It must be under-
stood that there may sometimes be peculiar surgical
conditions under which their removal is contra-indi-
cated, and when they must be allowed to slough off
without further interference on our part. But even
in ordinary cases and under favorable circumstances,
this time appears to vary. By some they are re-
moyed after thirty-six hours, while others allow them
to remain for a period of four or five days. Taking
a fair average, we are of opinion that it may be safely
done on about the third day, and that at that period
the closing of the artery is sufficiently assured to re-
move all further pressure.

If the clamps have been secured with twine, and
especially if they were properly prepared previously
to their application, the process of removal is a very
simple one. The assistant, raising one of the patient’s
hind legs, the operator places himself directly be-
hind the animal, and bending down, with a sharp
sage-knile, cuts the twine where it has secured the

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 51

posterior ends of the clamp. If it retains the springi-
ness it ought to have possessed at the time of its
original application, the branches readily spring
open, and it falls to the ground. If this does not
occur, or if they should be held by adhesions with
some dried parts of the cords which have been press-
ed between the branches of the clamps, they must
be carefully separated by moving from below up-
wards, when they will easily become detached. But
this last manipulation must be very carefully per-
formed, if we would escape a hemorrhage which
might require serious measures to control. When
clamps of another make are used, the process of re-
moval will vary according to existing peculiarities in
the construction of the instrument. The clamp hav-
ing been removed from one side, the separation from
the other will, of course, be managed in a similar
manner.

THE LIGATURE.

This method of castration consists in the applica-
tion of a circular ligature upon the entire cord, or
a portion of it, for the purpose of completely clos-
ing it, with the various parts entering into its forma-
tion. It was in practice so long ago as 1734. The
operation is divided into several varieties,viz., that of
the cord with its envelopes; that of the cord only,
either by the covered or uncovered method; that of
the spermatic artery alone; that of the efferent
canal; and that by the subcutaneous process.

The ligature used in these various modes of opera-

52 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

tion is formed of waxed silk; sometimes of strong
twine, as fishing line, for example; or, as more
recently introduced in surgery in the removal of liv-
ing growths and tumors, an elastic cord.

Ligation of the cord and its envclojes.—This process
is principally used upon small animals, although,
since the elastic cord has been brought into use, a
few attempts have been made to make it applicable
to the larger kinds. The experiments, Lowever,
have been as yet so few, and the results so unsatis-
factory, and in so many cases fatal, that it can scarcely
be recommended, except for sinall subjects. The ap-
plication of this is very simple. It consists, after
securiny the patient, in bringing the testicles as far
down into the scrotum as may be thought needful,
and after applying the ligature two or three times
around the cord, a short distance above them (Fig.
14), slowly and steadily tightening it until a suf-
ficient amount of force has been employed to close
the calibre of the blood vessel and cut off the cireu-
lation from the parts situated below the point of lit
gation. This mode of operating lias, in our hands,
proved very successful in small animals, and when
the elastic ligature has been used. Mortification has
taken place inafew days, the testicles slowly detach-
ing themselves at the point of Leature, aud when
falling off leaving but a very suell superticial, euta-
neous scab, and lealine in a short time.

Under this chapter we think well to mention a new
mode of operation invented aud even recently pat-

ented in Europe and in the United States, by a

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 53

French veterinarian, under the name of “ Castration

en masse.” Instead of resorting to a ligature envel-

oping the entire mass, bags and cord, a specially
Fic. 14,

Nara

ING
x : Gj
VARIN TP x

, : Wd
Dae
DW

de
¢

ONICOLET one VERMIE

CASTRATION BY LIGATION OF THE CORD AND ENVELOPES,

54 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

made clamp is applied, embracing both cords, tightly
closed and left in place to slough. The author claims
that when the clamp drops, only a small, simple
granulating wound remains, which soon heals.

Ligature of the cord only ; covered operation.—The
first three steps of the operation having been accom-
plished, and the testicle enucleated, the ligature is
placed around the cord, still covered by its fibrous
envelopes and the cremaster muscle. A piece of
twine or an elastic ligature may be employed for
this purpose. In this operation the testicles are al-
lowed to remain not less than twenty-four hours, be-
fore amputation is performed, in order that if the
pressure has been insufficient, and the parts should
fail to exhibit symptoms of loss of vitality after that
time, another ligature may be applied.

Uncoverrd operation.—The only variation between
this method and the one last considered is found
in the fact that in this, the testicle and cord
being exposed as in the process of castration with
the clamp, the hgature is applied either on the cord
as a whole, or only on its anterior fasciculus. In this
case the testicle is amputated immediately after the
application of the hgature. But as there is a possi-
bility of the slipping off of the ligature, great care
must be taken lest the amputation be performed too
near the point where the constriction is made. And
again, as there is a possibility of the truncated cord
being drawn too far up, even up into the abdominal
cavity, it becomes a precaution of prudence, as rec-
ommended by Mr. Bouley, to leave a sufficient length

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 55

of the ligature hanging outside of the scrotal wound,
and even to secure it on the edges of the skin.

Ligation of the spermatic artery.—This is a mode of
castration which, if we are not mistaken, was held
in high estimation by certain practitioners in the
city of Boston. It consists simply in the application
of a ligature of silk to the spermatic artery. The
cord being exposed, and the posterior septum being
divided, a curved needle armed with the ligature is
made to pass around the whole mass of the anterior
fasciculus, and the entire vascular cord is surrounded
by the ligature and firmly tightened. The fact of
the various and irreeular flexuosities peculiar to the
spermatic artery, with both ascending and descend-
ing portions, explains the necessity of including the
entire arterial mass under the livature, since, if only
the simple cord of the artery were lgated, it might
be an ascending portion only, and the amputation of
the testicle might be followed by a troublesome
hemorrhage from one of the descending loops.

Ligation of the efferent canal and the subcutaneous l-
gation of the cord.—These two modes of operating
have not yet yielded suflicient evidence in the form
of satisfactory results to be entitled to more than
passing mention at the present time. We may say
further, moreover, that among all the methods of
castration by ligation, none of them have been sub-
jected to a sufficient amount of practical test to be
accepted as a process which will justify a strong ree:
ommendation or unqualified approval.

CHAPTER IV.

THIRD METHOD OF CASTRATION—CRUSHING OF THE
TESTICULAR CORD — DOUBLE SUBCUTANEOUS
TORSION—BISTOURNAGE—FOUR STEPS OF THE
OPERATION—SYMPTOMS FOLLOWING—CASTRA-
TION OF MALES OF SMALL ANIMALS—CASTRA-
TION OF CRYPTORCHIDS—ABDOMINAL CRPTOR-
CHIDY — INGUINAL CRYPTORCHIDY — MODUS
OPERANDI-—EFFECTS FOLLOWING THE OPERA-
TION OF CASTRATION—MODE OF CICATRIZATION
HYGIENIC AND SUBSEQUENT ATTENTIONS OR
AFTER CARES.

AsI have before stated, the third method of cas-
tration embraces the processes in which the testicu-
lar envelopes are left intact, while it is the gland or
cord which is submitted to the peculiar manipula-
tions by which their structure, and therefore the
secreting powers of the testicle, are so essentially
modified. In treating of this method, two special
operations preseut themselves for our consideration,
to wit: the crushing of the testicular support, and the
double subcutaneous twisting, or bistournage, of the

French. These are employed principally in the
8)

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 57

castration of ruminants, though efforts have been
made to apply the latter in the case of solipeds
The modes of operating which we have already de-
scribed are, however, also applicable to the rumi-
nants.

CRUSHING OF THE TESTICULAR CORD.

This consists in crushing the spermatic cord with
a hammer, the vessel continuing, meanwhile, to be
covered with its envelopes. It was first described
in the year 1826, and is most commonly practised in
some Trench districts. The instruments used are
two cylindrical pieces of wood, each about one yard
in leugth and two inches in diameter; and a hammer
or mal’ct fo. med of hard and heavy wood. The ani-
mal being properly secured in the standing position,
the testicles being drawn well down into the bottom
of the envelopes, the sticks are placed, one behind
aud one in front of the cord, close to the upper ex-
tremity of the gland. When in that position they
are moved in such a manner that instead of remain-
ing, one in front of the other, one becomes so super-
imposed upon the other that the spermatic cord be-
comes twisted in the form of the letter S (Fig. 15).
While held together in this position by an assistant,
the operator, placing himself in front of one side of
the lind quarter, with repeated blows of the hammer
or mallet, crushes the cord at the point where it
rests upon the wood which occupies the inferior
position, of course guaging the force and frequency
of the blows by the effect observed, until the crush-

58 ANIMAL CASTRATION,

ing of the organ is satisfactorily accomplished. As
a measure of caution, it will be well, upon the com-
pletion of the process of crushing, to surround the
cord with a ligature moderately tightened, in order
to guard against the drawing up of the cord into the

Fie. 15.

CASTRATION BY CRUSHING OF THE CORD.

inguinal canal, an accident not likely to occur, how-

ever, if the operation has been well performed.
DOUBLE SUBCUTANBOUS TORSION; BISTOURNAGE.

In this mode of operating, principally in vogue in the
southern parts of France, the position of the testicle

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 59

is so changed that its lower extremity is made to
take the place of the upper, the cord is subjected to
a certain degree of torsion, and then the testicle is
restored to its normal position, to undergo a process
of atrophy which destroys its power of secretion by
a physiological action. The great length of the cord
and the greater laxity of the cellular tissue situated
between the dartos and the fibrous coat, render this
operation much easier in the ruminants than in the
solipeds. Simple in its manipulations, although still
involving a certain degree of dexterity, and followed
by comparatively no symptoms of reactive fever,
the only instrument necessary for its performance is
a piece of cord, twine, or rubber, sufficiently strong
to secure the testicular envelopes when the gland
has been subjected to the double displacement, and
the cord to the torsion it has undergone. In this
operation, no special preparation being demanded,
the animal is usually treated on his feet.

The late Mr. Serres, of the veterinary school of
Toulouse, divides the operation into four steps, viz.,
first, the softening of the bags and separation of the
dartos from the fibrous tissue ; second, the displace-
ment (dislocation) of the testicle; third, the torsion
of the cord ; and fourth, the pushing up of the testicles
into the inguinal region, with the application of the
ligature to keep them in place.

The first step is the most difficult for the surgeon
as well as the most painful to the horse, though the
contrary is the fact where the subject is an ox. The
operator, stationing himselt behind the animal,

60 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

grasps the testicles with both hands (Fig. 16) and
quickly draws them down into the scrotum. Hold-

Fig. 16 (A).

A "

DOUBLE SUBCUTANEOUS TORSION IN CATTLE.
Softening the bags—first position of the hands.

ing them there with the right hand, with the left he
raises the scrotum by the lower part, firmly pulling
upon it downwards and slightly from before back-
wards. The testicles are then moved upward and
downward in the sac, carrying with them the fibrous
covering. During this time a peculiar crackling
sound is heard, which is caused by the tearing apart
of the fibres of the cellular tissue lying between the
dartos and the fibrous coat. This laceration is some-
times difficult to effect, especially in aged animals, in
which case the up and down motion of the testicles
will require a greater number of repetitions before
the adhesions are torn.

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 61

The second step consists in the displacement or
dislocation of the testicle, which is accomplished in

Fia. 16 (B).

DOUBLE SUBCUTANEOUS TORSION IN CATTLE.

Softening of the bags—second position of the hands.

the manner following: The testicles being pushed
well upwards in the vaginal sac, one of them, the
left, for example, is drawn well downwards with the
left hand, which grasps the cord above the epididymis

62 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

(Fig. 17), the thumb resting on the back of the cord,
and the remaining fingers in front of it, while the
right hand, placed in pronation, pinches the inferior

Fig. 17.

DOUBLE SUBCUTANEOUS TORSION IN OAT?TLU,
Position of the left hand at the beginning of the second step,
part of the scrotum. Maintaining these dispusitions,
the testicles are displaced by the simultaneous action
of both hands, the left pushing the cord from above
downwards and from before backwards, in such a
manner as to depress as much as possible the supe-
rior extremity of the gland, while with the fingers of
the right hand, vesting by their dorsal face against
the posterior part of the testicle (Fig. 18), the inferior
extremity of that organ is pushed upwards. With-
out losing hold of the envelope, the movement of this
hand gives way to these opposite and simultaneous
pressures, that of the left hand tending to lower the

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 63

head of the testicle, and that of the right elevating
its tail, and the gland is being flexed upon the cord
from which it is suspended, backwards and upwards.
At the moment when the testicle forms an acute
wugle with the cord, the thumb of the left hand, rest-

DOUBLE SUBCUTANEOUS TORSION IN CATTLE,

Second step.

ing upon the cord, comes into action to aid in the
displacement by making a point d’ appui upon the
inferior extremity of the organ, which now occupies
the superior position, in such a manner that the
spermatic gland is placed parallel with the cord.
Yhe manipulations are completed by pushing the
testicles upwards towards the inguinal ring, to break

64 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

up whatever adhesions of cellular tissue may re-
main. This second step of the operation being com-
pleted, the two organs are found to be so placed that
they are parallel one with the other, the testicle be-
ing posterior to the cord.

The third step, or that of the torsion of the cord,
now presents itself to our neti: — To effect this, the

Fic. 18

DOULLE SUBCUTANEOUS TORSION IN CATTLE.

Third step. Position of the hands when thz torsion is about
being made.

testicle must be firmly held at the bottom of the en-
velopes (Fig. 19), the left hand placed forward upon
the cord, and the right behind and upon the testicle.
The cperator then gives to the organ a twist with

ANIMAL CASTRATION, $5

the right hand by a motion of rotation from left to
right and from without inwards, while with the other
he draws upon the cord in the opposite direction.
The result of this manipulation is to give to the
gland half a turn around the cord (Fig. 20), which

DOUBLE SUBCUTANEOUS TORSION IN CATTLE.

Third step. Position of the hands during the torsion.

thus becomes displaced and takes a posterior position.
By a change in the action of the hands, but a repeti-
tion of the same movement, the right hand now act-
ing on the cord, while the left is applied to the tes-
ticle, the remaining portion of the motion of rotation
is performed, and a complete torsion of the spermatic
support accomplished. By repeating this action, of
course as many turns of the cord as may be thought

66 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

necessary, can be secured, two, however, being gen-
erally found sufficient, although, in a few instances
as many as four or five may be required—never more
than that. The length of the cord is the principal
controlling circumstance. When these several steps
have been completed with one testicle, their repeti-
tion is, of course, in order with the other. And
when both have been treated, the consummation
of the operation is called for by entering upon the
fourth step, or that of the application of the
ligature.

