CHAPTER VI.

ACCIDENTS AND OPERATIONS.

(104.) Sheep being about as liable as other animals to a variety of accidents, it is necessary that the shepherd should possess a competent knowledge of the means which art affords for the remedy of those mishaps. It is from a want of such knowledge that farmers are frequently led to slaughter valuable sheep, though only labouring under the effects of some commonplace disease or accident. If the animal is attended by a professional person, an expense is sure to be incurred nearly equal to the worth of the patient, and in so far as they endeavour to obviate this, by killing the sheep, they are free from blame; but why not rather contrive to save the cost of veterinary attendance, by making themselves conversant with its diseases, and able to prescribe for their own flocks, in which there can be no difficulty, as the remedies are, in the majority of cases, few, simple, and of easy application. In the surgical and medical management of flocks, much mystery has, as in other matters, all along existed; but that fantastic age is well nigh its close, and thanks to the spirit of candid inquiry now abroad, we may hope ere long to boast of valuable information in this department. The spread of correct ideas regarding the nature and treatment of accidents and diseases, has from first to last been prevented by the diffuseness of those who have written on the subject, and by their so clothing it in a mass of verbiage, as to render scarcely intelligible what would otherwise be easy of acquirement. To obviate the liability to a similar charge, the following observations are given as briefly as is consistent with a due regard to the importance of the subject.

(105.) _Wounds._ All the wounds which can be inflicted may be classed under the heads of incised, punctured, and lacerated.

An incised wound is one made by a cutting instrument, such as a knife or a piece of glass.

Punctured wounds are those produced by sharp pointed bodies, such as pins or thorns.

Lacerated wounds are those occasioned by blunt bodies, as the teeth of the dog, tearing rather than cutting the flesh.

When a sheep has received any of these injuries, the following rules ought to be attended to, and in the order here recommended:--

1st. Arrest the bleeding, if profuse, and likely to endanger life.

2d. Clip away the wool for a few inches around the injured part.

3d. Remove dirt or other foreign body from the wound.

4th. Bring the separated parts as nearly together as circumstances will at the moment permit, and retain them there by suitable apparatus.

(106.) _To stop Bleeding._ Bleeding will, if no large arteries are divided, cease on the free exposure of the surface for a few minutes to the air; but when a large vessel has been cut, more determined means must be had recourse to. Pressure on the bleeding surface and its neighbourhood will in many cases succeed, but this or any similar method is far inferior to that of securing the open vessel by a thread. To accomplish this, the mouth of the vein or artery must be slightly drawn out from the contiguous surface, by means of a small hook, called by surgeons a tenaculum, and easily procured from any blacksmith. While the mouth of the vessel is thus held exposed, an assistant must surround it with a noose of thread, which, on being secured with a double knot, will effectually close it. The thread ought to be of white silk, though any undyed thread, which is firm, round, and capable of standing a pull, will answer the purpose. Care must be taken to place the thread, before tying it, fairly behind the point of the tenaculum, so as to avoid including the instrument within the ligature, a circumstance which would lead to the slipping of the noose and failure of the operation. The hook is now to be withdrawn, and one end of the ligature cut off by scissars within a little of the noose. The remaining threads are allowed to hang out of the wound, so as to admit of their removal when they become loose, which does not, however, take place till the termination of the first four days, and they are frequently retained for a much longer period. At each time the wound is dressed, after the fourth day, the ligatures should be _gently pulled_, or, which is preferable, _twisted_, to disengage them, if at all loose, so that the wound may be more speedily closed. Before proceeding to any operation where bleeding is expected, the operator should provide himself with a few well-waxed threads, each twelve inches long, so that no delay may ensue on a division of large vessels.

(107.) _Removal of Extraneous Matter._ Dirt is best removed by washing with a sponge or old linen rag and warm water. Other foreign bodies may in general be extracted by the finger and thumb. In some cases, however, it may be necessary to dilate or enlarge the wound with a fine-edged knife, in order to facilitate the removal of substances which, from their shape or situation, cannot be otherwise displaced.

