Business, Agriculture
Castration of piglets: ways, equipment, tips
Castration is called a special operation, in which the boar is carved sex glands. Most often this procedure is performed by a veterinarian. Of course, like any other surgical intervention, castration should be performed with strict adherence to certain technologies.
What are the glands removed for?
They are castrated to small boars in the event that they are supposed to be grown for meat. Very often in this way, for example, Vietnamese piglets will be found. The meat of pigs of this bacon breed is distinguished by its juiciness and gentle consistency. But only under the condition of castration. The same goes for other meat breeds of pigs. Sometimes the procedure is applied to adult boars not used in breeding.
This is not too difficult event gives owners of farms a lot of advantages:
The meat of such piglets does not have an unpleasant smell.
Castrated animals gain weight much faster. In this case, the owners of the farm spend less.
It is easier to keep such pigs in groups. Castrated boars do not experience sexual hunting, they behave calmly and never fight. In addition, boars, devoid of valuable breeding qualities, do not have the opportunity to accidentally cover the females.
It is noted that castrated animals are much more resistant to various diseases.
On the question of why to castrate piglets, there is one more answer. Sometimes such an operation happens to be just a forced measure. To remove the sex glands can, for example, with inflammation of the testes, the appearance of inguinal hernia, as well as in some other cases.
When is it best to carry out an operation
Vets advise to castrate piglets as early as possible. Most often this operation is carried out by 10-45-day-old hogs. The fact is that small pigs carry castration much easier than adult animals. In most cases, they do not even make anesthesia, and the operation itself is virtually bloodless. In addition, the little pig experiences much less stress than an adult boar. Especially if it was not taken away from the pig. In addition, the substances contained in the mother's milk contribute to the rapid healing of the wound. No complications after the operation in small piglets usually do not arise.
Thus, it is better to castrate younger animals. Although there are no strict limitations on this plan.
How to castrate piglets: basic techniques
The operation to remove the gonads can be performed by several methods:
Open surgical;
Closed surgical.
Also, various types of bloodless methods can be used - using chemical preparations or radiologic radiation. In the last two cases, the animal, of course, suffers much less. But such methods are quite costly financially. Therefore, in farms, castration of pigs is most often performed according to the first two methods, that is, through surgical intervention. Anesthesia, according to the rules of holding such events, is not required. However, many veterinarians still pre-make a piglet prick. In this case, the animal, of course, does not experience pain, therefore, it escapes less and moves away more quickly from stress.
Surgical removal of the testes can be done by absolutely any pig. Thus Vietnamese piglets, Siberian white, Estonian and any other bacon species are castrated.
Preparatory activities
Before the pig is castrated, the area of manipulation is carefully inspected. The skin of the animal should not be seriously damaged. Further, the fingers determine the absence or presence of pathologies in the internal organs - a hernia, a tumor, etc. The nails of the veterinarian conducting the operation must be short-cut. Be sure to remove all the hangnails. Of course, the hands should be thoroughly washed. Carry out an operation to remove the testes in sterile gloves.
Equipment and tools
Actually castration of pigs is carried out by means of a conventional medical scalpel. Special clamps are also used to stop blood. If you plan to castrate an adult animal, among other things, you should prepare a needle. It will be needed for sewing incisions on the skin. Of course, beforehand you also need to prepare bandages, cotton wool and disinfectants. A special medical silk thread will be needed to tie the seed canals.
For castration of very active, restless pigs, in addition to standard tools, a special fixing machine is used. Very small animals during surgery are usually just kept by an assistant veterinarian. All tools used during the operation must be sterilized.
As already mentioned, an experienced veterinarian must remove the testicles to the boars. But sometimes farmers or owners of homesteads carry out such procedure, as castration of pigs, with their own hands. To do this, of course, is allowed only if there is a certain experience or under the guidance of a specialist.
What you need to know about
You can carry out the operation at any time of day. However, in practice pigs are usually castrated early in the morning. In this case, the veterinarian or farm workers have the opportunity to monitor the condition of the animal during the day. It is not recommended to feed pigs before surgery.
Castration of piglets should in no case be carried out simultaneously with deworming or vaccination. It is necessary that at least two weeks have passed since the last two procedures. Do not castrate the animals and in the event that an outbreak of an infectious disease is observed in the pigsty. Adult boars do the operation no later than two months before slaughter.