To accomplish this both testicles are firmly seized

Fig. 21,

DOUBLE SUBCUTANEOUS TORSION IN CATTLE.

Position of the testicles and ligature en masse of the bags
when the operation is finished.

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 67

with both hands, and pressed upwards as far as pos-
sible against the inguinal ring (Fig. 21). Ibis neces-
sary to be very careful to ascertain that they rest on
the same level, in order to be secure against the
possibility of untwisting. The ligature is then ap-
plied by passing three or four turns of it around the
scrotal envelopes, immediately below the testicles,
with not more than a sufficient degree of tightness
to assure it against slipping off.

The symptoms which succeed the operation are not
commonly of a very serious nature, and subside
within a period of time varying from two to six
hours. Following the operation an inflammatory
swelling takes place in the bags, and after one or
two days assumes large dimensions. The ligature
can now be removed, and the animal left to himself,
without further treatment, the testicles undergoing
a slow process of atrophy readily recognized by their
appearance and the position they always thereafter
occupy in the vaginal sac.

CASTRATION OF MALES OF SMALL ANIMALS.

Boars are castrated between the age of six weeks
and two months. When operated at this later age,
their lard is more firm and ccnsistent. Those that
are kept for breeding are opcrated when two or three
years old, and even Ister.

The methods used are simple excision, sometimes
made more complete with torsion. For old animals
ligature or clamps are resorted to. The modus

68 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

operandi is similar to those used for the other species
of animals.

Dogs are castrated by excision, torsion or ligature,
according to the age. After the operation, it is said
by some that the dog becomes lazy and has a great
tendency to fatten; other operators deny these dis-
advantages.

Cats are operated by simple excision. The opera-
tion makes them more domestic in their habits; they
grow fat, their coat gets thicker and more silky; their
dejections lose the strong and repulsive odor which
makes tom-cats so disagreeable.

Castration of Rabbits gives excellent results: the
animal gets on fat easily, his fur becomes thicker, his
meat more tender and delicate. The operation is
done by simple excision with scissors when the ani-
mal is three months old. Hernia, often fatal, is a
common occurrence, if too much traction is applied
on the cord.

The animal properly secured and the testicular
region well exposed and disinfected, the testicles
are uncovered by a simple incision and removed
by torsion, tearing or simple excision.

Hemorrhage may follow, but without serious
results. I have seen one case of champignon follow-
ing the amputation of the testicle by tearing.

OASTRATION OF CRIPTORCHIDS.

The abnormal development of animals in which
the testicles have failed to make their appearance
by descending through the inguinal canal into the
bags, is quite commonly met with in solipeds, the

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 69

animal being then known by the designation of
ridglings or originals. The position assumed by the
organ in relation to its normal situation being so
altered that it may be found either partly engaged
in the inguinal canal (Fig. 22), or only remaining
close to its superior opening (Fig. 23), is one of these
tnequalities constituting what is called inguinal
eryptorchidy; another being when it remains floating
in or adherent to some parts of the abdominal
cavity—a condition known as abdominal cryptor-
chidy (Fig. 24).

Whether inguinal or abdominal, the ectopia is
either single when one testicle only is abnormally
situated (monorchidy), or again double when both
organs are in abnormal condition; this is cryptor-
chidy proper and may be abdominal on one side and
inguinal on the other.

As this condition has usually a peculiar effect
on the temper of the animal so affected, often
rendering him unfit for general use, it necessitates,
on that account, the act of castration, with some
changes in the manipulations described for the ope-
ration upon animals exempt from such an infirmity.
In these cases the operation presents more difficul-
ties, and is of a more serious character than the
former, demanding on the part of the operator all
the skill and knowledge which can be acquired from
its frequent performance and extensive study. That
the operation is one which is largely performed on
the Continent there is no doubt, and many European
operators have made for themselves an extensive
reputation in connection with it. Among these the

Fie. 23.

TESTICLE ENGAGED IN THE INGUINAL RING.

‘OS NINIGONAY

B-—Testicle. C—Gubernaculum testis. D—Inguinal ring.
(70)

a
z
2
3
R
=
ps
J

TESTICLE CLOSE TO THE RING.

C'—Internal portion of the gubernaculum testis,
C—Its external portion.
B—Testicle.
D—Inguinal ring.
(@s)

Fie. 24,

‘IS NINISOWAINE

TESTICLE FLOATING IN THE ABDOMEN,
A—Peritoneal ligament attached to the lumbar region,
B—Testicle.
C—Gubernaculum testis,
D—Inguinal ring.

(72)

ANIMAL GASTRATION. 73

names of Professor Degive, of the Brussels school,
and Professor Cadiot, of Alfort, merit mention.

But there is probably, on this Continent at least,
no better accredited authority, in this branch of
surgery, than a gentleman—a layman—of Illinois,
known very widely as “ Farmer Miles,’ who has for
many years not only sustained an eminent repute in
his specialty as a gelder, but, I believe, has devoted
a large share of study especially to the castration of
ridglings. He has not only traversed large portions
of the United States in the practice of this interest-
ing branch of veterinary surgery, but hag likewise
achieved much renown and appreciative criticism
from foreign sources, having travelled extensively
in various European countries, and earned much
honor from those who have watched his methods
and received ocular proof of his dexterity and
success within the sphere of his special field of
usefulness.

CRYPTORCHIDY IN HORSES.

In most cases, the ectopia is unilateral. Hering
and Franck, from a small number of cases recorded,
have thought that it was more common on the right
than on the left side; for Stockfelt, Mauri and Labat,
they are about equally divided. By some others it
is considered more frequent on the left than the
right.

Whatever is the kind of ectopia, the results are
about the same in all cases. The testicle is arrested
in its growth and keeps the character it had in foetal
condition: small, flabby, soft, it is made of greyish

G4 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

or rosy tissue, ordinarily containing no spermato-
zoids. Sometimes it is rudimentary, atrophied,
searcely recognizable; however, in some instances it
has been seen with the dimensions of the ordinary
testicle.

Like all glands in abnormal position, the testicle
in ectopia is subject to neoplastic degeneration.
Sometimes it is very large, deformed by one or
several cysts, whose contents vary; it may give to
the hand the sensation of a double testicle, when one
of these cysts has become pedunculated; exceptionally
cartilaginous or bony little masses have been found
in them; sometimes sarcomatous or carcinomatous
degeneration is presented, and the testicle assumes
enormous dimensions. Quite frequently also the
organ contains sclerostomas which have hollowed its
walls.

Geuerally the diagnosis of cryptorchidy is easy.
The noisy manifestations of the animal thus affected
and the absence of the mass formed by essential
organs of males indicate the trouble. In exploring
the inguinal region, if the horse is a ridgling, the
testicle or the cicatrix of castration is absent. With
monorchids, one side shows the bag empty and
without any mark, while on-the other the testicle is
there, or, if it has been removed, a cicatricial depres-
sion situated near the median line is found.

On the side of the ectopic gland, sometimes a
lincar, not depressed, cicatrix is found; this comes
from an incision made to deceive and to make believe
that the animal has been castrated. But when the
testicle has been excised, the cicatrix is almost

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 75

always depressed, infundibuliform and contracted
on its edges; and besides this, by manipulations of
the hand, near the inguinal ring and towards the
median line, it is easy to fecl the stump of the
spermatic cord and trace it well up in the inguinal
ring where it enters. When castration is shammed,
these signs are missing; there is only a superficial
cicatrix or a small fibrous spot continuous deeply
with one or several small brands of similar nature,
running in different directions. In some doubtful
cases, the following manner to examine is recom-
mended: the hand, introduced in the rectum, is
directed towards the superior inguinal ring; as this
spot is reached, the pulp of the fingers is laid over it
and an assistant is asked to pull on the scrotum
below the corresponding inferior inguinal ring by
taking hold of the suspicious cicatrix or the parts
surrounding it; if the testicle has been removed, the
cord will be felt sliding up and down with each pull
of the assistant; if the horse has inguinal monor-
chidy, the cord remains immovable.

Cryptorchidy recognized, the question is whether
it is inguinal or abdominal. Ifthe former, the hand,
with the fingers brought together in cone and pushed
in the external inguinal ring and the inferior part of
the canal, feels the testicle quite often through the
scrotum and the dartos. Introduced in the rectum
and feeling towards the prepubic region, the hand
will, on the corresponding side, find the cord passing
through the ring. When the horse is secured in
decubital position and the hind leg, free from
the hobble, has been carried in abduction, the testicle

76 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

will sometimes appear bulging under the skin, near
the inferior inguinal ring and showing a character-
istic swelling which is not detected while the animal
is standing.

Abdomiiud eryptorchidy is recognized by the absence
of the testicle in the inguinal canal, the non-existence
of the vaginal sac or the small size of its superior
opening and of the internal inguinal ring, and it will
be principally made out by the intra-abdominal feel-
ing of the organ. The researches to discover it may
fail on account of its many varying situations and of
its small size in many individuals. Degive recom-
mends the exploration of the Jateral wall of the
abdomen on the ectopic side, through the rectum and
over the lumbar region near the median line. To the
touch the gland feels as a small, soft, ovoid and
movable body.

CASTRATION.

The preparation of the subject demands only very
simple attention. For six or eight days, he will be
submitted to severe diet or fed exclusively on
mashes, to which will be added daily small doses of
sulfate of soda to stimulate intestinal actions. This
is very important to facilitate the execution of intra-
abdominal manipulations. When the intestines are
empty, the testicle is almost always easily found.

The animal will receive no food the day of
the operation or even the day before. Previous to
being cast, cold rectal injections and a short exercise

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 77

will be given to promote defecation and empty the
rectum.

ABDOMINAL CRYPTORCHIDY.

Four methods have been recommended for the
operation, which allow the discovery of the testicle
and its excision: Ist, through the flank; 2d, in pas-
sing through the abdominal wall at the lower part of
the inguinal canal; 3rd, in pushing through this
canal in its entire leneth; 4th, through an incision
made in the inferior abdominal wall, between the
inguinal ring and the sheath. They are known as
the old method, the Danish method, the Belgian and
that of Gunther. We believe the modus operandi of
Farmer Miles is very similar to that of Degive.

CASTRATION THROUGH THE FLANK.

This method consists in performing laparotomy on
the superior part of the flank, bringing the testicle
outwards with the hand introduced in the peritoneal
cavity and removing it with the écraseur or by simple
amputation after ligature of the cord.

This method is used but little, although by the
application of the strictest antisepsy it has given
excellent results in the hands of several German
operators. It might be advantageously resorted to
in double ectopia, when both testicles could be
removed through one single incision.

CASTRATION BY THE INGUINAL REGION.
Anatomy.—The inguinal region is formed by the

78 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

postero-lateral wall of the abdomen resting on the
internal face of the thigh. Externally it is bound : on
the inside by the prepubic region; on the outside by
the stifle and the haunch; in front by the inferior
abdominal region; behind by the flat of the thigh.
Deeply, it is limited : inside, by the prepubic tendon
of the abdominal muscles and the lateral margin of
the pelvis; upwards, by the sub-lumbar region ; out-
wards, by the external angle of the ilium.

In this region there is found normally in males a
canal which receives the spermatic cord, the inguinal
canal, which opens in the abdomen by a narrow ori-
fice, the superior inguinal ring. Its lower opening or
inferior inguinal ring is found in the fold of the groin,
above the testicle (Fig. A). ;

In ridglings, the inferior inguinal ring is felt almost
as readily as in subjects whose testicles are down;
but the canal which ought to continue it is wanting;
the inguinal space is completely filled with connec-
tive tissue. In inguinal and complete cryptorchidy,
a blind canal has been made in the inguinal space by
the testicle partly down, by the epididymis or the
efferent duct; this blind canal opens in the abdomen
by a narrow orifice (the superior inguinal ring) and
ends inferiorly in a cul-de-sac; its bottom is separated
from the inferior inguinal ring by a coat of con-
nective tissue of varying thickness. (Fig. B.)

Considered in relation to the superposition of the
layers that form it, the ingvinal ring presents a con-
dition similar to that of the abdominal walls; but
the direction of the deep layers gives it a very pecu-

ANIMAL CASTRATION "9

liar disposition. These layers, from outwards in-
wards, are: Ist, the skin; 2nd, the dartos; 3rd, sub
dartoic connective tissue; 4th, great oblique of the
abdomen (aponeurotic portion); 5th, small oblique of

Fic. A

Section of the walls of the left inguinal space, made according
to a line passing from the inferior inguinal ring to the
external angle of the ilium. Internal portion: PA, skin;
CD, dartos; FSD, subdartoic connective fascia; AGO,
aponeurosis of the great oblique of the abdomen; LA,
anterior border of the inferior inguinal ring; LP, posterior
border of the same; II, inguinal canal; PO, small oblique
muscle; AT, aponeurosis of the transverse muscle; P,
peritoneum; ARC, crural arch; APC, crural aponeurosis;
AJ, external angle of the ilium; AVD, section of muscles
covered by the crural arch.

80 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the abdomen (muscles and aponeurosis); 6th, trans-

Fia. B.

hen

[eee

f qtr ri

if f
il ! |
ff |

Prepubic and inguinal regions seen by their inferior face.—
Figure showing on each side of the median line, the
inferior inguinal ring and the entrance of the inguinal
space.—ClI, internal commisure of that ring; CE, the ex-
ternal; LI, its internal border; LE, the external; PO,
small oblique muscle of the abdomen; TA, common tendon
of the abdominal muscles; CP, section of the penis; LM,
median line, * :

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 81

verse of the abdomen (aponeurosis); 7th, sub peri-
toneal connective layer; 8th, peritoneum. (Fig. C.)

Fia. C.

Vertical and transverse section of the posterior abdominal
region showing the superior insertion and disposition of
the small oblique, seen by its internal face. The peri-
toneum, sub-peritoneal coat and transverse muscle are
removed.—PO, small oblique muscle; BPO, its posterior
border; ©, superior part of the cremaster; GD, great
straight; AI, dotted line at the spot where, in operation
for abdominal cryptorchidy (Belgian method), the hand
is to reach the peritoneum; B, pelvis; V, bladder; R,
section of the rectum.

f) ANIMAL CASTRATION.

Inguinal tract or space.—It is the space between the
small oblique and the crural arch; oblique from up-
wards downwards, outwards inwards and from for-
wards backwards, it presents for consideration two
walls, two commissures, one entrance, one bottom or
summit.

The anterior wall or antero-internal is formed by
the small oblique muscle, which is gradually dimin-
ishing in thickness towards the median line and the
internal commissure. The posterior or postero-
external wall is formed by the crural arch, which is
quite thick inferiorly and towards the external com-
missure; it is thin towards its superior border,
which mingles with the lumbo-iliac aponeurosis.

