Timely Hints for Farmers. 



105 



such that it is sometimes impossible to cut them with clippers. In 

 such cases the use of the saw must be resorted to. The mistake 

 of sawing off the horns some distance from the head is sometimes 

 made, the idea being that it is less painful to the animal than tak- 

 ing them off close. Not only is the operation no less painful but 

 the remaining nubs detract from the appearance of the animal and 

 sometimes grow, thus defeating the object of dehorning. Whether 

 the saw or clippers are used the horns should come off close to the 

 skull, always below the line where the skin grows about the base 



Fig. 12. Calves dehorned by the use of caustic potash. 



of the horn. There is sometimes a considerable loss of blood which 

 may be lessened or entirely stopped by a simple method of ''tying 

 the arteries." These arteries lie mostly on the side of the horn 

 toward the ear so that by drawing a string tightly around both 

 horns and tying, pressure is brought to bear on the blood vessels 

 and the flow of blood is stopped. After the string has been tied 

 the pressure maybe increased by bringing the front and back strands 

 together over the top of the head and fastening them. In some 

 cases cutting the horn close to the head makes an opening into a 



