CONFINING BITCHES FOR SPAYING. 
431 
on milk or at least fluid diet, and give a generous dose of oil 
twenty-four to thirty-six hours before the operation, to sim¬ 
plify the operation and to rid the intestines of a variety of 
germs and their toxines, with the fasces, thus cleaning out the 
intestines, and securing more nearly an intestinal asepsis. 
We prefer to use morphia instead of an anaesthetic, and give 
rather small doses, one-twelfth to one-quarter grain, hypoder¬ 
mically, twenty minutes before beginning the operation; op¬ 
erate in the median line; make the incision extending down¬ 
ward or anteriorly to the umbilicus. The cut should be 
exactly in the median line and be made at one sweep—not a 
little hole to be pieced out by several hacks. Have two 
dishes of antiseptic fluid (bichloride 1.2000), one of which is 
used first for cleansing the abdominal surface to a generous 
distance around the site of operation, and is then put aside; 
the other is to be hot and used for sponging the wound. In¬ 
troduce the forefinger, and then, instead of hunting for the 
ovary, slide the finger down the internal abdominal wall and 
hook it around the horn of uterus on either side; pull gently 
and there will be no trouble in finding the ovary. The ova¬ 
ries may be removed with scissors, in the case of young sub¬ 
jects that have never been in heat, and with ecraseur, torsion 
forceps or, better still, by a strong and clean finger or thumb 
nail. Blood should be removed as thoroughly as possible 
from the cavity, for good appearances anyhow, although a 
little blood does not seem to be a very serious matter so far 
as recovery is concerned, if we may judge from the fairly 
good results which some operators get in practice who seem 
very careless in this respect. For suture material, I prefer in 
the order named, wire, silkworm gut and ordinary surgeons’ 
silk, and usually insert three sutures to close the wound. 
Bandages of all descriptions are nuisances and useless bother. 
In case the operator feels doubtful about securing union 
# by first intention, he may apply a light dressing of powdered 
boracic acid or a combination of boracic and salicylic acids 
to the wound surface before closing. Neither of these is irri¬ 
tating and both are soluble. The former is more readily sol¬ 
uble, and should perhaps have the preference. 