Technology features
How is castration of piglets carried out? The price for this procedure is not high (usually no more than 500 rubles), because it is not particularly complicated. After all the preparatory measures have been completed, they begin the actual operation. The piglet is fixed in such a way that during the procedure it could not vomit. Then they cut their hair on the scrotum. After that, the manipulation area is treated with iodine or alcohol. Then the actual operation for the chosen technology is carried out. As an anesthetic, a four percent "Azaperon" is usually used. For every 10 kg of the animal this product requires 1 ml. Actually, the injection itself is made into the upper part of the inner side of the thigh (into the muscle).
Open method
This method usually performs castration of piglets at the age of up to 15 days. It consists of the following:
The testis of the animal is captured through the skin with the thumb and forefinger of the left hand.
Using a scalpel, an incision is made of the scrotum tissue. In this case, the common vaginal membrane is also captured. The incision should be made by one sharp precise movement. Pass it parallel to the stitch of the scrotum at a distance of about 1 cm from it.
The nascent testicle is extracted outward.
The transitional ligament is cut.
Fabrics are carefully moved to the arable ring.
With the right hand, the testis twists along the long axis and is pulled back from the abdominal cavity. Left at the same time, through the skin of the neck of the scrotum, the spermatic cord is fixed.
The cord turns around the index finger and stretches out until it breaks completely.
Closed method
This technique is usually used for castration of adult animals. In this case, the skin above the testis dissects without seizure of the vaginal membrane. The latter is simply separated from the surrounding tissues with a cotton swab. The thread is applied simultaneously to it and to the cord, near the inguinal ring. Next, the testis is cut off.
Care of animals after surgery
Methods of castration of piglets can be used different. But in any case, after the operation for the animal, it is necessary to take care of it properly. Observe the piglet is supposed to be at least for five days. Of course, the animal should be kept in an absolutely clean enclosure. It is recommended to use hay as a litter. Do not stack sawdust on the floor. Their small particles can get into the wound and cause inflammation. Feed the animal after the operation should be quality grains and root vegetables in sufficient quantities. For the first time, the trough in the paddock is filled with food a few hours after the operation. To water the animal immediately after the procedure is also not possible.
Complication after castration is most often manifested in the form of redness and swelling of the affected area. If you have this problem, you should immediately seek advice from a veterinarian. Sometimes in animals there is an early complication. In this case, bowel or bladder may fall out. In this case, of course, you also need to call a veterinarian.
Walking in the street pigs after castration can only under the condition of complete wound healing. The cuts are usually tightened for 6-7 days.
Ethical aspect of the case
In principle, castration - the procedure is not too painful, and pigs usually tolerate it quite easily. However, the painful sensation of a piglet during its carrying out, certainly, tests. Therefore, among farmers, the question is raised, including the ethical nature of such a procedure. In particular, this problem is widely discussed in Europe.
German, French, Danish and Dutch farmers, in cooperation with representatives of the European Group for the Protection of Animals, even developed a set of rules for the care of piglets on a special technology to prevent the appearance of unpleasant smell in meat, like a boar without castration. The technique includes special methods of feeding, minimizing the aggression of animals during sexual hunting, etc. The decision to introduce new technologies will come into force as early as 2018. Of course, simultaneously with their use, the quality of the meat coming to the shelves will be controlled. Check it for lack of odor is assumed using a special device - the electronic "nose".
Alternative chemical castration
Whether or not the technology of cultivation developed by European animal lovers without removing the testicles is still unknown. Meanwhile, the answer to the question of how to castrate piglets painlessly, exists already today.
This is the so-called bloodless technology, which involves the use of special hormonal drugs. Under the influence of the latter, the gonads of the piglets simply lose their activity. Technologically, this method, of course, can be considered much simpler than the operation. However, hormone drugs are expensive. In addition, their use worsens the quality of pig meat. That is why the chemical castration has not received a special spread on the farms. However, there is a possibility that new, more advanced hormonal drugs will soon appear, and all these problems will finally be successfully resolved.
Helpful advice
Non-castrated animals are kept on farms quite often. Therefore, some pig producers are certainly interested in the question of what ways to calm the boarers during sexual hunting. In this case, experienced farmers simply make a pig a one-percent water solution of platyfilin. After the injection of this drug, the animals completely calm down. Do such injections in the base of the ear three times, with an interval of 24 hours. As in the case of surgical castration, the animal is fed only a few hours after the injection.
Of course, a farmer who wants to see his business profitable should know not only how to grow pigs, but also how to conduct castration. After all, however, but at the moment when breeding pigs for meat, this procedure is necessary. If it is not carried out, the costs of feeding and keeping animals will be much higher, and selling meat itself will become much more difficult.
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