The external commissure, oblique downwards, back-
wards and inwards, is formed by the union of the
muscle with the crural arch. On its entire length,
these two parts are adherent a little more than in the
tract itself, but this is no better defined outwards;
this commissure can readily be forced through with
the fingers and the muscle isolated over a wider
surface from the aponeurosis which covers it. The
internal commissure is formed by the same parts:
towards the inferior inguinal ring, by the union and
weak adhesion of the aponeurosis of the small
oblique to the arch; higher up, by that of the pos-
terior border of the muscle to the superior of the
arch. Bent from upwards downwards and from out-
wards inwards, following a line running from the ilial
insertion of the small oblique to the prepubic tendon,
this commissure is still less resisting than the

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 83

external, and when the perforation of the inguinal
space (Belgian method) is badly made, at the moment
the fingers are pressing against it, it tears easily in
its entire height.

The entrance of the inguinal space is represented by
the inferior or external inguinal ring. Oval in form,
with its long diameter oblique backwards and in-
wards, it is essentially formed by two fasciculi of
fibres belonging to the great oblique muscle, which,
contiguous first, become isolated from each other and
form two curved edges surrounding the opening.
This entrance has two borders, lips or pillars, and
two angles or commissures. The antero-internal
border is deeply lined by the small oblique, whose
fibres reflect at this point, to become more horizontal,
The postero-external border is formed exclusively
by a portion of the aponeurosis of the great oblique,
continued immediately upwards by the crural arch
and downwards by the crural aponeurosis.

The anterior or external commissure, more or less
resisting according to subjects, is formed by the
diverging fibres of the great oblique reinforced by a
few arciform fibres. The posterior or internal com-
missure corresponds to the tendon of the abdominal
muscles and the anterior border of the pubis.

The bottom or summit of the inguinal tract is
formed by the union of the two commissures. It is
bound by the line of insertion of the deep fibres of
the small oblique on the ilial portion of the crural
aponeurosis. The summit of the inguinal tract—
that is to say, the region where the peritoneum is to

84. ANIMAL CASTRATION.

be attacked in the Belgian method—is situated far
above the point where normally the superior inguinal
ring exists (Fig. C). While this last is but 8 or 10
centimeters from the median line, the summit of the
inguinal tract is 15 to 20.

DANISH METHOD.

This method consists in entering the abdomen
through the abdominal wall, in the vicinity of the
inferior inguinal ring, or again through the small
oblique at the entrance of the inguinal space and
excising the testicle through that opening. Modified
by Cadiot, he considers it as the best method.

Securing of the Animal—Preparalion—Instruments.
—The animal is cast on the side opposite to that of
the ectopia. The superior hind leg may be pulled
forward and secured on the shoulder as in castration,
or, better, be carried in abduction as in Fig. D.

Most authors advocate the use of anasthesia.
Some consider it superfluous or even as having more
objections than advantages. Without being indis-
peusable, it is useful, especially in nervous animals.
Asepsis of the operated field, of the operator and of
the instruments are of absolute necessity. The
sheath should be disinfected; the inguinal region
soaped and carefully washed with phenic solution or
one of sublimate or cresyl. The superior sections of
the hind legs, more particularly the internal face of
the thigh and the surroundings of the inguinal
region, should be sprinkled with antiseptic quid, so
as to avoid soiling the wound with dust or hair. The

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 85

foot of the displaced hind leg should be wrapped up

Fia. D.

Castration of cryptorchid,—First step:

incision of the layerg
covering the inferior inguinal ring.

86 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

with cloth dipped in antiseptic solution. The in-
struments and objects necessary are: a convex bis-
toury, few hemostatic forceps, a perforator, an
écraseur, cotton, gauze and needle with handle, silk
and thread.

Modus operandi.—It consists of five steps.

First Step.—Incision of the Scrotum and Dartos, Dise
section of the Subdartoic Layer. The direction of the
first incision is indicated by the great axis of the
inguinal ring, whose outlines are readily detected.
With the bistoury, the skin and dartos are divided
from forward backward, 15 centimeters in length.
The subdartoic connective fascia being reached, a
narrow incision is made through it about opposite
the center of the inguinal ring; through this incision
the thumbs are introduced, with their dorsal face
opposed, and by drawing them apart the opening is
enlarged. The fascia can also be cut with the
bistoury, layer by layer, in the same direction as the
skin has been. In either way, the external inguinal
ring is exposed and also the lower portion of the
inguinal space of which it is the entrance. If there
is much hemorrhage, it is arrested by ligatures or
forceps.

Lacerate the connective tissue in the lower part of
the inguinal space; introduce into it, towards the
bottom and a little outwards, the extended medium
and index fingers; feel if the ectopia is inguinal or
not.

Second Step.—Perforation of the Abdominal Wall.
This must be made on the anterior wall of the

ANIMAL CASTRATION.

87

inguinal canal, through the muscular portion of the

small oblique, near the posterior
border and as far as possible from
the median line. Itis advantageous
to enlarge the inferior inguinal ring
by making outward an incision, 5 or
10 centimeters long, on its aponeu-
rotic coat, so as to expose the re-
gion where the small oblique has a
thick layer. The abdominal wall
may be perforated, with the index
and medium fingers brought together
or with a thin, blunt metallic per-
forator (Fig. E).

Towards the end of an inspiration
from the animal, when the abdominal
wall is raised, apply perpendicularly
upon it, in the direction of the mus-
cular fibres, the fingers or tho blade
of the instrument and push them
through it with sudden pressure.
Generally, at the first effort, the
muscle, aponeurosis and peritoneum
are divided; sometimes, however,
the serous membrane resists and a
second push is necessary to complete
the perforation. If this has been
properly executed, the solution of
continuity is narrow and regular; it

Fig. E.

PERFORATO?D.

is a simple slit by separation of the muscular fibres.
Third Step—Searching the Testicle—Through this

88 ms ANIMAL CASTRATION.

opening tne index and medium fingers are intro-
duced into the abdomen to explore the surrounding
parts, where the testicle, epididymis or cord may be
immediately found. Feeling backwards, the depres-
sion is detected which exists on the level of the
superior inguinal ring and also the serous band
which from there goes to the suspensory ligament of
the testicle, and which at its inferior border is
reinforced by the gubernaculum cistis. If after a
few moments of exploration nothing is discovered,
an assistant is called to introduce his hand in the
rectum, as far as the prepubic region, to assist in the
exploration by pushing towards the wound the
organs that he successively feels. When the animal
has been prepared by long diet, it is rare if by this
manipulation the result is not reached and the
testicle, epididymis or cord discovered. It will be
better to take hold of the epididymis, bring it
towards the incision and by careful pulling draw the
testicle. In cases where digital exploration is insuf-
ficient, the animal being chioroformed, the opening
can be enlarged in the direction of the hip and of
the muscular fibres, where the whole hand can be
introduced in the abdomen; thus made, the wound
will be quite extensive in length, but if the first
directions have been followed, there is but Little
danger of protrusion of the intestine. Sometimes
the hand has to displace the organs that come in the
way and iust here and there feel the intestinal
muss, amoug the circumyolutious where the testicle
may be held back. Another way to reach the gland

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 89

is to carry the hand towards the bladder, lake hold

Fic. F.

Castration of cryptorchid.—The inferior inguinal ring has been
enlarged by incision of the external commisure. The third
step is finished. PO, small oblique; CI, internal com-
missure of the inguinal canal.

of the efferent canal and trace it from backwards for-

90 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

Fic. G.—Needle for
the suture of the
muscular wound,

ward to the epididymis. The gu-
bernaculum may also serve as a
guide, but it is harder to detect
than the cord.

In the very rare cases where the
testicle is held by peritoneal ad-
hesions, it must be loosened with
the fingers. In those not less un-
common, where, having undergone
eystic degeneration, it has acquired
large dimensions, the testicle is
drawn near the peritoneal open-
ing, punctured with a fine trocar
and then extracted.

Fourth Step.— Ablation of the Tes-
ticle. — Iixeise the organ slowly
with the écraseur, after placing
an hemostatic clamp above the
point of section. If there is dan-
ger that the stump has been in-
fected or soiled in any way, have
it purified before returning it in
the abdomen (Fig. F).

Fifth Step.—Suture of the Mus-
cedar TPoun?!.—If only a narrow
perforation has been made through
the small oblique, suture is not
necessary ; still itis better to close
it with a mounted curved needle
(Fig. G). Que or two stitches are
applied.

ANIMAL CASTRATION. §i

Dressing.—Wash the cutaneous wound, dust it with
iodoform, sew it with three interrupted sutures.
Drain tubes are used by some. Cadiot resorts to
antiseptic gauze only.

BELGIAN METHOD.

Instruments.—A bistoury, an écraseur, hemostatic
forceps, cotton, gauze, needle and thread.

The operation, well described by Degive, is made
in four steps.

First Step.—Incision of the Skin, Dartoic Coat and
Connective Tissue Underneath—This is done as in the
preceding Danish method.

Second Step.—Hollowing the Inguinal Tract and Per-
foration of the Peritoneum.—This is the dangerous
step of the operation. It can be executed with either
hand, although it is better and safer to use that cor-
responding to the side of the concealed testicle, the
right hand for the right organ, the left for the other.
With the fingers closed together, cone-like, the hand
is carried towards the entrance of the tract, by the
external ring, the cubital border of the hand resting
on the pubic commissure and the extremity of the
fingers in contact with the crural arch. The way the
hand has to follow is all indicated: outwards and
straight towards the lumbar region or slightly back
of it. The external angle of the ilium being taken
as guide, with “moderate force” the hand is pushed
in the canal, the fingers always on the crural arch ;
progressing slowly with semi-rotatory motion, with
slight opening of the fingers and avoiding injury to

92 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the internal commissure, the hand gradually goes up
and finally, without difficulty, succeds in isolating
the small oblique from the crural arch ; when it has
reached the bottom of the canal, it separates the
arch from the posterior border of the muscle; then
it reaches the peritoneum, through which it may
detect the intestinal cireumvolutions. What remains
to do is to perforate the peritoneum. Generally it
is done quite easily by a sudden push of the extremity
of the index finger alone or with it the medium;
sometimes it has to be torn with the nails. If blood
collects in the canal, it must be removed with aseptic
pads.

Such are the manipulations of this delicate step;
when well done, they allow a peritoneal opening to
be made high enough to avoid all danger of eventra-
tion. When the hand has followed the proper way,
it reaches the peritoneum not far from the lumbar
region, near the terminal tendon of the small psoas
and the external iliac artery, or more outwards, near
the middle of the external border of the psoas iliacus;
it must reach it almost on a level with the superior
insertion of the long adductor of the leg on the
lumbo-iliac aponeurosis, close to the margin of the
pelvis, between the tendons of the small psoas and
the middle of the inferior face of the psoas iliacus;
the serous is perforated at such a height that the
intestines have no tendency to escape. When the
animal is up, the pressure made upon the abdominal
has for effect to push the small oblique close to the
crural arch, to reduce the size of the tunnel made in

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 93

the inguinal space and to close hermetically the
peritoneal opening.

Third Step.—Searching and Exit of the Testicle—The
peritoneum being open on the proper place, the three
middle fingers, or only the index and medium, are
introduced in the opening and begin to explore. In
most cases, the testicle is in front and below tho
opening, not far from the ascending branch of tho
ilium. Rarely the gland itself is reached; more
commonly it is the epididymis or the inferior border
of the suspensory ligament. Whatever ic round, it
is drawn into the tract.

In some horses, the searching of the gland is very
difficult. Exploration is made with the fingers in all
directions and nothing but the intestinal circumvolu-
tions are found. Then the peritoneal opening must be
enlarged to allow the introduction of the whole hand,
which is successively carried towards the median line
and the entrance of the pelvis or passed over the
abdominal wall from inwards outwards. During the
struggles of the animal, greai care must be taken not
to push with the fist or forearm too hard on the
internal border of the perforation, as the commissure
might tear easily and the opening assume dangerous
proportions. Disturbed by the intestinal circumvolu-
tions that must be displaced or pushed back, the
hand soon gets tired; a little rest must be taken,
with the hand still kept in the abdomen, or some-
times it may be carefully withrawn and the operation
resumed after a little while.

But, as in the Danish method, instead of carrying

94. ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the tired hand in all directions, it is better when it is
possible to resort to an assistant to explore by rectum
the prepubic region and push the organ towards the
hand of the operator. This help of the assistant has
not been sufficiently resorted to, for in many instan-
ces it would have saved the necessity of introducing
the whole hand in the abdomen.

When the testicle is small, it is always easy to
push it through the peritoneal opening and draw it
towards the inferior inguinal ring. If the epididymis
is first entered into the canal, by pulling on it, the
testicle will soon follow. Likewise, if it is the cord.
There is some difficulty only when the gland is large.
In this case, its entrance in the canal is not without
danger; if it is drawn only by simple pulling, the
intestines might follow after it and pass through the
widely open orifice. To avoid this accident, one
must proceed as follows: while the hand is still
three-quarter engaged in the abdomen, with its
dorsal face gently raising the small oblique, the tes-
ticle, being previously brought to the edges of the
opening, is squeezed in the bottom of the hand by
flexion of the fingers, while the body of the hand
remains watching and stops the intestines. Once
the gland in the canal, the fingers are spread
open gently and carefully withdrawn, moving to-
wards the crural arch; those manipulations have
for results to allow the small oblique to come in
contact with the crural arch and close the opening
of the case.

In case the great size of the testicle shoud be due

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 95

to a cyst, it will be brought down or punctured as
already described.

Fourth Step. — Ablation.— This is done with the
écraseur, by torsion or by excision after ligature.
Very generally the testicle can be drawn to the infe-
rior inguinal ring; in some subjects the length of the
cord is such that the testicle can be pulled down as
low as the leg; in others this section has to be made
within the tract. The écraseur is ordinarily used,
the amputation being made slowly and a little above
the epididymis.

Dressing.—The wound is washed with antiseptic
care and irrigated with solution of sublimate.

When it is certain that the abdomen has been
opened sufficiently high so that the inguinal tract is
tightly closed at its apex, no dressing or suture need
be applied. Simply cleaning the wound, irrigating
with sublimate solution, dusting with iodoform, are
only necessary. However, to avoid infection, a tem-
porary cutaneous suture is indicated.

If there is danger of intestinal protrusion, a plug
of aseptic gauze is introduced in the inguinal canal,
pushed not too high up to prevent the adaptation of
the muscle with the crural arch; and the cutaneous
wound is closed with interrupted sutures. If some
errors of manipulation have occurred during the
operation, the plug of gauze left in for 24 or 30 hours
may prevent complications.

