# Ever See A Surgical Castration In Office? (graphic)



## parrotman (Jan 27, 2008)

Eugene, was a great/sweet buck and now he's a great/sweet wether.
Couldn't part with him and didn't want to separate him from the herd. So what do you do? You have him castrated. He was about 18 months old at the time.
He's really a dog in a goat suit.


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## simi-steading (Sep 27, 2012)

aw... poor guy... but better there than in a dirty field.. I've helped do that on cattle in the field.. I still cringe at the thought of losing those..


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## KathleenElsie (Sep 28, 2013)

Well your thread answered a question I had. Now can you tell us how his behavior is since he lost his man-hood.


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## parrotman (Jan 27, 2008)

> Well your thread answered a question I had. Now can you tell us how his behavior is since he lost his man-hood.


I'm not sure Eugene's behavior would be the best to compare.
Eugene was always a sweet buck and he NEVER peed on himself or had any kind of funky odors that most bucks do (so I'm told). Yes, he was used for breeding and he fathered several kids so he was familiar with the opposite sex.
When I tell you he's like a dog, he really is. He play bows and will nudge you with his head if he wants you to play with him or give him attention. His horns are much bigger now and he's yet to use them for anything destructive or hurtful.


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## Doug Hodges (Jul 22, 2013)

I dreaded opening this thread.


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## Bret (Oct 3, 2003)

Doug Hodges said:


> I dreaded opening this thread.


 Made me grin. He will mend fast. Always amazes me with my calves. I do pour on a lot of iodine. It makes ME feel better.


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## parrotman (Jan 27, 2008)

He had it done a while back and healed beautifully. The only thing I applied to the cut was a burn-free fly spray that the vet recommended.
I love the vet I have and she even let me watch closely so I could possibly do this to future kids. In fact, she encouraged it.


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## farmerj (Aug 20, 2011)

We'd cut nuts on pigs a hundred or more at a time. Same time they got vitamin shots.


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## BethW (May 3, 2007)

Doug Hodges said:


> I dreaded opening this thread.


I knew better and I opened it anyway. *thud*


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

Well, if he remembers from buckhood what happens when does are in heat, he may make a good heat detector for you!


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## parrotman (Jan 27, 2008)

On occasion, he will attempt to mount a doe, of course, without success.


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## aart (Oct 20, 2012)

Morbidly fascinating! He's beautiful animal.

Was he anesthetized?....looks like he's out cold.

Is the cutting of the testes themselves cauterized?....wish you had a pic of the tool used to cut, ya know, when it's not mostly buried in a scrotum.

Do they stitch up the sack?

Probably the answer is no to all three questions because it's done in the field to many animals at a time.

I know, maybe silly questions.... but from someone who knows nothing about all this but is insatiably curious and is not afraid to ask


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## parrotman (Jan 27, 2008)

> Was he anesthetized?....looks like he's out cold.


Yes, he was anesthetized. I wanted him to be out for the surgery and the reason I took him to the office was he was older and on the off chance that something might go wrong, I figured they would have more things (supplies, equipment) needed should something go wrong. That may have been overkill, but I didn't want to take any chances with him. Also, didn't want him to feel any pain, if possible. He did have Banamine for a couple of days for pain. Also, he was definitely "out of it" for a day or so, but when he did rally, he acted like nothing had happened.



> Is the cutting of the testes themselves cauterized?....wish you had a pic of the tool used to cut, ya know, when it's not mostly buried in a scrotum.


The picture of the tool you see is nothing more than a clamp to stabilize the testes. A scalpel was used to do the cutting. No cauterizing at all.



> Do they stitch up the sack?


Nope, left open to drain and heal.



> I know, maybe silly questions.... but from someone who knows nothing about all this but is insatiably curious and is not afraid to ask


Not silly at all. I am morbidly curious myself. I just thought it would be something to show in case someone had thought about having it done on an older animal and didn't know what to expect. Thanks for asking.


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## Ford Zoo (Jan 27, 2012)

Thanks for sharing. Did the vet cut off the lower part of the scrotum or just make a slice to open it? Did he leave it alone or lick it? I'm curious about any dirt getting in there, although we never close the hole cut for piglets and they always seem to heal fine.


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## parrotman (Jan 27, 2008)

If you notice in two of the pictures there's a small piece of fuzzy flesh sitting besides the testicles...that's the bottom of the scrotum that she completely cut off. No stitches at all after the surgery.
He did lick it somewhat but wasn't obsessed with doing so.


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## ForMyACDs (May 13, 2002)

parrotman said:


> The picture of the tool you see is nothing more than a clamp to stabilize the testes. A scalpel was used to do the cutting. No cauterizing at all.


Actually those look like emasculators. They are used to actually crush the blood vessels (and spermatic cord).....otherwise the goat runs the risk of bleeding out because the blood vessels to the testes are quite large. Many emasculators have a built-in cutter, but they must be kept sharpened so many vets will just cut with a blade after crushing the cord. 

