Common Bovine Surgeries

Chapter 12 -2

“A dream doesn’t become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination and hard work.”

- Colin Powell

C - Section• Reasons

– Maternal• Inadequate cervical dilation• Abnormal pelvic bone conformation (shape)• Rupture of the cow's abdominal musculature• Problems with uterine position or uterine function• Abnormalities of the cow's uterus or vagina

– Calf• Abnormal calf position that is not correctable in the vagina• Fetal monsters• Presence of a dead fetus.

CYCLOPS

C - Section

• Prep• Procedure

In addition to a standard selection of sterile surgical instruments for abdominal surgery, 2 obstetrical chains, 2 cervical forceps, and straight atraumatic needles are needed

Utrecht (1975)

Castration• Reasons– Consumer preference: Better tasting meat– Better animal disposition

– Environment: low fly season, tetanus prophylaxis: tetanus antitoxin or tetanus toxoid

• Age– Best age: 1 to 4 weeks or under 3 months of age to

minimize stress. < 1 month: lateral recumbency• Prepping– Restrain in a chute or head gate– Scrub scrotal area

– Methods: open (incision- scrotum)vs. closed

Castration (cont’d)

• Different types– Jack knife or blade• Remove bottom one third of scrotum with blade• Expose testicles through opening• Cut with blade or jack knife• May apply antiseptic powder or spray• May apply a stop quick powder if bleeding in excess• May make one or two incisions

Castration (cont’d)

• Elastic ring elastrators– Used for calves under 2 weeks of age– Apply a strong elastic ring around the base of the

scrotum– Causes necrosis of the scrotum and the testicles– Sloughs off in 2 to 3 weeks– Problem: Tetanus, black leg, and malignant edema

(clostridial diseases)

Castration (cont’d)• Newberry knife method

– Common for bulls weighing over 500 lb.– Restrain bull in head gate or chute.– Have someone pull tail up and over the back of the bull.– Scrub the scrotal area.– Grasp lower half of the scrotum, and push testicles up as far as possible.– Use Newberry knife to cut through the scrotum side to side, pulling

toward you. This will leave two scrotal flaps.– Pull down the testicles in opening. Separate connective tissue, crush, and

clamp the cord with hemostats.– Remove testicles with emasculator.– Crushing the cord helps prevent hemorrhaging.

Hemostasis

Elastrator: < 2 weeks old

Emasculatome used to crush the spermatic cord of the testes while still inside the scrotum, may be less reliable, bloodless

Castration (cont’d)

• Postoperative care– Check hemorrhage and infection.– Place animal in a clean dry area away from others

if possible.– Return to mother if still nursing.– Some swelling is normal.

Prolapse

• Definition– Protrusion of an organ through an opening

• Cause– Straining, constipation, and diarrhea– Forced delivery: Most common– Breeding injury– Urogenital defects– Coughing– Excessive pelvic fat

Prolapse (cont’d)

• Three main types– Rectal – Vaginal – Uterine

Roberts SJ (1973)

Prolapse (cont’d)

Kelleman AA (2011)

Cervicovaginal prolapse

After clean up the swollen mass is wrapped tightly to reduced the edema prior to replacement

Prolapse (cont’d)

• Must be treated immediately! It is life-threatening!• Treatment

– Clean with a 1% to 2 % organic iodine disinfectant.– Replace organ.– Give epidural to prevent further straining.– Purse-string suture with umbilical tape in vulva to help prevent

prolapse again.– Give antibiotics.

• Fluids if animal is in shock.

Prolapse (cont’d)

Kelleman AA (2011)

internal cruciate suture

Caslick sutures Prolapse (cont’d)

Hernias• Definition– A protrusion of a part of an organ or tissue through an abdominal opening

• Reasons– Can be congenital– Can be acquired

• Types– Umbilical– Inguinal– Scrotal

Larsen RE (1980)

Santa Gertrudis: scrotal hernia

Hernias (cont’d)

• Procedures– Small hernias resolve themselves.– Surgery:

• Incision is made over the hernia.• The bowel or omentum is pushed back into place and the

site is then closed with absorbable suture.• Inguinal hernia or scrotal hernias can be done at the time of

castration.– Wooden or metal clamp

• The clamp is attached to the hernia, and in 2 to 4 weeks the hernia will slough off.

• Postoperative care– Antibiotics may be given depending on veterinarian.– Keep in a dry, clean area and away from others until

healed.– Horses will need sutures removed in 10 to 14 days.

• AX– Pigs and calves: None needed– Foals: Preanesthetic, general ax

Hernias (cont’d)

Pros and Cons of dehorning

• PROSPROS– Dangerous weaponsDangerous weapons– Damage can done by fighting Damage can done by fighting – Feedlots typically pay less Feedlots typically pay less

money for horned animals money for horned animals – Can cause damage to the Can cause damage to the

facilities facilities – Horns may also become Horns may also become

tangled in fences, branches, tangled in fences, branches, and other objects and other objects

– It is the best interest of the It is the best interest of the animal to remove the horns at animal to remove the horns at the early age the early age

• CONS (dehorning)– tetanus – sinusitis – myiasis – Abortion– decreased milk production – Death– prolonged healing time of the

resultant surgical defect– regrowth of the horns (scur

formation)

Dehorning Methods• Reasons– Reduce injuries, cuts, and bruises, which increase carcass

value.– Easier to handle; less space is required to handle them.