(108.) _Closure of a Wound._ The last thing to be done is to bring the edges of the wound into as accurate contact as the state of the parts will at the moment permit, without, however, using any force. This, with a little care, is readily accomplished, the only difficulty being to retain them in the desired position. They may be held in contact either by _stitches_, (sutures,) _plasters_, or _bandages_, or by a union of the three. Stitches are only required when the wound gapes to a considerable extent, as it will always do when running across a muscle. They may be applied in the following manner. Transfix one side of the wound with a curved needle (armed with a well waxed thread) forcing the needle _from without_ obliquely towards the bottom of the wound, then carry it through the opposite side _from within_, taking care to bring it out about the same distance from the edge as that at which it entered on the other margin. The needle must now be removed, by cutting the threads close to its eye, and while the ends are allowed to hang loose, the same operation should be repeated, at the distance of an inch or an inch and a half from the first stitch, as often as the length of the wound may render necessary. Your assistant will now bring the sides of the wound together as accurately as possible, and retain them there till you have tied the corresponding ends of the threads in a double knot.

(109.) _Bandaging._ Adhesive plaster is in some instances of service, but upon the whole ought rather to be dispensed with, being of difficult application, and moreover tending to the accumulation of filth and the discomfort of the animal. Nothing will be found to serve the purpose of supporting the parts so well as a properly adjusted bandage, which is useful in every instance, and sure to stay on if sewed here and there to the fleece. The bandage should never be omitted where the wound has any tendency to gape, as too great a strain upon the stitches cannot but lead to delay in the healing process. In bandaging a limb or part of a limb, commence _always at the foot_, and proceed upwards; in other parts of the body begin where you find it most convenient. Before applying a bandage to an injured surface, a couple of pieces of old linen of cotton rag should be folded into pads or compresses, and laid _one on each side of the cut_, and over these the bandage should be rolled, evenly and with moderate and uniform firmness. By this plan the separated surfaces are supported and preserved in close juxtaposition, especially at the bottom of the wound, a thing of some importance where the cavity is deep. Transverse cuts of the limbs of sheep require more careful and more complicated treatment than cuts in other parts, as there is a constant tendency of the edges to retract. This retraction of the edges may be in some degree obviated by the application of a splint, which may be made of a slip of stiff leather (such as is used for saddle flaps) well wetted, so as to be easily adapted to the form of the limb. It is intended to impede the motion of the leg, which occasions the gaping of the wound, and must therefore be made to pass over one or more joints as circumstances may require. Tow must be laid along the surface (a sound one if possible) on which the leather is to be placed, and a bandage then rolled over it so as to make all secure.

(110.) _Clean cuts_, as every one knows, heal readily in a healthy animal, seldom demanding above three dressings; lacerations, on the other hand, require a longer period for their reparation, inasmuch as the process which nature goes through is more complicated. In the former, the parts are speedily glued together, so soon almost as in contact, and the union is generally complete within the first thirty-six hours. Not so, however, with the latter. Here the parts are bruised, torn, and perhaps to a considerable extent awanting. Some of the bruised portions may die, and are of course to be renewed. This is a process requiring a great effort on the part of the vital powers, which are often inadequate to the task, and on this account we ought, when the injury is severe, to sacrifice the animal rather than run the risk of its dying during the process of the attempted cure. To replace the lost part, suppuration, or the formation of _matter_ commences; while under cover of this, a crop of fleshy particles (granulations) rise to fill the vacancy. Granulations are best promoted by warm emollient applications, such as poultices of oatmeal, linseed-meal, or barley-flour, which ought to be frequently renewed to prevent their becoming cold or dry. When the granulations become too luxuriant, and rise, as they are apt to do, above the level of the skin, the poultices must be laid aside, the sore washed once or twice a-day with a _solution_ of sulphate of copper (made by dissolving two or three drachms of blue vitriol in an English pint of soft water), and covered carefully over with a pledget of fine tow, spread with lard, or any simple ointment, by which means, conjoined with cleanliness, a cure will easily be accomplished.

(111.) _Punctured Wounds._ The orifice being small in these, and the depth considerable, the sides are apt to adhere irregularly, and prevent the free escape of matter, which is certain to collect at the bottom. To avoid such occurrences, it is in many cases proper to convert a punctured into an incised wound. When, from neglecting this, the matter is denied an outlet, an incision must be made to allow it to escape, otherwise much harm will ensue from its burrowing between the different textures. Fomentations will also here be serviceable, and should be preferred to poultices. To apply them, place well-boiled meadow hay, when very hot and moist, within a fold of old blanket or woollen cloth, and lay it on the injured parts, taking care to renew the heat frequently, by dipping the bundle in the hot decoction.