If the vessels are not cut in a mature castration like this they must be sutured off to prevent bleeding. In very young bucks the testicles can be pulled out (as is done in cats) which stretches the vessel and narrows it so the animal doesn't bleed out.


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## parrotman (Jan 27, 2008)

They very well could be and what you say makes perfect sense. She just referred to them as clamps so I didn't question it.
I could see where they could bleed out if something didn't crimp the vessels.
Thanks for the info.


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## KrisD (May 26, 2011)

Fascinating! That's for sharing!


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

ForMyACDs said:


> Actually those look like emasculators. They are used to actually crush the blood vessels (and spermatic cord).....otherwise the goat runs the risk of bleeding out because the blood vessels to the testes are quite large. Many emasculators have a built-in cutter, but they must be kept sharpened so many vets will just cut with a blade after crushing the cord.
> 
> If the vessels are not cut in a mature castration like this they must be sutured off to prevent bleeding. In very young bucks the testicles can be pulled out (as is done in cats) which stretches the vessel and narrows it so the animal doesn't bleed out.


Nope, in cats, the veterinarian takes a hemostat and makes a knot in the spermatic cords to keep it from bleeding. It's a pretty simple procedure, and if it weren't for the need of anesthesia, I'm sure just about every goat person could neuter a cat!  They just loop the cord around the hemostat, clamp, cut, then pull the not through, then on to the other side. The site is left open for drainage, just like goats.


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## ForMyACDs (May 13, 2002)

Frosted Mini's said:


> Nope, in cats, the veterinarian takes a hemostat and makes a knot in the spermatic cords to keep it from bleeding. It's a pretty simple procedure, and if it weren't for the need of anesthesia, I'm sure just about every goat person could neuter a cat!  They just loop the cord around the hemostat, clamp, cut, then pull the not through, then on to the other side. The site is left open for drainage, just like goats.


Some do knot them, but a knot is not necessary and is not used by all vets. The pull technique can also be used. It is also often used with small bleeders during other types of surgery (as well as clamping to crush), but it only works on small vessels.


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

Hm, I've never seen a vet do it that way, but most of the ones I've worked with have graduated from the same school (WSU). Not all, but almost all of them.


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## Ford Zoo (Jan 27, 2012)

We 'pull' the pig testicles and bleeding is controlled. Guess that would make sense since they are so little, but isn't the breaking of animal umbilical cords caused by pulling-and there is no bleeding there with the large vessels, and I'm thinking large animals like horses.


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

Stretching of vessels helps control bleeding. I've cut goats before and pulled the testicles. These bucklings happened to be a little older, like 3-4 months, but I just stretched both sides of the cords, same as I have done with an umbilical cord that was bleeding bad and I didn't have clamps or ties. Dehorning cattle, one way to stop the bleeding, is get some hemostats and twist twist twist the bleeders until they break, which stretches them out. So, it makes sense that it would also work for a cat.


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

Cats can be banded easily enough. I've done several with no problems.


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## myheaven (Apr 14, 2006)

Let us know how he recovers.


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

Cyngbaeld said:


> Cats can be banded easily enough. I've done several with no problems.


This one sounds like a very bad idea for either cats or dogs. Reason is that they can easily reach their testicles, and pull it off, or do some kind of awful damage to themselves. If it's a house pet, I also wouldn't want to find the scrotum somewhere. :huh: And a cat is a pretty small animal, I would be worried the bands weren't small enough to completely cut off circulation. 

I'm glad you were successful with that, but I definitely would not recommend anybody band cats or dogs!


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## Grumpy old man (Aug 6, 2013)

Ever do a full castration in your own barn ? why pay a vet to do it ?


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## Sededl (Jan 14, 2011)

Please be very very careful of banding cats and dogs. I don't recommend it either. Years in a vet clinic I have seen a lot of awful messes. For piglets, Fergueson Angiotribes work wonderfully. They are essentially mini emasculators. They are fantastic for small cat spays. You dont have to use them, but it always makes me feel a whole heck of alot better to limit bleeding as much as I can. If there seems to be an bleeding issue, ligating the vessel with absorptive suture can save lives as well. Cats are usually left open, most of the time, we glue dogs closed. Unless the owner requests removal of the entire scrotum, at which we typically suture.


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## ForMyACDs (May 13, 2002)

I agree.....banding dogs and cats is a very bad idea. Our clinic is in farm country and like Sededl, I've seen the results of this method.....it was horrifying. Frosted Minis is right. Dogs & cats can reach their testicles so what will usually happen is that they will chew the testicles off in an attempt to alleviate the pain. In doing so they wind up with huge, gaping wounds (one hole a cat chewed in itself was the size of two fingers) and/or serious infection.


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