T<»S r.uAl.'h 111' .\(.|;i( II. I 1 i;i . 



tuiMiii- is small .iiid tlir (iiicr.iiioii skillfully lu'i-roniicd. Uh- nsiilis arc usu- 

 ally ^'ood. 



Castration of Criittorcliids or •Oriyiiials." In "oriuiiiMl" pi^'s the tcs- 

 tick's fail to make tln'ir appcaraiiic i)y desciMidliij; Vlirou;;!! the iii>;iiii»al 

 <Miial into the scrotum. Usually l)ul ono testicle fails to descend into the 

 bau. It may be found in any part of the abdominal cavity, but in luost 

 cases is situated iu ilic i-ej;ion of the tiank and towai'd the sul)lundiar 

 region (below the short ribs). 



The animal should be prepared for the operation by starving? it for 

 about twelve hours. The operator's hands must be clean and the anti- 

 septic .solutions and instruments gotten ready the same as in castrating a 

 straight pig. The pig is laid on its side upon the floor or a board, the 

 hind parts slightly elevated, and held there by an assistant. The operator 

 stands at the back and clips the hair from the flank. An incision is made 

 high uit in tlie flank and midway between the i)oint of the lii]) and the 

 last rib, ;uul large enough to introduce the lingers or, if necessary, the 

 liand. A\hen the testicle is found it is cut off with the emasculator or the 

 cord ligated and then cut. The incision in the walls of the abdomen 

 is tlien closed with sutures, placed al)out an inch apart. The hog should 

 be kejit by itself and tlie stitches removed in eight or ten days. 



Spaying.— Spaying is performed for the same reason as castration, 

 and while it was practiced quite generally twenty years ago, it is .seldom 

 done now. The necessity for the operation has passed away. It is an 

 operation that is profitable Avhere sows are to be kept until a year or more 

 of age. Under the present method of marketing at eight and. nine months 

 it is more profitable to permit the sows to advance to one or two months' 

 l)regnancy ratlier tlian spay and lose a short time in checked growth, 

 and run the risk of a little loss. When it is decided to spay, the pigs 

 .ii-e jirejiared for tlie operation as for castration. They should l)e three 

 moutlis old and weigh from flfty to eighty pounds. The pig is caught 

 and held by two men, upon an inclined board, tlie head being lowest. 

 The operator stands at the back and clips the hair from the flank over 

 a .space about two inches wide and tliree inches long, and an incision is 

 made about midway between tlie ])oint of the hip and the last I'ib and 

 an inch lielow tlie points of the lumbar vertebrae. The incision should be 

 .just sutflciently large to admit the finger. The fore-finger of the left hand 

 is introduced and follows the back. Tlie ovaries will be found almost 

 flirectly downward, susjiended by a short li.gament. They will feel like 

 a raspberry or blackberry and can be mistaken for nothing else. If the 

 ovary can not be foiuid at once, pass the finger backward toward, the 

 bladder and search for the utei'us (pig bed) and follow it forward to its 

 termination at the ovary. Itemove the ovary by tearing it off with the 

 finger or cutting it off with dull scissors. The lower ovary may be re- 

 moved through the same opening. Close the outside wound with two 

 stitches, iising slik tlivad or silk fishing line. The operation may be 



