Castration and Dehorning

Question 1

what are the 4 reasons we castrate food animals?

Answer 1

1. eliminate breeding
2. fat marbling increased
3. taste (eliminate boar taint)
4. decrease fighting

Question 2

T/F: castrating is better in younger animals because it causes less stress, has decreased healing time, and restraint is easier

Answer 2

true

Question 3

Size of the testes correlates with bleeding potential during castration. Are older or younger animals bleeding MORE?

Answer 3

younger
i.e a buckling bleeds more

Question 4

When is the MOSt optimal time of year to castrate?

Answer 4

fall-winter, when flies are not as prominate

Question 5

when should you castrate pigs?

Answer 5

at processing (2-5 days old)

Question 6

if a goat is being kept as a pet, when should you castrate?

Answer 6

6 months to allow for testosterone to continue the development of the prepuce and sigmoid flexure.
If you castrate earlier, you increase the risk of urolithiasis and inability to extend prepuce

Question 7

why is it difficult to locally anesthetize the scrotum?

Answer 7

1. it is very difficult to get the internal pudendal nerve.
2. the scrotum is thin, there is no SQ fat, so there is nothing to inject into
3. it would require a ring block which is too painful and not worth it.

Question 8

which species requires a LOWER dose of lidocaine for local anesthesia – cattle, pigs, or small ruminants?

Answer 8

small ruminants due to toxicity (tremors and seizures)

Question 9

what are the 2 site options for local anesthesia for castration?

Answer 9

spermatic cord
intratesticular

Question 10

When should you provide pain relief for castration (banamine or meloxicam)?

Answer 10

BEFORE the castration because it takes a few hours to take effect.

Question 11

what are the restraint methods for castration?

Answer 11

1. tail jack and squeeze with chute – calves
2. hold against chest – lambs, kids, piglets

Question 12

elastrator bands (which strangulate the spermatic cord and cause the scrotum and testes to fall off within 1-3 weeks) are used in calves less than ____ lbs.

Answer 12

150

Question 13

what are 3 complications of elastrator bands?

Answer 13

1. cannot count to 2 to ensure complete removal
2. tetanus!
3. band might not be strong enough and could result in granulation tissue formation (usually occurs if animal is TOO big)

Question 14

what preventative measure can you take prior to castration to decrease risk of tetanus?

Answer 14

give tetanus antitoxoid (TAT) to lambs and kids if the mother did not receive the CD/T vaccine 3-4 weeks prior to parturition

Question 15

The _______ is used in larger animals and requires you to go back and cut off the scrotum in 3-4 days after application. The risk of tetanus is still present.

Answer 15

callicrate bander

Question 16

what tool is used to castrate food animals in a way that the scrotum is NOT cut, only the testicular circulation is disrupted and then the testes atrophy?

Answer 16

burdizzo clamp

you clamp each spermatic cord at different levels to ensure you disrupt collateral circulation. This causes a lot of swelling the day after.

Question 17

what castration tool splits the scrotum longitudinally into 2 flaps of skin?

Answer 17

newberry knife

Question 18

what is the bloody castration method used in SMALL RUMINANTS?

Answer 18

use a scalpel blade to remove the bottom half of the scrotum
grab with forces or clamps first (to avoid cutting your ahnds)

Question 19

what does the henderson castration tool do?

Answer 19

clamp above the pampiniform plexus of the testicle and spins it at a high speed to break the spermatic cord while providing good hemostasis

Question 20

what does the emasculator tool do?

Answer 20

crushes the spermatic cord for 30-60 seconds to cause hemostasis and then has a cutting edge to cut it off.

Question 21

where should you apply fly spray post-castration?

Answer 21

on hocks and around scrotum

Question 22

how can you tell if bleeding from castration is too much or normal?

Answer 22

a few drops = normal, probably from skin

if pouring blood – this is from spermatic vessels (resulting from you tearing the cord at the pampiniform plexus or yanking/not stretching); if this is occurring, apply pressure and lace a 4x4 gauze pack in there.

