Pre-scrotal castration procedure in boars

Background: To report the feasibility of pre-scrotal castration technique in boars and document the great post-surgical evolution, thirty clinically healthy and sexually intact boars were used in a short case series. Results: No wound exsudate or infection was recorded. Mild scrotal edema was reported in 12 (40%) boars, that resolved within 3 days after stall confinement finished. On the long-term follow-up (4-12 months’ post-surgery), all owners stated to be satisfied with the procedure, with minor post-surgical aftercare required. Conclusion: Castration of boars using the pre-scrotal approach is a simple and safe procedure, reducing postoperative complications, and, thereby, providing better welfare, making the postoperative management of the boars, easier for handlers or owners. Methods: Thirty boars were considered fit for pre-scrotal castration technique if the testis and scrotum were macroscopically normal and no perceptible adherences within the scrotum noticed. Dissociative anesthesia protocol and local anesthesia by intratesticular and pre-scrotal infiltrative lidocaine injection was performed. An 8-10 cm skin incision was made cranially to the hemiscrotum, and subcutaneous tissue was bluntly dissected reaching the tunica dartos, fascia, and vaginal tunica. A transfixion ligature was placed on the fibrous-muscle portion of the spermatic cord. Mesorchium was bluntly dissected to separate the spermatic cord from the surrounding fascia, and a double transfixation ligature was placed around the spermatic cord, that was sharply transected. The procedure was repeated on the contralateral testis using the same skin incision.