Fig. 316.—Castrating the ram by ligature. (This method is to be strongly condemned.)
(b) Direct or Unlimited Torsion.—First stage. The testicle is exposed, as in castration by the covered method.
Second stage. The cord and vaginal tunic are twisted by grasping the testicle, which is protected with a piece of clean linen.
CASTRATION WITH THE ACTUAL CAUTERY.
The testicles are exposed, the cords are seized with clams and divided separately or together with a sharp-bladed cautery at a white heat. The eschar so produced is sufficiently dense to obliterate the vessels.
CASTRATION BY THE ELASTIC LIGATURE.
This method has been largely employed during the last ten or fifteen years. It consists in applying to the upper part of the scrotum several turns of a tensely stretched round or square rubber thread. The two ends of the rubber thread are crossed and tied with string. About the seventh or eighth day the testicles may be removed with a knife close to the ligature, provided the process of delimitation is well advanced.
The chief objection to this method lies in the fact that the scrotum is destroyed, which lowers the value of the animal from a commercial point of view.