10 



full-grown cattle. It was stated that in the dehorning of over 10,000 

 cows with the saw there were no deaths due to the operation, while 

 in cows dehorned by shears there was trouble afterwards in healing 

 of the wounds, due, no doubt, to the crushing, fracturing action 



which this instrument has upon 

 old horns, where ossification of 

 the cores is advanced. Because 

 of this condition it was recom- 

 mended that for mature animals a 



bone saw be used. 



TREATMENT 



AFTER DEHORN- 

 ING. 



FIG. 3. Head of steer showing result of proper 

 dehorning. 



bones of the skull, and are hollow. 



It is not usual to apply any 

 preparation after the operation of 

 dehorning to prevent bleeding, as 

 the loss of blood is not sufficient, 

 as a rule, to be of consequence. 

 Care should be taken, however, 

 to prevent substances from get- 

 ting into the openings left after 

 the horns are removed. The horn 

 cores are elongations of the frontal 

 They communicate with the frontal 

 sinuses, or air spaces, of the head; therefore foreign substances or 

 fragments of horn which act as an irritant in these cavities are apt to 

 set up an inflammation, resulting in 

 the formation of pus or an abscess, 

 which may prove quite serious. 

 This trouble is of infrequent occur- 

 rence, but would appear more liable 

 to happen when the dehorning in- 

 struments are used, on account of 

 their tendency to crush, especially 

 in the case of old animals, whereas 

 the saw cuts clean. If proper care 

 is taken, however, such an occur- 

 rence following dehorning may in 

 almost every instance be avoided. 



Occasionally animals after being 

 dehorned and turned out of the 

 stable will rub their heads against a dirt or gravel bank or the rough 

 bark of a tree, and foreign material may thus get into the cavities, 

 though usually the soreness of the parts is sufficient to prevent this. 



350 



FIG. 4. Head of steer showing results of im- 

 proper dehorning. 



