PRACTICAL CRYPTORCHID CASTRATION 43 



the bowels and of peritoneal infection. The re- 

 quirements of such a harness are : 



1. It must hold the animal firmly so that no 

 change of position is possible. 



2. All four legs and especially the hind legs 

 must be fully flexed upon themselves and held so 

 firmly that change of position is impossible. 



3. The hind legs must be held by the harness 

 in a widely abducted position with the legs so 

 flexed that the hoof is just slightly in advance of 

 the stifle. 



I cannot emphasize too strongly the impor- 

 tance of this latter requirement. One should 

 study and practice the art of casting until he is 

 perfect in it ; too many failures in surgical opera- 

 tions are the direct result of bunglesome and im- 

 perfect tying. 



The operating sheets mentioned in the list of 

 articles needed for the operation have served me 

 very valuable purposes and saved me much time 

 and annoyance during operation. They are 

 merely muslin sheets one and one-half yards 

 square, some of which have central oval openings 

 seven inches long by one inch wide. 