In either the Danish or Belgian method it is not
prudent to operate a double case of cryptorchidy at
one sitting. It is better to leave a space of fifteen

96 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

days elapse between the two operations. However,
some operators have operated on both sides on the
same day.

CASTRATION BY THE PREPUBIC REGION.

In this method, the incision is made on the inferior
wall of the abdomen a little in front of the pubis and
of the inferior inguinal ring, near the sheath.

In that region the abdominal wall, from 2 to 5
centimeters thick, according to size and condition of
the subject, is formed by the skin, dartoic layers with
adipose and connective tissues, abdominal tunic,
great straight of the abdomen, aponeurosis of the
two obliques and transverse muscles, the sub-peri-
toneal aponeurosis and the peritoneum.

The animal can be secured as in the other methods.
But Guuther says the dorsal position is the best.
The prepubic region and the sheath are cleansed and
disinfected. The skin is shaved. The animal is
chloroformed if he is not placed in dorsal position.

Modus operandi.—Four steps.

First Step.—Incision of the Superficial and Perfora-
tion of the Deep Layers of the Abdominal Wall.An
incision, involving the skin, subcutaneous connective
tissue, abdominal tunic and superficial layer of the
great straight, is made a little forward of the pubis,
on the side of the sheath, 5 or 6 centimeters from
the median line and 10 centimeters long. Then with
the index and medium fingers the deep layers of the
muscles, the aponeurosis, the fascia underneath and
the peritoneum are perforated.

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 97

Second Step.—Searching and Exit of the Testicle—
The hand, introduced through the wound, is carried
towards the entrance of the pelvic cavity, where
ordinarily it comes in contact with some part of the
testicular apparatus, gland, epididymis, efferent canal
or suspensory ligament. If one of these organs is
not found, the hand is passed over the bladder, where
it meets with the efferent canal, and by tracing it from
backwards forwards it arrives at the epididymis or
testicle. It is then brought out as in the other
methods.

Third Step.— Excision is made by section after
ligature, torsion or the écraseur. The stump is
pushed back in the abdomen.

Fourth Step—The wound is closed by sutures,
the edges of the straight muscle with silk first, the
skin after.

This method permits the removal of the two tes-
ticles at one sitting in case of double eryptorchidy.
Notwithstanding the high authority of Gunther, this
method is not practised as those by the inguinal
region.

INGUINAL CRYPTORCHIDY.

In the majority of cases, the removal of the testicle
in inguinal ectopia is not much more complicated
than in ordinary castration.

Securing and preliminary cares are similar to those
used in abdominal cryptorchidy as done by Danish
or Belgian methods.

Modus operandi,—This is divided into five steps,

98 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

First Step.—Incision of the Skin and Dartos with
Laceration of the Sub-Dartotc Connective Layer.—This
is done as in cases of abdominal abnormality.

Second Step.—Separation of the Testicular Envelopes.
—The inguinal ring being exposed, the entrance of
the inguinal tract is obtained by tearing the connec-
tive tissue as in the second step of abdominal crypt-
orchidy ; in the tract a small ovoid mass formed by
the testicle will be found. Isolate it with the
fingers (index and medium) flexed in hook shape by
tearing the connective tissues which attach it to
the inguinal canal; use of the bistoury is seldom
necessary. In cases where the testicle is held way
up, the manipulations are the same. Work carefully
to avoid injuries to the small oblique and to the
internal commissure.

Third Step.—Incision of the Envelopes.—Ilf the tes-
ticle is at the lower part of the tract, steady it in
position and with the point of a bistoury open the
envelopes covering it, in following the great axis of the
testicle. If itis situated high up, take hold of it and
pull it down near the inguinal ring to enable you to
incise the envelopes. If it resists, grasp it with a
strong force and drag it by force. Sometimes it is
necessary to resort to the bistoury quite deeply.

Fourth Step.—Amputation of the Testicle-—The cord
being exposed, the amputation is made with the
écraseur or by torsion, in applying the instruments
immediately above the epididymis. Silk ligature is
sometimes applied firmly upon the cord and simple
amputation made immediately below it, .

ANIMAL CASTRATION. §9

The wound is washed with sublimate solution,
iodoform dusted over it and the edges brought to-
gether by sutures.

AFTER CARES—POST OPERATORY PHENOMENA.

The animal, lightly blanketed or kept comfortably
warm according to season, is turned loose in a box
or kept tied up in his stall for 24 or 48 hours. On
the next day already he may receive his ordinary
diet. Sometimes half ration only is given for a few
days. In fine weather he can be turned out. The
hair of the tail ought to be braided and the tail tied
on one side to the surcingle.

When a dressing has been applied, it is generally
removed the next day or the second day and the
wound is treated antiseptically.

If perfect asepsy has been realized, the traumatic
inflammation remains moderate, there is little febrile
reaction, cicatrization goes on almost without sup-
puration: it is adhesive in the upper part of the
inguinal canal or at the level of the perforation of
the small oblique, according to the methods followed;
in the lower part there are granulations. Still, cica-
trization without pus or any febrile reaction has been
obtained.

If the animal is kept in the stable, it is proper
towards the end of the first week to exercise him
twice a day for 15 or 20 minutes. Work can be
resumed towards the third week. In most cases
recovery is completed in a month,

100 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

CRYPTORCHIDY IN OTHER ANIMALS.

Somewhat common in donkeys, this abnormality is
rare in ruminants, swine and carnivora. It assumes
the various forms met in horses.

Cryptorchids of these various species are operated
by one of the methods described above. With
donkeys, the flank operation or the Danish method
are the chosen modes; with large ruminants, some
operate by the flank, others prefer the inguinal
methods; with swine, incision is the proper way for
many. It is evidently better to incise the median
line as for spaying sows.

EFFECTS FOLLOWING THE OPERATION OF CASTRATION.

These will vary more or less in extent and severity,
according to the method employed in its perform-
ance, and in any case they may be considered in two
divisions: as primary or immediate, and secondary
or consecutive.

Amongst the first phenomena most commonly ob-
served is, of course, a manifestation of pain, charac-
terized by symptoms of colic, exhibited by the animal
in a more or less marked degree, being the result of
the unavoidable irritation arising from the manipula-
tions practised upon the organs of generation, whose
nerves rise from the sympathetic as well as from the
cerebro-spinal nervous system; and from the pain
excited in the spermatic cord by the pressure of the
clamps, for example. These colicky pains, which
are more severe under the bloodless method than in

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 101

those of the other mode, usually subside after the
first hour following the operation, and as a rule
require but little treatment more than that of the
walking exercise. This sort of pain having subsided,
the only further trouble likely to be noticed is the
local trouble resulting from the lesion to which the
testicular region has been subjected. Resulting
from this local lesion, as well as from the rough
manipulations attending the various steps of the
different procedures, a peculiar stiffness will be
observed in the motion of the animal. This may be
referred either to the local pain proper, to the
dragging to which the cord has been subjected, or to
the presence of the clamps, which, resting closely
in the groin, necessarily more or less impede the
action of locomotion.

Hemorrhage may also occur immediately after the
operation, either while the patient is still on the
ground or as soon as he regains his feet. This may
be due either to the solution of continuity at the
edges of the wound of the envelopes or may proceed
from the small testicular or the spermatic artery.
The first two causes of hemorrhage need not engage
our attention, usually ceasing spontaneously, and
never being attended with serious inconvenience.
It is not so, however, in the case of hemorrhage pro-
ceeding from the spermatic blood vessel proper,
occurring after those methods of operating which
dispense with the closing of the artery by artificial
appliances, as is done with the clamp or the ligature,
or which may be observed in castration by torsion,

102 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

cauterization, the use of the ecraseur, or especially
by the process of simple excision. Though not nec-
essarily fatal, the hemorrhage in these instances
may require prompt and effectual interference by the
surgeon for its suppression.

It is not rare for castrated animals to become more
or less tympanitic, a condition which may be due,
more or less, to the introduction of atmospheric
air into the abdominal cavity during the per-
formance of the operation. This condition of things
is usually remedied by the unaided action of natural
causes.

The secondary effects also vary according to the
manipulations of the method which they follow. The
development of reactive fever is an event which in
many cases requires close watching, and while it is
true that many castrated horses will manifest no
subsequent illness, even to the extent of a slight
elevation of temperature, others, on the contrary,
show unmistakable signs of a general inflammatory
condition, and this is the more marked and definite
ag the condition of the wound has been left in a
more or less complicated state. The presence of the
ligature or of a portion of the cord which has yet to
complete the sloughing action, following the method
by cauterization and by the clamps, are sufficient to
encourage the inflammatory tendency.

MODES OF CICATRIZATION.

The cicatrization of the wound of castration takes
place in two ways. While the upper part heals by

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 103

adhesive inflammation at and above the point where
the amputation has been performed, it is below that
point in a process of cicatrization by the second in-
tention, the parts filling up by the development of
granulations, and being accused by an abundant
suppurative process. The first fact observed is that
the parts become more or less swollen. The swell-
ing is at first limited to the edges of the wound, but
increases and spreads to the scrotum, then to the
sheath, or even extends forwards and backwards to
the perineal region. A flow of serosity will be ob-
served almost immediately following the operation,
at first thin and yellowish, but will, before the second
or third day, become thicker and more purulent in
character, so progressing that after that period it
will become a laudable, creamy pus, in evidence of
the process going forward towards the establishment
of sound and healthy cicatrization. This cicatriza-
tion will proceed until the healing is complete—
that is, for a period varying between thirty and
forty days— the swelling slowly subsiding from
the moment when the suppuration becomes estab-
lished.

In relation to the considerations on the modes
of cicatrization, we must bear in mind that these can
be considerably modified if the practitioner resorts
to careful measures of disinfection. Aseptic castra-
tion has always been the subject of close attention by
many and the results that have been obtained justify
the conclusions that: the aseptic operation is a prac-
tizal success in clinic, that it would be a practical

104 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

success in private practice; that by aseptic methods
the dangers of the operation are considerably
reduced. (R. J. Stanclift, American Veterinary Re-
view, Vol. XXII, p. 249.)

THE HYGIENE AND THE SUBSEQUENT ATTENTION.

The moment the patient has risen from his bed
and has been thoroughly cleansed from the blood
that has soiled his legs, it becomes necessary, if the
clamps have been used, to apply the necessary
means to prevent their removal by the action of the
tail. This is done by braiding the hair shortly, and
sometimes tying it up on the side. Even when
this is not necessary, from the clamps not having
been used, it is better to have the tail tightened up
short, in order, when the suppurative process is es-
tablished, the more easily to preserve the cleanliness
of that part of the body. It is recommended by
some veterinarians, also, as soon as the animal is on
his feet, to have him thoroughly rubbed and dried,
lest, as is not uncommon, he should have perspired
excessively during the operation. He may be
warmly blanketed if he has been accustomed to a
covering, or in any case, placed in a quiet stall and
tied up. If quiet and unexcited, and exhibiting no
immediate ill consequence of the operation, he may,
after an interval, be allowed to go loose in a box
stall. If there are any manifestations of pain, or
colicky symptoms, walking exercise may be given.
Quietness, protection from changes of the weather,

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 105

moderate diet, varying according to his condition,
are included in the only general instructions that can
be given.

The wound simply requires to be kept clean.
Washing with cool water and soap when the dis-
charge is well established, will fulfil this indication.
The closing of the edges of the wound is to be care-
fully prevented by the introduction of the finger be-
tween them, care being taken to avoid the laceration
of any points where union has already taken place
in the upper part of the wound.

It is not an unusual thing to find even these sim-
ple measures of caution overlooked by gelders, some
of them even recommending that the animal should,
immediately after the operation, be violently exer-
cised—even put in harness and made to draw a
wagon. Itis true that alittle and gentle exercise
may be beneficial, with a view to the removal of the
soreness and pain of the newly castrated animal; it
must be admitted even that Professor Bouley recom-
mends slow exercise to be carried to the extent of
fatiguing the animal. But when we take into con-
sideration how seriously some animals, at least, are
affected by the operation, and the serious complica-
tions which may follow it—even laying aside the hu-
manitarian view of the question—we must neces-
sarily “onclude that such directions and such a
practice is in violation of all the laws of true surgery,
and even if justified by the strongest statistics, 1s
condemned if confronted by a single fatal case,

CHAPTER V.

COMPLICATIONS AND TREATMENT OF THE OPERATION—
COLICS—TEARING OF THE CLAMPS—-HEMORRHAGE
—SWELLING OF THE SCROTAL REGION—GANGRENE
— ABSCESSES —-CHAMPIGNON — EXTRA SCROTAL —
INTRA SCROTAL — INTRA ABDOMINAL — VARIOUS
TREATMENTS—FISTULA OF THE SCROTUM—INGUINAL
HERNIA—-PERITONITIS—TETANUS—-AMAUROSIS-—COM-
PARATIVE VIEW OF THE VARIOUS MODES OF CASTRA-
TION.

COMPLICATIONS AND THEIR TREATMENT.

THoucH the operation of castration is compara-
tively simple in its various methods and is generally
successful in its results, still it is not entirely free
from accidents or complications. Indeed, among
those likely to meet our notice, there are some of
quite a serious character, which will develop them-
selves independently of the skill and care with which

the operation may have been performed or whatso-
(106)

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 107

ever attention may have been bestowed upon the
patient. Among these may be enumerated colics,
hemorrhage, swelling of the scrotum, gangrene, abscesses,
champignon, jistula, hernia, peritonitis, tetanus, and
amaurosis.

COLICS.

This, we have already seen, usually appears a
short time after the completion of the operation,
the suffering animal becoming uneasy, restless in
his stall, pawing the ground with his fore feet, and
sometimes lying down and rolling. As I have be-
fore stated, these symptoms, as arule, are of short
duration, and subside without other treatment than
a little walking exercise. It is rarely the case that
they fail to yield to an anodyne, or a dose of chloral
may be demanded before the symptoms are subdued.

TEARING OF THE CLAMPS.

When this accident occurs it is commonly at-
tributable to the omission of a careless operator
to secure the tail of the animal in such a man-
ner as to prevent its interference with those im-
pliments by its entanglement, and tearing them
from the end of the cord, as a consequence. The
result of this is the appearance of a hemorrhage from
the spermatic artery, which can only be controlled
by either a reapplication of the clamps to the end of
the cord—if it can be thus secured—or by other
means, which will be considered when we reach the

108 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

subject of bleeding in general as connected with
other causes.

