GRAPHIC PICS of my day learning to caponize

[bbsnooks]

I am far from an expert at this, but in my trials I have found the two following non-surgery-related tactics to help:

1. Pre-pluck the boys you plan to do a few days in advance, rather than on surgery day.

2. When you withhold food/water, use a small wire transfer cage, or an empty rabbit hutch. If they have ground contact, they will find something to ingest....

Hey Ruthster..
glad you understand a fence that will hold goats.. haha
my friend says if a fence wont hold water it wont hold goats..
She had milking goats i came to enjoy< i do not have goats > but the idea of making a good escape proof area came from her..and goats!

I saw yesterday where they were getting thru the bird netting.. oh well.
I cooped up 6 more that i'll start tonight.. they had am food - while i was catching them.
The others completed are going from the house to the mini pen - just standing chicken wire and a smaller 3' gate w/n the garden, and if they get out great!
I just want to see how they get along be for they can go hide. I'll let them out after a few hours. every one is eating drinking and .. the other..
the Test roos of 7 or 8 wks from the w/s are out in the mini coop/run < amazon pchs for 4 hens> getting to know the others while protected from pecks.

Lessons learned ..
Banding is good.. I banded everyone in the big coop last nigh. mostly McMurray birds I picked yellow for that source.

I was looking for SOP < what i know of so far> and Faults..
some of my EE roos have ? no toe nails.? or stubs.. but that may be an advantage to my 7 hens that are looking a bit feather/thread bear on the back.
so I'll leave them for last .. for the "treatment".

I'm just learning about banding.. with the Capons.. i find numbering them .. helps me to recall .. the slips. and other problems.. that i can track for the future.
I wish i had done this at the w/s as i tried one time the alternate incision spot between ribs.. and that could have been the slower one to rebound.
if i recall on that one.. i believe i broke a rib while using the spreader.. and that certainly could be why he was not as active.

I decided to use banding of same color on L and R legs.. if there is a fault.. and its already easier to tell them apart walking in the yard.

< i'm sure there is some one that's figured out a system
if you see a specific post on methods of banding .. it would help ....
pm me with the post # or right click & copy that post >

well gotta go..

 

[LindaB220]

#6 and #3 Birds..
Science project to observe..
Both these birds I was able to surround and disconnect one of the testes.. but had trouble on extraction.

#3 bird - broke apart on exit much of tissue left inside..

#6 bird - UGH!! < cant believe this > I lost it inside the cavity..
he had been on the table over an hour. so I just left it there.
and as i was taking photo's .. and had membrane issues <more later> I thought it best to get it over.
post op.. he was breathing very raspy.. and i though i would loose him.. for sure..
however an hour later breathing was better and he was drinking and eating..

I'm going to watch.. these and see if by disconnecting them.. is enough
one burst.. leaving tissue in side.. dont know if it will reattach some how
the Other is intact and totally separated from blood supply but...? we'll see He's #6

The membrane.. is challanging for me.. I use the hemostats to gently grab the membrane and pull away to cut with small cuticle scissors.
but i seem to miss parts and then the string does not surround.

< gently so not to poke the testicle and rupture it . Once ruptured .. its like it is under lots of pressure and bursts or did for me.. which most likely makes him a slip>
I imagine some one might be able to make that work .. but not me..
thats all for now.

Great stuff!! Keep it up. Learning day by day.

 

[bbsnooks]

I found this today.. about skin healing.. --
-
People apply vitamin K to the skin to remove spider veins, bruises, scars, stretch marks, and burns. It is also used topically to treat rosacea, a skin condition that causes redness and pimples on the face. After surgery, vitamin K is used to speed up skin healing and reduce bruising and swelling.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/983.html
--

I tried vit K topically this time with Clear packinig tape to close the wound's. < they are about 3" long">
I've done 3 so far tonight and have 3 more to go to finish this'weeks work - more in a week or 2.
Still too many Roo;s and my hens are scared.. one jumped on my head.. 5'4" and she's a fat BLRW.. quite the athlete. It tell's me The're just too many young studs here. and in the process I'm having to learn SOP on several breeds to figure which one's to pick out.

Things are going much better today and 39 - 39 - 44 minutes
.. even with a string braking..

I'm figuring things out.. I feel more confident about doing this..

 

[Kassaundra]

I found this today.. about skin healing.. --
-
People apply vitamin K to the skin to remove spider veins, bruises, scars, stretch marks, and burns. It is also used topically to treat rosacea, a skin condition that causes redness and pimples on the face. After surgery, vitamin K is used to speed up skin healing and reduce bruising and swelling.
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/983.html
--

I tried vit K topically this time with Clear packinig tape to close the wound's. < they are about 3" long">
I've done 3 so far tonight and have 3 more to go to finish this'weeks work - more in a week or 2.
Still too many Roo;s and my hens are scared.. one jumped on my head.. 5'4" and she's a fat BLRW.. quite the athlete. It tell's me The're just too many young studs here. and in the process I'm havign to learn SOP on several breeds to figure which one's to cut.

