OOPHORECTOMY IN THE BITCH.* 
H. E. Kingman, B.S., M.D.V., D.V.S., Professor of Surgery, Division of 
Veterinary Medicine, Colorado State Agricultural College, Fort 
Collins, Colo- 
Every surgeon has his own methods and technique, and as 
he operates will change in detail from one way to another as he 
finds opportunities to make his work more simple, rapid or ef¬ 
ficient. 
It is the object of this paper to bring out one or two steps in 
this operation that are not commonly mentioned in our literature. 
Preparation of the Patient .—When the bitch enters the hos¬ 
pital she is placed upon the table and the seat of operation washed 
with green soap and water, the hair shaved and a pack saturated 
in a 1/1,000 solution of bichloride is held in place by a many¬ 
tailed bandage. She is then placed in her cage until the next day. 
An hour and a half before the operation she is given two tab¬ 
lets of H. M. C. No. i (Abbot's). Each contains 14 gr. of mor¬ 
phine, 1/1,000 gr. of hyoscine and 1/67 gr. of cactin. 
She is then allowed to vomit and micturate. If the latter does 
not take place it is advisable to pass a catheter, since the bladder 
when distended lies in the same region as the ovaries and horns 
of the uterus, but when empty it occupies a very small space back 
toward the pelvis and well out of the way. Half an hour before 
the operation one or two more tablets of H. M. C., depending 
upon the size of the bitch, should be administered. If necessary, 
ether may be used to complete the anesthesia. This method is 
practical and easily carried out. It must not be conveyed, how¬ 
ever, that all should adhere to some such method under all cir¬ 
cumstances. Sometimes a man will bring an animal to the hos¬ 
pital and wish to take her away as soon as possible; perhaps he 
* Presented at the Meeting of the Colorado State Veterinary Medical Association. 
Denver, Colo., January 18, 1912. 