HEMORRHAGE

May be primary or secondary. In the first in-
stance it occurs in consequence of the insufliciency
of the means of hemostasis apphed to the end
of the cord, as in the case of the operation by
simple excision, by cauterization, the too rapid ¢rush-
ing of the cord, torsion, or the accident before re-
ferred to—when the clamps have been torn off and
the cord lacerated about the point of their applica-
tion.

Secondary hemorrhage manifests itself after a
longer interval following the operation. It may
occur, for example, after the removal of the clamps,
or when, during their removal, the mortified end of
the cord is too much interfered with by the sharp
end of the instrument used in cutting the string
which confines them together, or from too forcibly
pulling upon the cord itself; and in some instances
without any assignable cause other than a diseased
condition of the coats of the artery. This secondary
hemorrhage is usually, by reason of the inflamma.
tory condition of the blood vessels, of more threaten-
ing aspect and more difficult to control than the
primary variety. The treatment indicated varies.
When caused by the tearing of the clamps, or at the
time of their removal, it may be checked by the re-
application of the instrument. But if the cord
is retracted within the inguinal canal and cannot be

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 109

reached, and if it is already adherent to the surround-
ing tissues, by granulations recently formed, the
checking of the flow may be very difficult. In many
cases the application of cold water, either in the
shape of the cold douche over the part, or iced
sponges, may prove sufficient. But in other cases
the cavity of the wound must be packed with balls
of oakum, wet either with water alone or any styptic
agent, such as a solution of perchloride of iron, the
whole being kept in place by a suspensory bandage,
or if necessary, a few points of suture.

These measures may be put in practice while the
animal is on his feet; but if they fail in their effect,
the surgeon must at once proceed to cast his patient
and ligate the artery—an operation of delicate exe-
cution, and not always easy to perform, by reason of
the deep seated position of the vessel. The use of
the actual cautery has also been recommended, but
even when successful there are many objections to
this, one of which is the complication such an opera-
tion may bring on by the introduction into the wound
of a scab which must necessitate for its expulsion a
serious amount of inflammatory action. As a rule,
however, the operation of packing is all that is re-
quired, the oakum being left undisturbed for twenty-
four or even thirty-six hours. Its removal must be
undertaken with great caution.

SWELLING OF THE SCROTAL REGION.

This, as we have seen, is an almost necessary
consequence of the operation, the swelling making

110 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

its appearance a short time after the alteration is
accomplished. It usually first affects the parts
immediately around the edges of the wound,
and spreads forwards and upwards in such a
manner that the entire scrotum and sheath be-
come the seat of it. It is somewhat warm, tense,
and slightly painful. If there is no increase beyond
these limits, there is no occasion for alarm, as by
exercise, fomentations, and scarifications, with the
administration of diuretics, it ordinarily subsides.
But if it continues to increase, and extends upwards
and backwards, involving the inside of the thighs
and the perineum, loses its character of heat and
soreness, to become cold and painless, crepitating
under pressure, we must prepare to encounter the
most severe of all complications, that of gangrene,
requiring the most prompt and vigorous treatment,
as we shall presently see. It may also happen that
even while retaining the characteristcs of healthy
cedema, it may assume such dimensions that the
penis becomes so involved that phymosis and para-
phymosis may supervene, to add to the other com-
plications. These, however, are not serious sequel,
as by proper care, with fomentations or scarifica-
tions, and the use of a suspensory bandage, they
may be readily overcome.

GANGRENE.

This accident may be looked for from the
fourth to the eighth day, manifesting itself not
only by the extent which the cedema of the scrotal

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 111

region assumes, and by its characteristics of cold-
ness, loss of sensibility, and crepitant feeling, but
by the fuetid odor proceeding from the wound, and
by a change in the character, or the disappearance
of the suppuration, which is succeeded by a sanious,
bloody and offensive discharge. To this series of
symptoms are to be added a marked increase of the
general disturbance, manifested by increased thirst,
anorexia, foetid mouth, change of color in the mucous
membrane to a livid hue, increase of pulse, with
weakening, increased respiration, temperature at first
elevated and then diminished, and after five or six
days a final termination in the death of the patient,

The progress of this complication is so rapid, and
the chances of recovery are so few, that the necessity
for prompt treatment becomes at once obvious. Al]
the diseased and mortified parts must be removed at
once, and means instantly employed to prevent the
absorption of gangrenous matter. Friction with am-
moniacal and turpentine liniments must be used over
the swelling; the parts must be subjected to the
actual cautery at white heat, and disinfecting agents
of all kinds must be freely used, as chloride of lime,
carbolic acid, and permanganate of potash, while in-
ternal treatment must immediately be instituted by
the administration of stimulants and antiseptics in the
form of ammonia and phenic acid, or its preparations.

ABSCESSES.

When these are likely to result from a too rapid
closure of the edges of the scrotal envelope, the

112 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

premature union may be readily prevented, as we
have before stated, by the careful introduction of the
finger into the wound while it is still suppurating.
But notwithstanding this precaution they will some-
times occur as the result of the infiltration and accu-
mulation of the suppurative matter. A free incision
and proper attention to the cavity of the abscess, is
all that this accident requires. A careful examina-
tion of the parts will, however, reveal another cause
for the formation of these abscesses. It is then
against these causes that the therapeutic treatment
must be directed. We refer now to the complica.
tion known as the formation of a

CHAMPIGNON.

This name is applied to an indurated condi-
tion of the end of the cord, or in its thickness,
of a tumefied character, varying in size and extent,
and slow in its growth. It results from an excess of
inflammatory action, attributable to the manipula-
tions which become necessary during the perform-
ance of the operation. The name “champignon”
(or mushroom) is applied to it by the French, on ac-
count of the pedunculated appearance which it some-
times assumes, and which causes it to greatly resems
ble that fungus in its outward figure. It is also
known as schirrous or indurated cord. The tumor
is sometimes situated on the outside of the envelopes,
when it is known as extra-scrotal, but more commonly
it is found covered by the skin, in which case it is
better known as intra-scrotal. In this latter condi

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 113

tion it may be merely a growth at the end of the
cord, becoming, as determined by its location, of an
extra-inguinal character, or if the diseased process
extends as far as the upper inguinal opening, or be-
yond it, it becomes, and is so denominated, intra-
ablominal. There is also an extra-intra-scrotal growth,
when itis partly within and partly external to the
scrotum. This tumor will vary greatly in size, being
sometimes very small in dimensions, and at others
having those of a man’s fist. We have ourselves
observed it equalling a child’s head in size.

The causes from which it originates are obscure,
and cannot be very well defined. Still, they may be
arranged under the heading of any of the morbific
causes which may excite an excess of inflammatory
action at the end of the cord. Amongst these may
be enumerated all violent tractions upon the cord at
the time of the operation; all unnecessary manipu-
lations during the process of cicatrization, such as
the too frequent introduction of the finger into the
wound with destruction of the granulations already
adherent to the cord, and the application of the ap-
pliances for its division too low down apon it, leay-
ing that organ hanging too much, and the retraction
of the organ being insufficient to retain it in the in-
guinal sac. Still, as a champignon may be developed
in the absence of all these causes, it would seem that
their growth may be attributed also to some specific
idiosynerasy in the animal affected, the true nature
of which cannot be very accurately or easily under-
stood. It is held, however, by certain German and

114 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

Russian authors that exposure to cold exercises a
ereat deal of influence in the development of this
affection, and observation has largely established
the fact of its greater prevalence during cold seasons,

Symptoms of extra-scrotal champignon. — This is
otherwise known in the terminology of some patholo-
gists as true or superficial champignon. It develops
itself at the cut extremity of the cord as a granulat-
ing mass, of a red color, varying in size, its growth,
nevertheless, allowing the cicatrization of the skin
to progress in such a manner that it forms a point of
attachment from which the tumor seems to proceed.
This form of it is usually of little account, as it may
easily be removed before it has attained to trouble-
some dimensions. When of considerable propor-
tions, however, it may interfere materially with the
act of locomotion by causing pain in the cord, upon
which it drags more or less. It is not often or nec-
essarily accompanied by constitutional disturbance,
excepting in cases of excessive suppuration, which
may sooner or later undermine the general health
by exhausting the stamina of the patient.

Tf instead of showing its greatest development on
the surface of the scrotum, it occurs beneath it, a
greater or less degree of swelling will appear on one
or both sides of the inguinal region, the swelling be-
ing somewhat hard, possibly the seat of one or more
fistulous tracks resulting from abscesses which have
at times opened, discharged, and closed; the animal
showing a certain amount of stiffness in the action
of the hind legs. In this case we shall have to

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 115

adapt our treatment to the deep champignon of Zundel,
under one of its three forms of exlru-inguinal, intra-
inguinal, and intra-abdominal.

Under the first head we shall often discover, upon
inquiring into the history of the case, that for a
length of time, varying from months, perhaps, to
years, the animal had been affected with a swelling
which would gather, break, and slowly heal, leaving
no mark as an apparent indication of a diseased con-
dition, excepting that a certain degree of lameness
would have been observed to be present. Upon ex-
ploring the testicular region it would then be ob-
served to be the seat of a tumor, either spherical or
pysiform, seldom painful, and more or less adherent
to the envelope that covered it. Above this the end
may be felt free from diseased process, and this is
the champignon in its chronic form. In this condi-
tion it is not incompatible with the gencral health
of the animal affected, and forms no hindrance to his
usefulness. This condition of extra-ineuinal ¢rowth
will sometimes dissolve away by an abscess-forma-
tion, and quite disappear. Butifthe induration of the
spermatic cord extends to the upper portion, or that
which is enclosed in the inguinal canal, in such a
manner as to interfere with locomotion, the leg cor-
responding with the diseased side being carried in
abduction, with numerous fistulous tracks existing
on the surface of the scrotum, the intensity of the
symptoms varying with the extent of the diseased
process, the condition of the cord will be easily dis-
covered by an examination of the parts, and the

116 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

presence of an fntra-inguinal champignon established.
If, besides these symptoms, we discover by rectal
examination that there is in front of and above the
pubes a tumor more or less ovoid, or giving the
sensation of a cylindrical mass, of size varying to the
touch-—which is the diseased indurated cord—the
case is judged at once to be one of tnfru-ubdoninal
nature. At times the inflammation may extend to
the sub-lumbar region, when the hand introduced
into the rectum may discover in that locality an
ovoid tumor or abscess which may be of great size.
This form of champignon is incomparably the most
serious of them all; an intense and presistent react-
ive fever is always present, and this at length termi-
nates together the life and suffering of the animal.
The abscess may sometimes open externally, and in
some cases it may accumulate within the thickness
of the cord and form large collections; or, again, it
may find its way into the abdominal cavity, where it
may excite a fatal peritonitis.

This rapid examination of the various forms of
deep champignon will enable us easily to realize the
difficulty of the progress in the case. While the
pedunculated form, exterior to the scrotum, is not,
comparatively, a very serious matter, it becomes, on
the contrary, a very grave occurrence when it assumes
the characters of the intra-abdominal variety, and
must in a majority of cases be recognized as an incu-
rable disorder.

Treatment.—While champignon is an affection in
which surgical interference cannot usually be dis-

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 117

pensed with, it is still essential that the surgeon
should avoid being over hasty in determining in fa-
vor of an operation, and he should give the case a
very careful consideration before deciding upon his
course. At first emollient applications, appropriate
topical treatment, and a few poiuts of cauterization,
may be followed by a process of resclution. But in
the event of their failure four modes of operation
present themselves. These are, in their order, the
application of the clamps; the ligature; the linear
crushing or ecraseur; and cauterization. When the
case is one of the extra-scrotal variety, the applica-
tion of a hgature around the base of the peduncle,
or removal by eeraseur, will be the simplest mode
of treatment, unless there should exist a tendency to
infiltration of the cord, in which case the manipula-
tions to be followed become the same as those which
are adapted to that of the deep or intra-scrotal form.

By the clamps.—W heu the application of the clamps
is resorted to, they may be similar to those used in

CURVED CLAMPS,

ordinary castration, or may be curved in form (Fig.
95). The animal to be operated on 1s to be thrown
on either side according to which cord is affected,

118 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

and. an incision made through the envelopes as nearly
parallel with the median line of the body as the case
permits,when the tumor and the cord are carefully dis-
sected and separated from: their adhesions. If the
tumor is suspended from the end of the cord there
will be no difficulty in applying the clamp above it
and upon a healthy portion of the cord. But if the
diseased process extends within the inguinal canal,
there will be need of great caution in dissecting the
cord up to the healthy structure. In doing this the
safer mode will be for the operator to treat the ad-
hesions with the fingers or the blunt end of the
scissors, rather than to employ the sharp edge of the
bistoury with the accompanying danger of causing
hemorrhage. If, on the contrary, the cord is dis-
eased to un extent that renders it difficult to reach a
healthy portion, other modes of operation—as by the
ligature—become the wiser and more practicable
indication. When the clamps are used it is neces-
sary to leave them in place for several days, and
sometimes they are allowed to slough off, while the
growth is usually suffered to remain for a few days
after the operation.

Ligature.--When this mode of procedure is adopted,
the tumor having been dissected and the cord well
freed from its adhesions with surrounding parts,
and the ligature being applied, the tumor may either
be ainputated immediately or be left to slough off in
its own time. The ligature may be either of twine,
silk, or elastic cord. We have ourselves operated
by this method in the successful removal of growths

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 119

of very considerable size. So long as the upper por-
tion of the cord, which retains its healthy structure,
can be reached, the application of the ligature is at-
tended with no difficulty, the manipulations required
being similar to those which attend the removal of
all growths by the process of ligation. But if the
diseased process extends so far that the ligature
cannot be applied at the proper point, as in the case
of intra-inguinal champignon, it will be necessary to
have resort to the ligature-carrier recommended by
Serres (Fig. 26). In using this instrument the loop

LIGATURE-CARRIER,

of the ligature being passed over the tumor around
the cord, is carried into the inguinal canal as high
up as possible, pressure being made by holding the
instrument against the cord, while strong traction 1s
made on the ends of the ligature, which is then se-
cured by a knot upon a small stick placed across the
opening of the instrument, with a view to the
prevention of slipping. If an increase of pressure is
found to be necessary, it can easily be obtained by
tightening the ligature from day to day as required.
If the size of the cord should be such as to prevent
a proper application of a single ligature, it may be-
come necessary to divide it in applying a double,

120 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

triple, or multiple ligatures, in accordance with the
rules for such ligating.

In whatsoever manner the ligature may be applied,
even when it is of the elastic kind, the process of
sloughing of the tissues is always a slow one. It is
for this reason that we agree with Prof. Bouley in
considering the treatment of champignon by the linear
erushing very much to be preferred.