Question 23

Castrating pigs looks a lot like castrating dogs. You push the testes up toward the prepuce and use a scalpel blade to cut over the testes. When you pull the testes out, you must pull STRAIGHT, not down. why do we avoid pulling down?

Answer 23

if you pull down, you can extend the inguinal ring and this would be bad.

Question 24

T/F: if a pig is less than 120 lbs, restraint for castration entails holding them upside down or squeezing them between your legs. If above 120 lbs, then you use pentobarbital or TKX.

Answer 24

true

Question 25

if you use local intratesticular anesthesia for swine castration, which testicle should you cut out first?

Answer 25

the testicle that you placed the pentobarbital in so that the patient does not get too sleepy.

Question 26

why do you remove the bottom (one that is down when patient is in lateral recumebency) testicle first?

Answer 26

to avoid blood obscuring view if you cut the top one first.

Question 27

How long should you expect swelling for after a castration?

Answer 27

1 week.
they should be acting normal within in 3 days

Question 28

what are post-castration complications you should look for?

Answer 28

• lethargy
• lameness
• fly strike (tail switching)

Question 29

Dehorning is performed on consious, sedated animals with local anesthesia. What nerves do you need to block for dehorning?

Answer 29

1. cornual branch of zygomaticotemporal nerve (runs under the zygomatic ridge, found 1/2 way between the lateral horn base and the lateral canthus of the eye)
2. infratrochlear nerve (found 1/2 way between the medial horn base and the medial canthus of the eye)

Question 30

Why should you clip hair prior to dehorning? (3 reasons)

Answer 30

1. cleaner
2. increase visibility
3. does not smell if using a cautery

Question 31

How do you know a dehorning iron is fully warmed up and ready for use?

Answer 31

when you test it on a piece of wood, it burns a complete ring.

Question 32

T/F: when you are dehorning a small ruminant with the iron, you should push down and twist and leave the iron on for at least 30 seconds.

Answer 32

false – push down, twist, and release. the iron should be on no longer than 5-6 seconds.

if longer, you can “cook their brains”

Question 33

What is the ultimate goal of dehorning (how much tissue needs to be killed)?

Answer 33

the goal is to kill germinal tissue that produces the horn, so you must get at least 1/4-1/2 inch away from the horn.

Question 34

what type of tool should you use to dehorn if the horns of the animal are quite large?

Answer 34

barns dehorners.
but you can also use saws or gigli wire

Question 35

What common mistake is made during dehorning with the barns dehorner that could cause the sinus to be exposed?

Answer 35

not adjusting the barns dehorner with the animal.

you can cover the sinus with 4x4 gauze and make a make-shift bandaid

Question 36

how do you control for hemostasis during dehorning?

Answer 36

grab the blood vessels with a hemostat, turn them like spaghetti, and pull. If you dont do this, they can bleed to death. Do NOT grab the nerve!

Question 37

You are called to a farm that you dehorned cattle at a few days ago because one of the animals has been shaking its head, tilting its head, and has nasal discharge. You examine the dehorned site and see some drainage. What is the problem?

Answer 37

sinusitis

Question 38

T/F: we do not routinely dehorn adult goats due to high risk of sinusitis.

Answer 38

true

Question 39

What is the treatment approach for extra teats?

Answer 39

cut them off with scissors.
better done when they are younger.

Question 40

If an umbilical hernia is ____ or bigger, surgical fixation is necessary.

Answer 40

3 fingers

Question 41

Increased abdominal pressure, excessive coughing, short docking, diarrhea, vaginal or uterine prolapses are ALL potential causes of _________.

Answer 41

rectal prolapse.

Question 42

how do you repair a rectal prolapse?

Answer 42

perform an epidural
put the rectum back in (squeeze out edema with sugar)
place purse string
give NSAIDs

Question 43

what is a pig whistle or syringe case used for in cases of rectal prolapse?

Answer 43

amputation of the distal rectum
similar to an anastamosis