CASTRATION OF CRYPTORCHIDS. 
411 
(4) Finding the testicle or spermatic cord is always the most difficult 
part of the operation for the unpractised ; nevertheless, it can generally 
be effected with the two first fingers, and without introducing the entire 
hand. As soon as the abdominal wall is perforated, search is made on 
all sides for the testicle, epididymis, or spermatic cord. The testicle 
may easily he mistaken for an empty loop of bowel, but is distinguished 
by its sharper outline and greater firmness; pressure on it causes 
struggling. The end of the epididymis is recognised as a soft mass, 
containing harder, firmer cords. The spermatic duct can be felt as a 
hard cord, and is very useful for discovering and drawing forward the 
testicle, for its slight size and thread-like hardness render it easily 
recognised. It can, moreover, be brought forward with much less diffi¬ 
culty than the testicle itself, which, when grasped and pulled on, causes 
straggling. The object to seek, then, is a very small body, possessing a 
hard, string-like cord (spermatic cord). As a large mesenteric artery 
might be mistaken for it, the cord should be examined to detect pulsa¬ 
tion. It is much easier to discover the spermatic cord than the testicle. 
When drawn forward, the spermatic cord is recognised by its light 
colour. By gently pulling on it the testicle is drawn upwards through 
the opening, though, in exceptional cases, the testicle may be so large 
as to offer considerable resistance. Difficulty is sometimes experienced 
when the spermatic cord is grasped above the epididymis, and the 
epididymis itself is found to be firmly united to a rudimentary tunica 
vaginalis, which cannot pass the inner abdominal ring. In such case the 
testicle cannot be drawn forward by pulling either the upper or lower 
parts of the loop, and the operator is forced to search for a still lower 
portion of the cord or to use the ecraseur. As soon as the testicle 
appears outside the wound, two, or if it be very large three, carefully 
disinfected catgut or silk ligatures are passed round the spermatic cord, 
which is then cut off half an inch below the point of ligation, and allowed 
to return to the inguinal canal. The wound is closed with 5-8 threads 
of silk or hemp powdered with iodoform-tannin (1-3), and covered with 
a layer of wood-wool or carbolic wadding. Only when the spermatic 
cord or wound has been soiled is it necessary to wash out with sublimate 
solution. 
This completes the operation, and the animal can be allowed to rise. 
Once on its feet, a bandage like the suspensory described under the 
heading “ Paralysis of the Penis ” is applied, but may be omitted if the 
animal be restless. The patient is tied up for four days (except during 
its daily period of exercise) and is kept on half rations, after which it 
may be allowed to lie down, still wearing the dressings, which are 
removed, however, after six to eight days. 
As a rule, little or no pus is formed ; but should it appear, the front 