Ecraseur.—The steps of the operation with this
instrument are similar to those required in the other
methods already considered. The champignon is iso-
lated from its surrounding parts, the chain is placed
on the cord above the base of the tumor, and the
amputation is completed by a slow pressure upon
the cord, which, crushing it by degrees, permits its
immediate removal. It must be done slowly, oceupy-
ing from ten to twenty minutes for the complete
separation of the champignon, according to the size
of the tumor. The operation being finished, the
parts are left in the condition of a simple wound,
where no cause exists to interfere with its rapid cica-
trization.

Cauterizalion.—This is a mode of treatment which
we have never had occasion to submit to trial, hav-
ing always given the preference to the process we
have just referred to. It is recommended, however,
by European authorities., Some of these advocate
the “melting” process, or the introduction of sharp
points deeply into the thickest parts of the enlarge-
ment, while others advise a removal of a portion of
the growth and deep cautcrization afterwards. If

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 121

cauterization can be advantageously employed, the
best method, in our judgment, would be the process
of amputation with Paccalin, or with the galvanic
cautery. We may here, while referring to the appli-
cation of electricity in this connection, appropriately
refer to our own experience of a number of years
ago, in treating an animal suffering with intra-scrotal
champignon, by electrolysis, and succeeding after two
applications, in obtaining the complete removal of
the tumor. This method, however, consumes too
much time to justify its employment in general prac-
tice.

Treatment by Iodide of Potassium.—There are cases
where the development of the neoplasm is such that
surgical interference cannot be considered ; or again
in cases where the champignon for various reasong
will not allow the operation to be performed ; in such
cases the internal administration of iodide of potas-
sium can be resorted to. Many are the instanceg
where it has brought recovery where any kind of
relief conld not be entertained by surgical interfer-
ence. We have obtained several maguiticent results
with it, but although some Enropean veterinarians
are advocating it, others have but little faith in it.

FISTULA OF THE SCROTUM.

Being already aware of several causes of this com-
plication of the operation of castration, we may
readily appreciate the treatment they require. It
must be remembered that in a majority of cases, the
cause of this lesion is the presence of a foreign body
in the wound, and that until it is removed, it is in
vain to look fora cure. Prof. Bouley has reported

122 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

acase in which tho fistula was due to the presence
of a pair of clamps over which the skin had almost
entirely cicatrized.

INGUINAL HERNIA; HERNIA OF CASTRATION,

By this is understoo.1 the protrusion of some por-
tion of the contents of the abdominal cavity through
the inguinal ring, either a portion of the omentum
or of some part of the small intestines, creating
either an epiplocele or an enterocele. This compli-
cation may take place either during the operation,
or shortly afterwards, or at the period of the removal
of the clamps. It proceeds from the violent strug-
gling of the animal during the operation; to the
colics which are so apt to supervene ; to his position
when placed in astall of which the floor is too much
inclined; or it may result from some of the various
modes of castration, as, for example, the uncovered
operation.

At times the two forms of hernia may pre-
sent themselves together, constituting a case of
entero-epiplocele. When the epiploan alone pro-
trudes, it need not give rise to any unnecessary
anxiety, as it may easily be either reduced and re-
turned to its place, or ligated with the clamps, or
torn apart. If, on the contrary, it is a portion of the
small intestines which becomes involved, the first
indication is to restore it to its place by the proper
taxis without delay, which mav be readily done,
the animal being yet down and placed under an
anesthetic, by the rectal taxis combined with the

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 123

necessary inguinal manipulations. When this has
been accomplished the intestine is kept in place by
the application of a clamp over the cord, upon which
the fibrous coat of the cremaster has been carefully
drawn.

PERITONITIS.

This complication, considered as one of the most
frequent following castration, is also, beyond doubt.
one of the most serious. It is generally the result of
exposure to cold, especially when its occurrence ac-
companies the suppurative fever. But it also de-
velops itself in animals which have received the best
hygienic care, its appearance being attributed to an
excessive dragging of the vord, or to the extension
of the local inflammation by continuity of tissues.
It manifests itself generally between the second and
third day following the operation, except when it
becomes symptomatic, as of gangrene of the cord,
when we have seen it making its appearance towards
the tenth day.

The symptoms of this traumatic peritonitis differ
somewhat from those of the acute inflammatory type.
According to Gourdon, “the animal is dull and
refuses all food—the suppuration of the wound of
the scrotum has ceased, the bags and surrounding
parts become the seat of a warm, hard and painful
swelling. The animal stands with his four legs
brought close together, the back is stiff and arched,
the flanks are cordy, the abdomen painful, the pulse
hard, small and increased. As the disease progresses,

134 ANIMAL GASTRATION.

the symptoms are more marked, the enlargement
of the envelopes increases and is more diffuse, it ex-
tends down to the abdomen, and even under the
chest, passes along the thighs, is less «arm, less
hard, less painful, and pits under pressure. There
are slight colics, the pulse gets smaller, intermittent,
the respiration is increased, and the animal dies
towards the fifth or sixth day.”

The treatment to be recommended varies accord-
ing to different authors. While some prescribe de-
pletive and sedative treatment, laxatives and div-
retics, many preter tonics and stimulants. The Ger-
mans claim great results from the use of tincture of
arnica (in small doses) administered internally. The
external treatment consists in sinapisms, warm
fomentations, poultices, or fumigations under the
abdomen.

TETANUS.

As with most cases of traumatic tetanus, this com-
plication is generally fatal, and it is, without doubt,
the most dangerous of all and marked by the greatest
mortality. Itis generally admitted that exposure to
cold and dampness is one of the most prolific canses,
especially in animals which, having but recently re-
covered, are too soon put to work. The various
modes of operation have also been considered to
have some influence upon its development, though
there is probably no ground upon which this theory
can find a support. Whether the nature of the soil

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 125

of a district, or its atmospheric condition, may have
any connection with it, is also a question. We know
that in some portions of Long Island, eases of
tetanus are commonly met with, at some seasons of
the year, after surgical operations of every kind.
It may appear within a few days following the
castration, or it may defer its visitation for a period
of twenty days, or longer.

Tetanus is certainly a very frequent complication
of castration, but siuce the prophylactic application
of antitoxine in ection inaugurated by Prof. Nocard
previous to the performance of any surgical operation,
the dangers of its appearance have almost entirely
vanished. As to the treatment indicated for the
tetanus of castration, it is that which is applied to all
cases of that traumatic affection.

AMAUROSIS.

This disease may also be included among those
classed as the sequele of castration, having been
known to follow cases where hemorrhage of the
small testicular artery had occurred. Tonic treat-
ment internally and local stimulating applications
may sometimes relieve this complication, but it will
generally be admitted to be incurable.

COMPARATIVE VIEW OF THE VARIOUS MODES OF
CASTRATION.

The process by simple excision, by reason of the
hemorrhage which necessarily accompanies it, though

126 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

not inevitably dangerous, must be excluded from the
domain of general practice.

That of scruping the cord has not, so far as our
knowledge extends, been sufficiently tested, either in
European or American practice, to justify its recom-
mendation.

The process of torsion below the epididymis is too
much subject to the development of champignon, as
well as that of free torsion with the hands, to be ad-
mitted by judicious operators, while the limited tor-
sion is a method which has taken rank amongst safe
operators, notwithstanding the enormous swelling of
the parts by which it is commonly accompanied, and
the necessity it involves of the introduction of the
fingers into the wound to prevent its premature
closing.

The method by the ecraseur, though occupying a
longer time in its completion than some others, has
secured very favorable results, especially in the
hands of American operators.

The operation by cauterization is highly recom-
mended by English veterinarians. We believe, con-
trary to the statements of French authors, that it is
not widely in use on this Continent. The objections
urged against 1t are that the hemostatic effect upon
the cord is less reliable than in the method by the
clamps or the ligature; that there is more or less
danger of cauterizing the surrounding parts by the
effect of the radiant ‘heat from the cautery ; and that
the swelling which follows the operation is always
excessively great.

Castration by the clamps is the best known and

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 127

most extensively practised. It is easy and quick in
its performance; performs the most certain hemos-
tasis upon the artery, and notwithstanding some
slight objections, merits a preference over all others.
The principal objection alleged against it is that it
is attended with great pain to the suffering patient
when the pressure of the instrument upon the soft
tissues is first felt. This is a doubtful question, and
if this excessive amount of pain really exists, it cer-
tainly cannot be of long continuance, merely on ac-
count of the effect produced by the clamps themselves.

Of the various methods by ligature, that of the li-
gation of the cord with its envelopes is applicable to
small animals only. That upon the cord alone is
liable to be followed by hemorrhage, or by the exces-
sive retraction of the cord into the abdominal cavity,
drawing the ligature with it. That of the efferent
canal and of the cord by the subcutaneous mode are
not admitted in general practice, while that of the
artery alone has not been extensively performed on
large animals, so far as we are informed, except by
certain Massachusetts veterinarians,

The castration by double subculaneous twisting, when
extensively applied to solipeds, will probably prove
to be the safest mode of all, and least likely to be
followed by complications. We are not informed as
to the extent to which it has been practised in this
country, even amongst ruminants.

Aseptic Castration is no doubt the chosen method
when it can be strictly applied. With minute asepsy
the results are most brilliant, and of 48 horses oper-
ated by Plosz, 47 recovered without suppuration,

CHAPTER VI.

CASTRATION OF FEMALES OR OVARIOTOMY—HISTORY—
INDICATIONS—EFFECTS UPON THE ORGANISM AND
SPECIAL FUNCTIONS—ADVANTAGES IN COWS—CON-
DITIONS FAVORABLE TO THE OPERATION— ANATOMY
—MODUS OPERANDI—BY THE FLANKS—CHARLIER’S
PROCESS —INSTRUMENTS—VARIOUS STEPS—DIVISION
OF THE VAGINA—SEIZING THE OVARY—TWISTING IT
OFF — COMPLICATIONS —- HEMORRHAGE— PERITONITIS
ABSCESS OF THE PELVIC CAVITY—CONSTIPATION—
SUBCUTANEOUS EMPHYSEMA—CASTRATION OF THE
SMALL ANIMALS—OF SWINE—OF SLUTS—OF FOWLS.

As Tf have stated before, the revival of the opera-
tion of castration upon large females is due to a
Louisiana farmer, Thomas Winn, who, in the year
1831, castrated several of his cows.

Without entering upon the history which includes
a record of the failures and successes attendant upon
the imtroduction of the operation, it may suffice to
say that until the improvements made by Charlier
in the manipulations involved in the operation, it

encountered considerable opposition, and it is within
(128)

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 129

a comparatively recent period that it has become
established in the domains of veterinary surgery.
The indications by which this operation commend
itself to agriculturists, and others who find profit or
pleasure in the use or ownership of these domestic
animals, are sevcral. Among them are the influence
which it exercises upon the secretion of milk in cows,
and upon the power of accumulating fat, and its ef-
fects upon the character and temper of all the large
females, in which relation it obviously acts as a
therapeutic agent, In overcoming certain peculiar
conditions by which they are distinguished. In re-
spect to the effect of the operation of spaying the
cow upon the milk secretion, it is a fact well estab-
lished that it not only increases the amount and du-
ration of the flow, but also improves the quality of
that valuable fiuid, the spayed cow not only continu-
ing the production from eighteen to twenty-four
months, but giving a product far richer in the
elements of nutrition. This is shown by the en-
hanced proportions of the cream, the caseine and the
sugar, which determine its richness and value, both
economically and commercially, after alteration.
But even this argument in favor of spaying the
cow is rendered more weighty by the fact that besides
its influence on the milky secretion, there is also that
which is furnished by the consideration of its effect in
augmenting the deposit of fat throughout the frame,
for it is through this tendency that the flesh of the ani-
mal becomes so greatly improved in its nutritive qual-
ity as compared with that of the same species whe in

130 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the entire condition, becoming so noticably more ten-
der, juicy and palatable, retaining more of the oily
element, digesting more easily, and so, of course, ac-
quiring a pecuniary value in the market not before
possessed. These remarks apply to the dry equally
with the milch cow, and leaving out the reference to
the milk secretion, to the ox as well.

With respect to the effect of the operation upon
the character and disposition of the cow, these are
easily illustrated in the movements of the nympho-
maniac animal, which may be said to be constantly
in a state of hysterical excitement. They seem to
be in continual conditions of heat, running after and
mounting other animals with which they may be in
company, while never producing and giving no milk.
They are always in a lean condition, and must re-
main a pecuniary loss to the dairyman. This mani-
festation of nymphomania is also met with in the
mare, which, continually exhibiting signs of heat,
becomes more or less dangerous on that account. In
these cases the advantage of the operation of spay-
ing cannot be overlooked. We have personal knowl-
edge of several cases of this character, in which
worthless and troublesome mares have been trans:

‘formed into docile and valuable animals.

CONDITIONS FAVORABLE TO THE OPERATION.

Charlier expresses the opinion that the best time
for the performance of the operation upon cows is
from the sixth to the eighth year, or after they have
had their second or thivd calf. TW performed at an

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 131

earlier period the great objection originally urged
against castration, that its performance would tend
to the diminution of the stock in numbers or “pop-
ulation,” might find more or less confirmation. But
by an observance of this condition all danger of the
annihilation of stock would be obviated. The cow
to be operated on ought to be in fair condition, not
in heat or pregnant, and the time selected should
be from forty to sixty days after calving.

ANATOMY.

The vagina is situated within the pelvic cavity, be-
tween the rectum and the bladder. Its internal face
presents numerous longitudinal folds, the purpose
of which is to permit the free dilatation of the parts.
At the bottom of the passage is situated the neck of
the uterus, giving to the finger the sensation of a pro-
jection, hard towards the cavity of the vagina, and
in the centre of which is felt a closed opening, from
which radiate the folds of the mucous membrane.
The uterus (Figs. 27 and 28), continued forward to the
neck, is situated in the abdominal cavity, occupying
the sub-lumbar region, with its posterior extremity
resting at the end ofthe pelviccavity. Itis somewhat
pyriform in shape, and larger at its base, where it di-
vides into two lateral halves, continued by the horns.
The concave curvature of these horns look downward
in the cow, but face upwards in the mare. In both
they give attachment to the broad ligaments. These
are folds of the peritoneum, more developed for-
ward than behind, rising from the sub-lumbar re-

182 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

gion, and descending towards the uterus, to fix
themselves upon the sides of the superior face of the
body of this organ, and, as before stated, upon the
curvature of the horns. Their anterior border is
free, and gives support to the oviducts and the
ovaries. Between the serous layers are found the
utero-ovarian artery and veins, largely developed.
The ovaries are situated on the internal face of the
broad ligament, forming a small ovoid mass, which
receives a special serous lamella, a sort of hgament,
having between its layers a few grayish muscular
fibres, which may be strong enough to offer serious
resistance when the extirpation of the organ is at-
tempted.

