Castrating Beef Calves - Walker
Castrating Beef Calves - Walker
Castrating Beef Calves - Walker
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across one spermatic cord. Makesure the crushing side of the jaws isdirected up. Also, make sure thatno skin is caught within the jaws.Close the jaws of the emasculatorand squeeze tightly for 15 secondsor more. Remove the testicle anddo the other side (Figure 9).clean, dry uncrowded area allowsthe calf to calm down and walkaround or lie down as it sees fit. Acrowded, excited calf will bleedmore. If you don’t feel comfortablecastrating a calf, call yourveterinarian. A veterinarian canquickly and safely castrate yourcalves. Other health and managementpractices can be done at thesame time.Figure 7. Removing the testicle.Separating the muscle first reducesthe amount of bleeding that occurs.Also, the calf now cannot pull thetesticle back up. Grasp and pull theother testicle (Figure 8).Figure 8. Slowly pull the testicle untilthe muscle in the spermatic cordseparates.There are two methods ofremoving the testicles from thecalf. Emasculators are specializedinstruments designed to crush andcut the spermatic cord so thetesticles can be removed. Manytypes of emasculators are availableand all can be made to work well.To use the emasculators, open thejaws and place them straightFigure 9. Using emasculators to crushthe spermatic cord.Another way of separatingthe cord is by using a dull knife.After the testicle has been pulleddown and back, the knife blade isused to scrape the cord in a shavingmotion. Eventually, the cord will besevered. DO NOT CUT THECORD. Cutting the cord will resultin excessive bleeding.The final step in surgicalcastration is wound treatment.Flies cause annoyance and areassociated with an increase inwound infections. Liberally applyfly spray repellant. Surgicallycastrated animals should bereleased immediately to a clean,dry area. Unweaned calves shouldbe returned to their mothers. AOne of the “bloodless”methods of castration is the use ofthe emasculatome or “clamps.” Thismethod is generally used on older,larger cattle. The emasculatomeis used to “pinch” the cordthrough the skin of the scrotum.Different sizes of emasculatomesare available, as one size can’t beused on all animals. Emasculatomeseventually will wear out and not beeffective. In good working order, anemasculatome closed on an ordinarysheet of paper should crease thepaper but not cut through it.To use the emasculatome,move one testicle to the bottom ofthe scrotum. Find the spermaticcord above the testicle and moveit to the side of the scrotum. Thejaws of the emasculatome areplaced over the cord and aboutone-third of the way across thewidth of the scrotum. Theemasculatome should be about 2inches above the testicle on thatside. The jaws of the emasculatomeare closed (Figure 10). It should bepossible to feel the cord snapapart after the jaws are closed.After 30 seconds, the instrumentcan be removed. The jaws shouldnever be clamped across themiddle of the scrotum. Someoperators will double clamp each