• Age– Should be done at 2 weeks of age or less for less stress

and less bleeding.– Cutting methods should not be done during fly season or

extreme cold.– Adults: increased hemorrhage, sinusitis– Horn button: horn buds; not attached to frontal sinus:

disbudding

Dehorning - Cornuectomy

• AX– None used for calves under 2 weeks of age– Over 2 weeks age: Local ax should be used

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Caustic stick– Used for calves under 2 weeks of age– Procedure

• Clip hair around horn bud.• Clip off skin and tip horn bud with a knife.• Apply petroleum jelly or Vaseline around the base of the

horn bud (protects skin from being burned).• Apply paste or stick as directed to the horn button.• Keep calf away from mother for a few hours until paste is

dry.• Not recommended: painful, not complete kill of germinal

tissue > scurs

(A) Well-healed scabs after caustic paste dehorning (B) Over-application of caustic paste can damage the calf.

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Tube spoon or calf dehorner– Use on calves 2 months or younger.– Procedure• Restrain calf in head gate or chute.• Scrub around horn area with an antiseptic.• Place the cutting edge of the instrument around the

base of horn button, including one eighth of the skin around the horn.

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Twist the tube each way; must cut 1/8 to 3/8 of an inch deep. Push down toward the jaw, and spoon out the horn.

• If bleeding is excessive, take forceps and pull the artery straight out so that it breaks in the soft tissue of the head.

• This will cause blood clotting.

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Bell-shaped dehorners– Electric or hot iron– Bell dehorners come in different sizes– Done on calves under 4 months of age– Procedure• Restrain in chute.• Apply the hot iron over the bud to the base also

covering a ring of hair.• Leave on until a copper-colored hide appears around

the horn (usually 10 to 20 seconds)

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Barnes dehorner – Lever type dehorner– Large beef herds: Dehorning not done until

weaning around 7 months of age– Procedure• Barnes dehorners lift the horns out by the roots and

crush the blood vessels (little to no blood).• Restrain animal in chute.• Place dehorner with handles together over the horn.

Dehorning (cont’d)

– Remove also 1/4 to 1/2 inch of skin around the horn base.

– Spread handles apart quickly, and remove the horn base.

– The horny tissue must be removed or the horn may grow back.

– Pull up on bleeding arteries with forceps, and twist and pull until it breaks.

– Use some type of antiseptic spray or solution over the wound.

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Keystone dehorner: lever-type dehorner– Larger horns– SE: hemorrhage,

fractures

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Cosmetic dehorning– Used on show animals and expensive breeding

livestock– Best if done under one year of age; older animals

are harder to close skin– Procedure• Restrain animal in squeeze chute and secure head to

one side.

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Clip hair around horns up to the ears and the eyes.

• Scrub area.• Perform nerve block.• Surgical site is given a final scrub.• Incision is made around the base of the horn.

Dehorning (cont’d)

• Incision is deepened until bone is hit.• Gigli wire is placed, and the bone is sawed off.• Flush with solution to flush out the bone dust.• Only one layer of skin is closed with

nonabsorbable sutures in a simple continuous pattern.

• Remove sutures in 2 to 3 weeks.

Dehorning

1. Surgical preparation2. The skin is incised approximately 1.5 cm from the base of the horn (incorporate all germinal or nonhaired epithelium in the horn removal to lessen the likelihood of regrowth or scur formation)3. Assistant supporting the goat's head 4. Gigli wire is seated under the caudal aspect of the skin incision on one side and the horn is sawed off in a cranial direction 5. Hemostasis can be applied to control hemorrhage from the superficial temporal artery6. Remove all blood clots and bone chips/dust from the frontal sinuses 7. Bandage (nonadherant dressing (Adaptic®) covered with antibiotic ointment): EOD – week 1; SIW until sinuses’s close8. Flunixin should be administered for 2-3 days post-operatively and antibiotic administration is at the discretion of the surgeon.

Tetanus antitoxin (500 IU) should always be given and a dose of a CD-T bacterin can also be administered to boost immunity.

Tail Amputation/ Docking

• Trauma• Clip and prep • Tourniquet • Pain medication• Insect repellent • Antibiotics

Supernumerary Teats• Tetanus prophylaxis • Emasculatome (Burdizzo)• Emasculator • Older animals

– Sedation– Local anesthesia– Skin incision– Dissection of the teat and its associated gland tissue– Close

References

• K Holtgrew-Bohling , Large Animal Clinical Procedures for Veterinary Technicians, 2nd Edition, Mosby, 2012, ISBN: 97803223077323

• http://www.drostproject.org/• http://www.acvs.org/AnimalOwners/

HealthConditions/FarmAnimalTopics/CesareanSection/index.cfm?dspPrintReady=Y

References

• http://aces.nmsu.edu/pubs/_b/b-227/welcome.html

• http://www.vetmed.lsu.edu/eiltslotus/theriogenology-5361/problems_of_bovine_pregnancy.htm