SPAYING SOWS 



719 



the sow are continued into each other without any circumscribed 

 limit intervening between them. The "horns" float loosely in the 

 abdominal cavity, and are found closely associated with the con- 

 volutions of the intestines. The broad ligaments are mesenteric 

 in conformation and character and are extremely thin and lax. 

 The ovaries are decidedly lobulated, and closely resemble grape 

 clusters, being suspended to the right and left of the vertebral 

 column near the median line of the body. 



Figure 110 illustrates the external as well as internal generative 

 organs of the sow. 



The abdominal wall in the flank region is quite thick and con- 

 tains much fat. This fat is encountered between the skin and the 

 external oblique abdominal muscle. More fat is encountered in 

 mature sows than in younger hogs. The skin is dense and tough 



Fig. 110. — External and internal generative organs of sow: A, A, Ovaries; 

 B, B, Fallopian tubes or "horns"; C, uterus; D, vagina; E, vulva. 



in consistency, while the external and internal oblique abdominal 

 muscles and peritoneum are comparatively thin and delicate in 

 conformation. The above description appHes equally as weU to 

 the belly wall at site of spaying operation, except that the wall in 

 the latter region is somewhat thinner. 



Restraint. — Proper restraint technic is as much an essential 

 in spaying operations as it is in most any operation in animal sur- 

 gery. This operation calls for the simple and easily applied rather 

 than the complicated and intrinsic methods oftentimes employed 

 in other operations. The method of restraint used must, of course, 

 depend upon whether the flank or the belly operation is to be per- 

 formed. 



