Caudectomy Procedure Best Practices
To prevent complications from a caudectomy procedure, follow these best practices:
- Only dock if necessary
- Avoid docking lambs less than 24 hours old and older than a week of age
- Only dock healthy lambs
- Ensure lambs to be docked are protected against the Clostridial diseases
- Avoid docking in bad weather conditions or in soiled, muddy surroundings, or during the fly season to avoid contamination (by soil, microorganisms, etc.)
- Wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) at all times (overall and gloves)
- Respect cleaning and disinfection protocol: hygiene of the working place, cleaning, shaving, and disinfection of operation site
- Instruments should always be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected before and after each use
- Post-operative care is important and must be well done
- Apply appropriate medication for pain control, antibiotics, and/or insect repellent