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Surgery of the Ruminant Horn - Coggle Diagram
Surgery of the Ruminant Horn
Disbudding
Strongly preferred techniques
Fewer complications and reduced risk of horn re-growth
Less stressful and improved with local anaesthesia
Quick and easy
Optimal time to disbud is 1-2 weeks of age when buds palpable but no growth yet
Alternatively at castration (4-6 weeks)
Hot iron attached to gas cylinder and placed over the bud and burn down until you reach the skull and remove bud by scooping out
Thermal cautery 1-4 weeks hot iron disbudding
Dehorning
1-6 months Barned dehorning gouge/ hoof shears
Burners used to cauterise after chopping bud off
NEVER be performed as routine procedure
Embryotomy wire/ dehorning saw or shears > 6 months - creates heat if performed fast enough
Anaesthesia and analgesia
Calves
Allow 5-10 minutes to work, 5-10ml in each side
Test with large gauge needle
Cornual nerve block and NSAIDs
Older cattle
Cornual and accessory nerve block and NSAIDs
Goat kids
General anaesthetic and NSAIDs as too sensitive to local anaesthetics
+/- Cornual nerve block
Complications and after-care
Infection: dehiscence or sinusitis
Inadequate anaesthesia so block doesn't work - MUST re-block or come back another time
Haemorrhage
Flystrike
Regrowth
Goat disbudding
Anaesthesia
Toxic dose 5-6mg/ml (0.4-0.5ml Adrenacaine in 4kg goat kid)
GA required - inhalant or alpha 2 and butorphanol
Goat's sensitive to local anaesthetic
Analgesia - NSAIDs
Complications
Ineffective anaesthesia - hypothermia, brain damage, regrowth
Infection
Flystrike
High risk and anaesthetic risk
Have very thin skin and skull so don't hold it on for too long and remove bud carefully with forceps