Things are going much better today and 39 - 39 - 44 minutes
.. even with a string braking..

I'm thinking this is not a good thing to get out in the world.. for a single lady...
i made the mistake of telling 3 people.. and .. well I may fudge a little on the truth in the future.. or decipher .. " the need to know"

but . now that I'm figuring things out.. I feel more confident about doing this..

Yes I am selective who I share information with about caponizing.

Sounds like making progress.

 

[BCMaraniac]

Yes I am selective who I share information with about caponizing.

Sounds like making progress.

Same here Kassaundra......If I am talking to someone about chickens, I usually start a conversation about caponizing by asking them if they have ever heard of it. If they ask what it is, I tell them and the reason for it. If they have heard about it, I ask them if they know of anybody who has done it. With those questions I can generally tell what their opinion is about it and whether or not to keep my mouth shut. I live in a very rural area, so many have heard about it and have no problem with it. Some even have grandparents or older relatives that used to do it. My husband's boss wants to know if I will teach him how to do it. I will wait until I get the hang of my new tools, then teach him.....gotta wait for my eggs to hatch, though.

 

[WalkingWolf1]

Was rewatching the "6-second chinese capon video" today and saw another vid of another guy caponizing. In that video it appeared to be a nearly grown bird and through the course of the vid was able to observe his use of the "probe-with-thread" device. I will try his technique the next time I work on a bird. I was trying to use like a loop to be expanded slipped over the teste then draw the loop in to tighten. He used it simply to control that end of the string and wrap around the base of the teste and once a complete loop was formed, the two ends of the string were worked back and forth to release the "it". Not sure why I couldn't grasp that concept before.

 

[Poco Pollo]

Was rewatching the "6-second chinese capon video" today and saw another vid of another guy caponizing. In that video it appeared to be a nearly grown bird and through the course of the vid was able to observe his use of the "probe-with-thread" device. I will try his technique the next time I work on a bird. I was trying to use like a loop to be expanded slipped over the teste then draw the loop in to tighten. He used it simply to control that end of the string and wrap around the base of the teste and once a complete loop was formed, the two ends of the string were worked back and forth to release the "it". Not sure why I couldn't grasp that concept before.

You got it! Tie the capon wire through the eye of the probe. Hold the wire in your left hand and the probe in your right hand. Insert the probe into the body cavity and position the eye end behind the testicle. Guide the wire under and around the testicle. Cross the wire (make a circle around base of testicle and go a little farther to cross wire) and then gently saw the testicle free. Yanking is not a good idea. Saw gently to cut cleanly through the membrane holding the testicle in place.

 

[LindaB220]

Same here Kassaundra......If I am talking to someone about chickens, I usually start a conversation about caponizing by asking them if they have ever heard of it. If they ask what it is, I tell them and the reason for it. If they have heard about it, I ask them if they know of anybody who has done it. With those questions I can generally tell what their opinion is about it and whether or not to keep my mouth shut. I live in a very rural area, so many have heard about it and have no problem with it. Some even have grandparents or older relatives that used to do it. My husband's boss wants to know if I will teach him how to do it. I will wait until I get the hang of my new tools, then teach him.....gotta wait for my eggs to hatch, though.

He's been waiting patiently for this. He asked months ago.

 

[LindaB220]

You got it! Tie the capon wire through the eye of the probe. Hold the wire in your left hand and the probe in your right hand. Insert the probe into the body cavity and position the eye end behind the testicle. Guide the wire under and around the testicle. Cross the wire (make a circle around base of testicle and go a little farther to cross wire) and then gently saw the testicle free. Yanking is not a good idea. Saw gently to cut cleanly through the membrane holding the testicle in place.

Good stuff. Keep it up. I'm feeling a lot more confident about this after hearing about the workshop and experiences and pictures. My babies came today so I've got a few weeks to ponder.

Except I just remembered I'm left handed. so backwards?

 

[BCMaraniac]

He's been waiting patiently for this. He asked months ago.

Yep, but I didn't have chicks.....or confidence. Maybe with my new tools.....

I think he was asking then because he ordered chicks from a place that was really cheap. He was supposed to get 30 pullets, but instead he got 29 cockerels and one pullet. The sad part of the whole thing is that when he went to butcher the cockerels, he accidentally butchered the pullet!