(112.) _Bruises and Sprains._ These, unless severe, need not be interfered with. When the shepherd, however, considers it necessary to make any application, he cannot do better than foment the part for an hour or so with meadow hay, in the same manner as recommended for punctured wounds.

(113.) _Wounds of Joints._ Such wounds are highly dangerous and apt to baffle the most experienced. _The grand object in every case, however, where a cure is attempted, is to produce a speedy union of the wound, as directed in_ (108) to (109). If the injury be extensive, the best thing the farmer can do is to slaughter the animal.

(114.) _Poisoned Wounds._ It is said that sheep are sometimes bitten by snakes, and strange stories are told of their milk being sucked by these reptiles. In such a case but small dependence can be placed on any inward treatment, beyond the administration of one or two full doses of castor oil. If the bite can be discovered, the part should be frequently fomented with a decoction of meadow hay and foxglove (_fairy-cap_ of the Irish, and _bluidy-finger_ of the Scotch).

(115.) _Fractures._ If there be no wound of the soft parts, the bone being simply broken, the treatment is extremely easy. Apply a piece of wet leather, as recommended at (109), taking care to ease the limb when swelling supervenes. When the swelling is considerable, and fever present, you cannot do better than open a vein of the head or neck, allowing a quantity of blood to escape, proportioned to the size and condition of the animal and the urgency of the symptoms. The exhibition of purgatives should never be neglected. Epsom salt, in one ounce doses, given either as a gruel or a drench, will be found to answer the purpose well. If the broken bones are kept steady, the cure will be complete in from three weeks to a month, the process of reunion always proceeding faster in a young than in an old sheep. Should the soft parts be injured to any extent, or the ends of the bone protruding, recovery is very uncertain, and it will become a question whether it would not be better at once to convert the animal into mutton; indeed, removal of portions of bone and amputation, of which some well known writers on the surgery of the sheep speak so learnedly and confidently, may be viewed, as, in this case, chimerical, if not absurd.

OPERATIONS.

(116.) _Cutting Lambs._ Polled sheep should be castrated about the tenth day after birth, but the end of the fifth week is soon enough for horned sheep, as early castration has always a tendency to spoil the beauty of the horns. The risk is always in proportion to the age, therefore no great length of time ought ever to elapse from the period of birth to that of the operation. A large flock of ewes and lambs should never be collected preparatory to cutting, as the latter, from the excitement and crowding, are less likely to recover from the operation. It is much better to take up a small number so soon as they are ready. Instead of driving them about in attempts to secure them, it will be safer to station a person at a division of the fold, who may lay hold of them individually as they are made to pass through slowly. The best method of cutting is to grasp the bag containing the testicles with the left hand, so as to tighten the skin, and push them forward, after which an incision may be made through the skin at the end of the bag, large enough to permit the stones to pass. They may then be removed either by cutting or tearing; the latter plan, however, is the better, as there is little risk of bleeding, which is almost sure to prove troublesome if the former be adopted. At this time a portion of the tail ought to be removed, if it has not been done at an earlier period, as a remedy for pinding. The bleeding will serve to lessen the danger consequent on the previous operation. When all have been operated on, the ewes may be allowed to find their lambs, and the whole conducted _quietly_ to their pasture.