MODUS OPERANDI.
Ovariotomy or Spaying in Large Animals.

There are two modes of operation. The original
method was that of removal through the flanks,
which, however, has fallen into disuse since the in-
troduction of the process of Charlier, of removal
through the vagina. This process is altogether to
be preferred, as being safer, more consistent with
scientific surgery, and in a word is the only one
which it is proper to perform, so long as the capacity
of the vagina permits the necessary manipulations
to be performed.

METHOD BY THE FLANKS.

Four steps are necessary to be followed in this

RIGHT OVARY OF THE COW WITH ITS ATTACHMENTS.

U.—Right horn of the uterus. L.—Broad ligament. L'—Its
anterior border. O.—Ovary. R.—Peritoneal fold where it is
suspended. S.—Superior ovarian ligament. T.—Inferior ovarian
ligament. A.—Ovarian artery. V.—Ovarian vein. I.—Oviduct.
P.—Its pavilion. X.—Its superior or fimbriated opening. Z.—Its

inferior opening. (133)

Fia. 28.

LONGITUDINAL SECTION OF THE PELVIS OF THE MARE SHOWING
THE POSITION AND CONNECTION OF THE GENITAL ORGANS.

1—Uterus. 2—Horn of the uterus. 3—Vagina. 4—Blad-
der. 5—Rectum. 7 8—Vulva. 9—Ovary. 10—Oviduct. 11

—Kidney. 12—Broad ligament.
(184)

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 135

method. The first is securing the animal. The cow
is usually kept on her feet, pressed firmly against a
wall. the legs secured with hobbles, and her head
controlled, as much as possible, by a strong assist-
ant. The second step is the incision of the flank.
This is made on the left side, with a sharp, convex
bistoury, in the middle of the superior portion of
that region, dividing the skin and muscles vertically,
care being taken that the incision is not carried too
low down, in order to avoid the division of the cir-
cumflex artery, which passes along in that vicinity.
An opening is then made in the peritoneum, either
with the knife or with the fingers, sufficiently large
to permit the introduction ofthe fingers. Inthe third
step of the operation, which comprehends the re-
moval of the ovary, the surgeon introduces his hand
into the abdomen, and turning it towards the pelvis,
feels for the horns of the uterus. Upon finding
these the ovaries are easily discovered. He care-
fully draws them outwards, and their removal is ef-
fected either with the ecraseur or the forceps of
Charlier. The operation is concluded by the appli-
cation of a quill suture, or by a double row of sutures
and a dressing of iodoformed collodion.

METHOD BY THE VAGINA.

For this operation special instruments are re-
quired. These consist of, first, a vaginal dilator
(Fig. 29), or speculum, of peculiar and somewhat
complicated construction, to be modified subse-

(Closed.)

Fig. 29.—CHARLIER’'S VAGINAL SPECULUM.
'
f\

AAR

MODIFIED
VAGINAL

SPECULUM.

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 187

quently by another (Fig 30), of supe:

rior form and easier of application, and

now in general use; second, a bistoury

eaché (Fig. 31), sliding on its handles,
Fig. 31.

BISTOURY CACHE

which is a true embryotomy knife, mod-
ified by Colin (Fig. 32); third, a pair of
Fig. 32.

COLIN’S BISTOURY CACHE.

long, sharp scissors (Fig. 33), with
euarded blades, curved on its flat sur-
face ; fourth, a torsion forceps (Fig. 34),
closed by a peculiar thread arrange-
ment, moved by the handle; and fifth,

a steel thimble (Fig. 35), which has been modified
by the instrument shown in Fig. 36, and which
is used in applving the limited torsion on the broad

ligaments

Fig. 84,
Fig. 33. FORCEPS FOR CASTRATION OF COws

(Colin’s).

*(s,a91[1eq9)

NERICANT

SCISSORS TO DIVIDE THE
BROAD LIGAMENT,

Fia. 35.—THIMBLE Fia. 36 —Couin’s NIPPERS,
FOR CASTRATION. to take the place of the thimble.
(138)

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 189

Preparation of the animal.—No general preparation
is required, except one, which may be regarded as of
local effect, but is not to be overlooked. This consists
in the evacuation of the bowels by means of a rectal
injection, in order that the arms of the surgeon may
not become unnecessarily soiled during the opera-
tion. The animal is secured on her feet by being
placed in a narrow stall to prevent her from moving
from side to side, the floor of the stall having an in-
clination forwards, in order to prevent the pressure
by gravitation of the intestinal mass towards the
posterior parts of the abdomen.

It is understood that antiseptic measures are here
also indicated. Disinfection of the vulva, of the
vagina, and thorough aseptic condition of the instru-
ments, of the hand and arm of the operator.

The operation is completed in two steps, of which
the first is the incision of the vagina, and the second
the extirpation of the ovaries.

THE INCISION IN THE VAGINA.

This is made in the following manner. The ope-
rator introduces the speculum with his right hand,
through the vulva, into the vagina! cavity, and care-
fully passing in his left hand, well viled, directs and
introduces the little prolongation A of the speculum
into the centre of the neck of the uterus, gently
pressing upon it in order to keep itin place. In
using the original dilator, the opening of the branches
must be so regulated as to put the walls of the vagina
upon the stretch. Or, if he uses the modified specu-
lum, he pushes the instrument downwards and for-
wards, and by this motion distends the upper wall

140 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

of the cavity, keeping the instrument in that position
by a hold of the left hand, which has been withdrawn
from the vagina. He then arms himself with the
bistoury caché, which he holds closed in his full
hand and introduces with the right hand into the
vagina. Carefully feeling the condition of the upper
wall of this cavity, and assuring himself of its being
well stretched, he rests his hand, still holding the bis-
toury, upon the opening or “window” at the end of
the speculum (Figs. 37 and 38), and by firmly pushing
the blade (the sharp edge being turned backwards) out
of its handle, pierces with it the vaginal walls, about
two inches above the neck of the uterus, and with a
motion from below upwards and from before back-
wards, makes an incision on the median line, from
three to three and a half inches in length. The in-
troduction of the instrument must be made in such
a manner that it will pass at once through the walls
‘of the vagina proper, as well as through the perite-
neal cap which it presents at its anterior portion.
The incision being completed, the speculum is
carefully withdrawn; and if a slight hemorrhage
should occur, the blood should be removed before the
surgeon proceeds to the second step of the operation.

REMOVAL OF THE OVARIES.

Then, again introducing his hand into the
vagina, and passing his finger through the opening
made by the incision, he feels for the ovaries, which
he finds floating at the extremity of their ligaments,
towards the entrance of the pelvis, below, on each

Ay andere

CASTRATION OF COWS

Incision of the vagina.

(Charlier’s process. )

Fig, 38

CASTRATION OF cows. (Charlier’s process )

1st step. Incision of the vagina.

c ANIMAL CASTRATION. 143

side, and at a short distance from the incision, be-
tween the base of the uterine horns, near and inside
of the free border of the ligaments, and a little above
the anterior border of the pubis. Then, grasping
the ovarian body, he draws it carefully into the
vagina, through the incision, and introduces the long
scissors, with the guarded blade of which he divides
the thick border of the broad ligament (Fig. 39), re-
placing the ovaries into the abdomen without releas-
ing his hold. The torsion forceps is then passed
into the vagina and through the incision, and is
made to take hold with its open jaws of the broad
ligament (Fig. 40), above the ovary, and is firmly
closed by the movement of the spiral crank of the
handle (D). Both hands being now outside of the
vaginal cavity, and the forceps being secured on the
broad ligament, held by the right hand, the left
thumb is protected by the thimble (KE), and the hand
once more inserted, to grasp the broad ligament
above the point where the jaws of the torsion forceps
are placed. In this position the torsion is made
with the forceps, the twisting of the hgament being
limited by the firm pressure made by the thimble
on the thumb with the index finger, or by a pair of
crushing pincers. After several turns of the instru-
ment, the ovary is separated from its attachment,
and may be brought out of the cavity, still held se-
curely between the oval jaws of the torsion forceps.
The same method is applicable to the ovaries of
both sides. These rules are subject to more or less
modification by indications which may occasionally

fia, 89.

SOISSORS DIVIDING THE BROAD LIGAMENTS,

(144)

Fig. 40,—ToRSIoN oF THE OVARY:
A B—Forceps closed, BO—Forceps open, E—Thimble,

146 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

present themselves, arising from the age of the animal
or the structure or other conditions of the ovaries.

This method of castration has been modified in
many ways, both as to the forms of the instruments
used, and the mode of using them, a majority of
operators, at the present time even, discarding the
dilator, and making the incision simply by stretch-
ing the walls of the vagina and pushing against the
neck of the uterus with the hand. The manner in
which the removal of the ovaries is effected has also
been subjected to many changes. For more than
twenty years, during which we have been perform-
ing the operation, we have been accustomed to use
the ecraseur in the last step, and with excellent and
satisfactory results.

The subsequent attention required by the spayed
cow is usually a very simple matter, and involves
little beyond careful dieting, the patient recovering
from the general effects upon the system usually in
a few days.

COMPLICATIONS.

It may properly be said that there are no compli-
cations likely to follow the process in the castration
of cows, which may be denominated serious. In the
statistics which record the mortality attending its
the fatal cases are represented at the very trifling
rate of two per cent. A light colic may sometimes
follow it, but it usually subsides without medical
treatment. Still, however, spaying may at times be
accompanied by accidents of a serious character,

ANIMAL CASTRATION, = ~ 147

though these have considerably diminished in fre-
quency since the introduction of the method of
Charlier. One of these is

HEMORRHAGE,

which may occur when the torsion or the crushing of
the artery has not been sufficiently complete. But
though it is likely to give rise to peritonitis, it is not
necessarily a fatal complication. We have ourselves
known of cases of its occurrence in mares which
had survived it a number of days, and when destroy-
ed exhibited none of the lesions of that affection.

PERITONITIS.

We have several times met with this sequel to the
operation, especially in mares. But in these cases,
as revealed by post mortem investigation, the disease
seemed generally to have remained localized. Less
common than prior to the practice of castration per
vagina, it still is followed by fatal consequences
when the entire peritoneum becomes diseased. Its
appearance usually occurs from the third to the
sixth day. There is suspension of the milky secre-
tion, general dullness, chills, anorexia, suspension of
rumination, rapid, small and thready pulse, some-
times painful respiration, rapid loss of flesh, and
speedily—death. The indications of treatment are
similar to those which are applicable to peritonitis
in the solipeds, but the prognosis is always serious. |

ABSCESS IN THE PELYIC CAVITY.

This is a complication we have quite often en-

countered. Besides the general symptoms, there

ANIMAL CASTRATION.

are those of a local character, which are detected by
rectal examination, by which discovery is made of
the presence of a tumor on one side or the other of
the vagina, varying in size, fluctuating, and easily
identified. This abscess may be opened in the
cavity of the vagina, and should be attended to as
soon as discovery is made of the fluctuating charac-
ter of the growth, without waiting for the process of
natural resolution.

SUBCUTANEOUS EMPHYSEMA,

Emphysema of the subcutaneous connective tissue
is said to be a common sequel to the flank operation.
Its appearance need not excite any special uneasi-
ness, as its termination is usually by spontaneous
disappearance. It is an accident we have never en-
countered in our practice.

CONSTIPATION,

This complication, which is often met with in
mares, 1s to be carefully looked for, and must be
relieved by laxative food and rectal injections. It
is due to the pain which accompanies defecation
while the wound of the vagina is healing, and which
the animal tries to avoid by keeping the rectum
full.

CASTRATION OF THE SMALL ANIMALS.
SMALL RUMINANTS,

For these subjects, two modes of operation are
to be principally recommended. The first is the
double subcutaneous torsion; the other the liga-

GENITAL ORGANS OF A YOUNG SOW.

(Median and antero-posterior section). 1—Ovary. 2—Horn
uf the uterus. 3—Body of the uterus. 4—Rectum. 5—Vagina.
€—Bladder. 7—Kidney. 9—Intestines. 10—Stump of one of

ze h of the uterus,
éhe horns a9)

150 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

ture en masse of the cord and its envelopes. Hav-
ing already considered these operations, a passing
reference will suffice here.

FOR SWINE.

In sows, it must be remembered that the horns
of the uterus are very long and flexuous (Fig. 41),
aud that the very small ovaries are situated on the
inside of the broad ligaments, which are very large,
and allow the horns to float freely amongst the cir-
cumvolutions of the intestines. Ordinarily itis when
the animal is about two months old that she is
spayed, although sometimes it is later. She must
be prepared by a full diet of 24 hours.

Fig. 42.

BISTOURY FOR THE CASTRATION OF SOW.
(Division of the flank).

The operation can be performed through the flank,
but more commonly by the median line.

By the Flank.—The animal must be prepared by
being secured upon the right side in order to ex-
pose the left flank. The incision is made with a
knife of peculiar form (Fig. 42), the coarse bristies
having been previously closely clipped off. Care

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 151

should be taken to carry the left leg in extension
backwards, in such a manner that the edges of the
various tissues divided shail not meet each other
when the operation is completed. The incision may
be made either vertically, horizontally, or obliquely.
When vertical, it should be immediately below the
lumbar vertebra next to the last rib; if horizontal, it
should be parallel with the vertebral column. The
vertical incision should be preferred, because it
brings the ovaries within easy reach of the fingers.
It should be from two to three inches in length, and
should be made by a single stroke of the knife, and
without dividing the peritoneum, which should, after-
wards, be either torn with the finger or carefully cut
while raised with the forceps. To find the ovaries
the operator introduces the index finger of the right
hand between the vertebral column and the intes-
tines, and explores the lumbar region. Upon finding
the ovarian sac, he presses it against the abdominal
wall and causes it to slide by pushing towards the
opening through which it is extruded and grasped.
While it is held there the left horn is carefully
drawn out after it, until arriving at the bifurcation
of the horns at the uterus, the right horn also is
brought out and the ovary on that side secured.
Both glands being now outside, they are torn or
scraped off from their attachment, and the horns are
returned to the abdomen.

While this process is readily applicable to young
sows, and requires a certain amount of practice to
be performed expertly and with success, it is slightly

152 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

modified when applied to older animals. In that
case the two horns must not be exposed outside to-
gether, but each must be returned when the removal
of the ovary connected with it has beer. effected.

The simple tearing of the ovaries is not always
sufficient,and may be sometimes followed by serious
hemorrhage. The scraping and the torsion are safer,
and in some instances the ligature has been applied.
The incision is closed with the interrupted or, which
is preferable, the continued suture. No special after-
treatment is required beyond low diet for afew days,
with a little extra attention to cleanliness.

