CHAPTER X.
Operations—Bleeding—Castration—Catching and Holding—Drenching—Ringing.
BLEEDING.
This is a most useful and necessary operation, and one which in many diseases is of vital importance. The common and vulgar mode of getting blood from the pig is by cutting off portions of the ears or tail; but these modes of proceeding should only be had recourse to when local and instant blood-letting is requisite. The jugular veins of swine lie too deep and are too much imbedded in fat to admit of their being raised by any ligature about the neck; it is therefore useless to attempt to puncture them we should only be striking at random. Those veins, however, which run over the interior surface of the ear, and especially towards its outer edge, may be opened without much difficulty: if the ear is turned back on to the poll, one or more of them may easily be made sufficiently prominent to admit of its being punctured by pressing the fingers on the base of the ear near to the conch; when the necessary quantity of blood has been obtained, the finger may be raised and it will cease to flow.
The palate veins which run on either side of the roof of the mouth are also easily opened by making two incisions, one on each side of the palate, about half way between the centre of the roof of the mouth and the teeth. The flow of blood may be readily stopped by means of a pledget of tow and a string, as in the horse.
M. Gohier, who had considerable practice in bleeding swine, was of opinion that the cephalic and sephena veins might be opened without any great exertion of skill by any one who possessed a little knowledge of anatomy. The lancet should be used somewhat obliquely, and a sufficient quantity of blood having been obtained, the flow arrested in the usual manner.
Mr. Cupiss recommends the brachial vein of the fore-leg (commonly called by farriers the plate-vein) as a favorable place for bleeding. This vein runs along the inner side of the fore-leg under the skin, and the best place for puncturing it is about an inch above the knee, and scarcely half an inch backwards from the radius. No danger need be apprehended from cutting two or three times if sufficient blood cannot be obtained at once. The vein will become easily discernible if a ligature is tied firmly round the leg just below the shoulder.
Columella tells us "to let blood from the ear." or "strike a vein beneath the tail at the distance of two inches from the buttocks, where it attains sufficient size for the purpose, and it must first be