(117.) _Blood-letting._ In describing this operation, too much stress is always laid on the importance of opening particular veins, or divisions of a vein, in certain diseases. Such directions are altogether unnecessary, as _it matters not from what part of the animal the blood be drawn, provided it be taken quickly_. Nothing tends so much to the recovery of an animal from a disease in which bleeding is required, as the rapid flow of the blood from a large orifice. Little _impression_ can be made on an acute disease by the slow removal of even a large quantity of blood, as the organs have time to accommodate themselves to the loss, which might, for any good it will do, as well be dispensed with. Either bleed rapidly or not at all. The nearer the commencement of an ailment, in which you employ bleeding, the operation is resorted to, the greater the chance of its doing good; no time ought, therefore, to be lost in using the lancet, when once it is known to be required. Bleeding by nicking the under surface of the tail does very well where no great deal of blood is required, but it is not to be thought of if the veins of the face or neck can possibly be opened. These are to be taken in preference to a vein on the leg, as they are much more readily got at. The facial vein (_f.v._ Fig. 3. Pl. III.) commences by small branches on the side of the face, and runs downwards and backwards to the base of the jaw, where it may be felt within two inches of the angle, or opposite the middle grinding tooth. It is here that the orifice must be made, the thumb of the left hand being held against the vein, so as to prevent the flow of blood towards the heart, will make it _rise_. Some prefer opening the jugular vein (_j.v._ Fig. 3. P1.), which commences behind the eye and runs down the side of the neck. This vessel is, however, more difficult to open than the former, being better covered with wool, and not so easily exposed or made to swell. _Stringing_ is the mode commonly resorted to for this end; that is to say a cord is drawn tightly round the neck, close to the shoulder, so as to stop the circulation through the vein, and render it perceptible to the finger. A lancet is the instrument generally used in bleeding, though a well-pointed pen knife will do at a pinch. The opening must always be made obliquely, in the direction marked in the cut; but before attempting this, the animal must be secured, by placing it between the operator's legs, with its croup against a wall. The selected vein is then fixed by the fingers of the operator's left hand, so as to prevent it rolling or slipping before the lancet. Having fairly entered the vein, the point of the instrument must be elevated, at the same time that it is pushed a little forward, by which motion it will be lifted from or cut its way out of the vein. _A prescribed quantity of blood should never be drawn_, for the simple reason that this can never be precisely stated. If the symptoms are urgent, as in all likelihood they will, your best plan is not to stop the flow of blood till the animal fall or is about to fall. When this occurs, run a pin through the edges of the orifice, and finish by twisting round it a lock of wool.

(118.) _Removal of Hydatids from within the head._ This animal, and the symptoms which it causes, I have fully described at (169). Their removal has been attempted in a variety of ways, but the simplest method, and one most likely to succeed, is that followed in this quarter. A couple of incisions, forming when completed the letter T, are made in the integument covering the soft part of the bone under which the hydatid is supposed to be. Two flaps are in this way marked out, and are dissected back so as to expose the skull. The yielding portion of the latter is then pared away, which brings the sac into view. This will be seen alternately to sink and rise, following in this respect the motions of the brain. A moderate-sized needle, slightly curved and filled with thread, is now passed through the exposed portion of the cyst, and the thread allowed to remain. The fluid is thus permitted slowly to escape, and at the same time the sac becomes collapsed, after which it is easily removed by pulling gently at the thread with which it is connected. As good a hold should be taken with the string as possible, and all the water should be allowed to flow out before any attempt is made to extract the remains of the hydatid. To conclude the operation, lay down the flaps of skin in their original position, covering them with a small piece of folded linen smeared with lard, and over all apply a cap. Never try to save the bone which you cut, by turning it back in the form of a lid, for by so doing you will only endanger the life of the animal, which is otherwise in little jeopardy.

It will often happen that the hydatid, from being in the interior of the brain, will not be brought into view by the removal of a portion of the skull. In this case the brain must be punctured in order to reach the sac and evacuate its contents.

When the skull above the eye is very thin, the disease may be at once ended by cautiously thrusting a short, stout, sharp-pointed piece of steel wire through the skin and bone down towards the centre of the brain, taking care to pull the skin a little to one side before making the puncture, so that on letting it loose the openings in the skull and integument will not be opposite to one another. This plan is much superior to that of thrusting a needle up the nostril, in the manner devised by Mr Hogg, as in his way we are always poking in the dark, in ignorance of the situation of the instrument, and are in all probability doing so much injury to the delicate parts within the nose as to preclude the possibility of recovery. Indeed, I some time ago examined a head on which Mr Hogg's operation had been twice unsuccessfully performed, and found traces of inflammation at the upper part of the nostril severe enough of itself to have occasioned death. The needle had not entered the brain, but the ethmoid was very much injured. I believe the instrument is very seldom pushed more than half way through the bone, at least it never reaches the hydatid, which would appear to be destroyed rather by the inflammatory process which follows the attempt, unfitting the brain for supplying it with the secretions on which it lives, than by any direct injury done to it by the needle.