The operation may at times be rendered difficult
by exceptional and accidental conditions, as, for ex-
ample, the shortness of the fingers of the operator.
This difficulty, however, can be overcome by placing
a bundle of straw or other substance under the right
flauk, which, by raising the body, displaces the in-
testines upwards and crowds the ovary towards the
left flank.

It may also happen, as sometimes with old sows,
that the ovary has become the seat of large cysts,
or that its size is increased in consequence of patho-
logical chauges in its structure. In the first case,
the cyst may be punctured and emptied with a
trocar before attempting the obliteration of the
organ. In the second, the opening into the abdomen
must be enlarged sufficiently to permit the exit of
the extra bulk.

If through inadvertence the operation has been
begun while the animal is in a state of pregnancy,

GENITAL ORGANS OF THE BITCH.

1—Ovary. 2—Fold of the broad ligament, displaced to expose the ovary. 8—In-
ternal fold of the same. 4—Broad ligaments. 5—Horn of the uterus. 6—Its body.
7—Rectum. 8—Vagina. 9—Kidney. 10—Bladder. 11—Descending colon.
(153)

154 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the proceeding must be discontinued, the patient
kept quiet and the matter indefinitely postponed.

By the Median Line—The animal is kept on its
back, with the hind quarters raised. The region
being prepared, the skin is incised and then the
muscular aponeurotic coat underneath in the space
inclosed between the three back pairs of teats, the
peritoneum is perforated with the fingers. Introduc-
ing the index finger in the abdomen, it readily feels
the horns and the ovaries, which are pulled out-
wards and removed. The wound is closed by strong
suture.

For Prof. Cadiot the flank operation is the best,
but we certainly advocate that by the method of
laparotomy, and for more complete details refer our
readers to the same operation in bitches (see p. 155.)

DOGS.

In the female, when, as is sometimes supposed, it
becomes a preventive measure in respect to hydro-
phobia—though if it be so, it can only be from the
fact that a castrated bitch will usually remain at
home while others are running abroad in heat, and
thus be more exposed to contagiou—the operation ig
only justifiable in the case of house dogs, domestic
pets, in order to obviate the annoyance caused to
their owners by their demonstrations while in heat.
In the bitch the broad ligaments are very long (Fig.
43), extending as far as the hypochondriac region,
where they divide into an external Jayer, which
reaches to the last rib, while the other extends to

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 155

the sub-lumbar region behind the diaphragm. The
broad ligaments diminish in height as they run for-
ward in such a way that the anterior border of the
external layer where the ovary is found, shorter in
its median part, gives a certain amount of fixity to
the anterior extremity of the horns which it keeps
elevated in each hypochondriac region; on that ac-
count both horns cannot be at one time brought
through the incision, and it becomes generally neces-
sary in the bitch to operate on each side.

As in sows, the operation can be done by the flank
or through the linea alba. Prof. Cadiot prefers the
first, although it requires two incisions. Prepared
by a full diet of 24 hours, the animal is secured in
lateral position on a table. Anesthesia is not neces-
sary. The skin of the flank is shaved and disinfected,
a cutaneous incision is made near the last rib, the
muscles perforated with the fingers and the abdom-
inal cavity entered. Introducing the index finger
into it, feeling for the kidney, the ovary is found back
of it, drawn outside and removed by torsion or exci-
sion after ligature. The cutaneous wound is closed
by suture.

The operation by laparotomy is certainly to be
preferred.

Dr. P. B. Rogers, of Newbury, N. J., describes it
as follows :

OOPHORECTOMY OF THE BITCH.

Selection of Time for the Operation.—The best time
is as soon as possible after the animal is five or six

GENITAL ORGAN OF THE ROOSTER.

1.--Testicle. 2a 2d.—Deferent canals. 3.—Ureters. 4.—Cloacum. 5.—
Posterior aorta. %.—Posterior vena cava. 8, 9, 10.—Three last ribs. 11,--
Pelvic bone*

ANIMAL CASTRATION, 157

months old, and before the first period of heat; the
uterus is then sufficiently developed to allow the
skilled finger to recognize it, and the uterine appen-
dages are free from fat.

Selection of Subject.—The operation should be
avoided when the bitch isin heat and when the mam-
mary glands are active; decided obesity also may
render the operation difficult and the results un-
promising.

Preparation for the Operation.—Solid food is to be
withheld for 24 to 36 hours prior to operating.

Anesthesia.—The writer does not use or recom-
mend the use of general anesthesia.

If it is insisted on, the operator must in his turn
insist on the employment of a confrére to attend to
the exhibition of the anesthetic. Ether is to be
preferred and if given very slowly and with discre-
tion will be much less liable to cause after intoxica-
tion and vomiting than if the drug is pushed. It
should be suspended as soon as the ligated uterus
is returned to the peritoneal cavity. as the effect will
persist long enough to allow closure of the wound.

Means of Restraint. —The nose is enclosed in a loop
of stout twine and the ends tied behind the ears,
The front legs are tied together at the middle of the
arm. One assistant controls the fore extremities and
head, another the hind legs, the animal being
placed in a position of dorsal decubitus.

Instruments required. —Scissors (curved), a bistoury,
a nicking-knife, a uterine sound, curved needles,
silver wire (about 28) and silk thread.

158 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

Preparation of the Seat of Incision.—Wash with soap
and carbolized water, and shave a sufficient sur-
rounding area to avoid hair getting into the incision
or becoming entangled in the ligature.

Seat of the Operation.— Midway between the last
pair of teats. This seat is preferred because the
recti at this point are thick and offer a decided
mechanical obstacle to the occurrence of hernia after
the operation, although the ovaries are more readily
reached by making the incision an inch or so farther
forward.

The Operation.— With the bistoury make an incision
through the skin, on the median line; it should be
about 1} inches in length, just sufficient to admit
one finger freely. Then with the nicking-knife held
in the “pen” position cut boldly through (between)
the recti and peritoneum at one sweep of the knife ;
when the peritoneum is incised, as shown by the
resistance to the pressure of the knife ceasing, turn
the heel of the knife down and complete the mus-
cular incision, being careful that it is the same length
as the incision in the skin. Pass the uterine sound,
keeping it on the superior wall of the vagina (the
skilled operator soon learns to do without the sound).
Pass one finger into the wound and feel for the
sound, bring out the uterus, and, holding one horn
taut, pass the finger along it until the ovary is felt
suspended in the broad ligament. Break down
gently the adhesions of this last to the sub-lumbar
region and bring out the ovary and its appendages.
Repeat the process on the other horn. Ligate both

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 159

horns together about midway between the ovary and
the body of the uterus, and remove the ligated por-
tion, being careful to leave sufficient stump to prevent
the ligature slipping. Wash off the parts with ster-
ilized water and return them to the abdominal cavity.
Pass a silver suture midway of the incision, being
careful to include the peritoneum on both sides and
taking a good hold of the muscle.

Keep the finger beneath the wire until the stitch is
completed to avoid including any of the abdominal
contents in the ligature. On each side of this suture,
equidistant from it and the anterior and posterior
extremities of the incision, pass wire sutures into the
muscle but not going through it, including of course
the skin.

If more sutures are thought necessary, they should
be sutures of co-aptation, and include the skin only.
Wash off any remaining blood and dust the parts
with a dry antiseptic.

After Treatment.—Remove the sutures on the fifth
day after the operation, and keep the patient on a
diet of milk and water until the sutures are removed.

Mortality.—The death rate should not be more than
1 per cent. Fatal results are usually due to periton-
itis or to intestinal obstruction through the character
of the early adhesions formed.

It now remains to consider the rationale of the
above procedure, which it will be observed is directed
toward a minimum of disturbance of the parts in-
volved.

The horns are ligated together so as to have one

160 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

raw surface to form adhesions instead of two. The
short incision, because we know that the fatality in
operations involving the peritoneal cavity is in ratio
with the length of the incision. The sound is recom-
mended to avoid undue handling of the abdominal
contents in the effort to locate the uterus. Lastly,
silver wire is preferred as a suture, because “stitch
abscess” is absent when it is used while silk often
makes a veritable capillary drainage from the ab-
dominal cavity and thus allows microbie injection
from without.

The ligature of the horns may be either encysted
or absorbed (we have seen both conditions in bitches
re-operated on for professional friends). Blood left
in the abdomen will be promptly absorbed if the
wound is well closed.

There are twolate complications of canine oophor-
ectomy which merit a passing notice. One is a
gradually increasing intestinal obstruction due to the
ligated horns forming an intestinal adhesion which
grows more and more acutely angular as the uterus
pulls on the gutas it (the uterus) becomes atrophied.
The remedy is abdominal incision and breaking up
of the adhesions (we have operated on such cases
successfully).

The other is interesting from a physiological stand-
point. Occasionally a properly spayed bitch will
suffer at intervals from vaginal hemorrhage ; some-
times it is a mere stain, sometimes blood discharged
in clots points to rupture of the vessels of the vaginal
mucosa. Itis not attended by heat and appears to be

ANIMAL CASTRATION 161

an effort of nature to return in some degree to sexual
life.

CATS.

In female cats, the operation is performed similar
to that of spaying sows. As cats are more apt to
bite or claw the wounds than dogs, the parts should
be protected by bandage until the wounds have
healed.

CASTRATION OF FOWLS.

The effect of this operation upon the quality of
the flesh and the power of accumulating fat, in the
domestic fowl is a fact too familiar to those who have
learned to appreciate the exquisite juicy qualtity of
the meat of the capon to need any comment at our
hands. The operation upon these animals is one of
considerable difficulty and requires skill and experi-
ence to perform with nicety and success.

In birds the testicles are situated in the abdomi-
nal cavity, immediately behind the lungs, under the
vertebral column and in front of the kidneys (Fig.
44), They correspond exactly to the articulation of
the last three ribs with the spinal column, where
they lie close together and in contact with the blood
vessels which separate them from the kidneys. They
are held in position by the peritoneum spread above
them, and by minute blood vessels, branches of the
aorta or of the vena cava.

In the operation the fowl is placed on his side,
the tail being towards the operator, with the hind

162 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

leg carried backwards, in order to expose the flank
of the side selected for the incision. The first step of
the operation consists in plucking the feathers from
a sufficient extent of surface, and making an incision
a little behind the lateral internal processes of the
sternum, from within outwards, and from before
backwards, and slightly oblique, through the skin
and the thin muscles of the abdomen, and when
reaching the peritoneum carefully opening it with a
puncture, having it raised with a pair of forceps.
The second step, or that which involves the extirpa-
tion of the gland, is performed by the introduction
of the index finger of the right hand into the abdo-
men, passing it above the intestinal mass and turn-
ing towards the dorsal region near the articulation
of the last two ribs, where the testicles are felt,
prominent at the sub-lumbar region. Then, with
the fingers half flexed, the adhesions of the organ are
broken off, and the organ, held in the bend of the
finger, is brought outside. The second testicle is
removed by the same process. If the testicles should
slip from the grasp of the finger, the accident is of
little account, as they will graft themselves upon the
walls of the abdomen, and in time disappear by
resolution. The operation is concluded by the
closing of the wound by stitches of interrupted
suture, and the healing usually takes place by first
intention.

The operation is performed in the hen in the same
manner as with the male bird, the ovaries being
found in the lumbar region, from which they are re-

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 163

moved by the same manipulations that are employed
in caponizing.

Young fowls, about in their third month, are
usually selected as the victims of this epicurean
barbarity.

Prof. J. E. Ryder, of the American Veterinary
College, kindly contributes his method of operation
as follows :

Instruments. — Straight
or convex bistoury, spread-
er forceps, extracting for-
ceps, two cotton cords
(three feet long and a
quarter of an inch in dia-
meter) arranged with a
running loop at one end
and a pound or pound and
a half weight attached to
the other, depending on
the size of the cockerel.
The operating table should
be the usual height and
about 18 inches wide; or
a barrel upside down ans- —gaponizina INSTRUMENTS.
wers the same purpose.

Age to operate in order to obtain the best results—
viz., reduced mortality, increased size, a greater
development of hackles around the neck and an arrest
of comb development—as soon as the sex can be dis-
tinguished.

Before operating, diet the chicks; alight diet for

164 ANIMAL CASTRATION.

the first twelve and nothing during the last twelve
hours—twenty-four hours all told.

After Treatment.—Soft and easily digested food for
three or four days.

Operation. — Place the chick on the operating
table, laying him upon his right side; pass the run-
ning loop of one cord around both legs and allow the
weight to hang down over the side of the table; pass
the running loop of the second cord around both
wings close to the body, allowing the weight to hang
over the opposite side of the table. The chick is
now held motionless and the operating region ex-
posed.

With the left hand push forward the long feathers
of the breast, and with the right hand pluck the few
feathers covering the last two ribs.

Still holding the feathers with the left hand, make
an incision between the last two ribs, from the verte-
bra downwards toward the sternal cartilage; make
this incision about one and one-half inches long, and,
if necessary, cut through the sternal cartilage.

Introduce the spreading forceps between the ribs,
and spread them apart sufficiently to allow the in-
troduction of the extracting forceps.

Carefully cut through the peritoneum, and the
testicles are exposed one on each side of the vertebra
just anterior to the kidneys.

Introduce the extracting forceps and grasp the
lower testicle and remove it, cutting the cord as high
as possible, after which remove the upper testicle in
the same way (I select the lower testicle first, for if

ANIMAL CASTRATION. 165

you operate on the upper first the hemorrhage will
hide the lower one.)

Remove spreaders, the ribs contract together,
which closes the wound, no sutures required.

The only complication I have met is hemorrhage
which usually is of no consequence.

Mortality about one per cent.

A good operator can do from 25 to 35 an hour.

The great difficulty in caponizing, even with those
who are proficient in the operation, is the develop-
ment of “slips,” which is caused by crushing the
testicle and not removing it clean, allowing the cord,
a part of the testicular envelopes and in some cases
a small amount of the glandular tissue to remain;
this constitutes a “slip.”

A “slip” will grow a comb as large as an ordinary
bird, will not develope the characteristic hackles
around the neck and will copulate as readily and °
frequently as any other, and frequently are capable
of reproduction, and their flesh does not have the
characteristic flavor of the capon.

To obviate this I have had my extracting forceps
made with a scissors-edge in front as marked in the
above cut; these divide the cord cleanly and do not
tear or rupture the envelopes as the other forceps
will; there is no more danger of a fatal hemorrhage,
and the proportion of “slips” is reduced to a mini-
mum.

_ —
_ .
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