Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

csziggy

(34,136 posts)
13. Uh - I have a story about a subject close to that
Wed May 15, 2019, 07:14 PM
May 2019

I used to raise horses. Since most of our colts (young male horses) were not stallion material, we usually gelded (castrated) them just after we weaned them.

One year we had a half dozen colts to geld. Our vet came out and spent most of the day doing the procedure which involved cutting open the sac, then using a tool which crimped shut the blood vessels to the testicles, then cutting off the testicles. That vet had a habit of using minimal sedation, so the colts would be castrated while standing - which was actually safer since an equine recovering from enough sedation to put it on the ground does a lot of staggering around as they wake up enough to attempt to stand. (For this procedure which he had demonstrated at the veterinary school he got the nickname of "Iron Balls.&quot

We did each colt in order, putting them into stalls to finish getting over the sedation. We checked on each periodically and about 4 PM the vet and his assistant packed up and left for their office. About an hour later I checked on the colts again. The last colt we had gelded was bleeding from the procedure more than I was comfortable with so I called into the office. The vet's wife (and receptionist) told me to run cold water over the area to help the blood vessels close up.

So here I am, dressed in white overalls, running water up the private parts of a still groggy colt. Well, the water did NOT constrict the blood vessels - instead it broke loose whatever clot had been slowing down the bleeding and I had a gusher. I had someone else call back to the vet's office while I grabbed a stack of towels and began applying pressure.

The vet's assistant later told me when the vet got the message, he did a U-turn on the interstate and drove - at rush hour - through the ditches and on the sides to get back to our farm. By the time they got there I was red up to both shoulders and almost to my waist (remember those formerly white overalls?) and the wash rack pad was covered in blood. The vet had to re-sedate the colt, lay him down and take a few stitches in strategic places.

The vet was very reassuring - he said despite the apparent volume of blood the colt had probably only lost a quart or so. The next day the colt was doing great, only a little sore, as were all his buddies.

This was one reason that vet told me he hated getting emergency calls from me since I seldom had the routine emergencies most horse people did. Most of my calls were situations like this one or things he had to do research on to treat.

Then there is the old internet story about wax hair removal that women can relate to: https://tinajay.blogspot.com/2005/09/waxing-funniest-story-ever.html

Latest Discussions»The DU Lounge»Instead of "landscaping",...»Reply #13