A mobile surgery table for sheep

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Sir,—The surgery tables at present commercially available in New Zealand are fixed in one position, though some may have their height altered by a hydraulic pump or other means. It is considered that the following conditions should be met by a surgery table.     

Intraperitoneal injection of methyridine

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Sir,—Having read with interest the letter by R. H. Hiscock in the Veterinar'y Record (Vet. Rec. (1962), 74: 1140), I would like to record a similar experience, using the same product on some “tail end” Jersey calves, five to six months of age, which weighed between 100 lb and 160 lb each. They were very poor calves indeed.     

Percussion stunning of sheep

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Sir, — As from October 1976, all sheep in this country will have to be stunned prior to slaughter. Until recently it had been widely assumed that some form of electrical stunning would be the only practical method for use in New Zealand freezing works. Although for several years electrical stunning has been used for pigs in this country and other classes of stock overseas, only one meat export works in New Zealand has been stunning sheep electrically as a routine procedure for a complete season.     

Capillaria infection in a pig

Extract

Sir, — A 10-month-old Landrace boar affected with a “leg weakness” syndrome was recently euthanased at the Palmerston North Animal Health Laboratory. An incidental finding during post-mortem examination was the presence of a small number of nematodes of the genus Capillaria. A total of 23 specimens including some mature adults were found.