# Anyone use a Burdizzo?



## Axykatt (Feb 1, 2013)

The time has come to wether Jean Paul. I did my research and decided to give my boy the clamps. I ordered my Burdizzo and it will be here this week. I got the 9 inch one since he's just a little mixed mini.

So, have any of you used a side clamp to wether? What advice would you give a first timer? I'm kinda nervous about the whole process...


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

Never used it before.


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## Axykatt (Feb 1, 2013)

Drat. Nobody clamps?


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## ksalvagno (Oct 6, 2009)

The bander and bands were so cheap that that was the way I went. I'm still using the same bag of bands that I first bought.


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## mtmom75 (May 19, 2011)

I used a burdizzo on one of my wethers last year, and unfortunately it only worked on one side, so I ended up banding him anyway.  My suggestion would be to do each side twice.


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## Dayna (Aug 16, 2012)

It scares me. A band is kind of like "put it on and you are good" the clamping is like "clamp it and maybe it works" so that makes me worry. So I chose to band here on our farm.


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## Axykatt (Feb 1, 2013)

ksalvagno said:


> The bander and bands were so cheap that that was the way I went. I'm still using the same bag of bands that I first bought.


I'm actually nervous of the bands because I've heard several horror stories about gangrene and abdominal infections. Then when I checked Fiasco for their take they said it was terrible and dangerous and they would not provide info on how to do it...

I have terrible luck with pet castration. I've had one cat die, one cat need $1800 in medical treatment, and recently my dog got a ruptured abscess in his abdomen (another $500 I didn't have) all from botched neutering. I don't have a local vet that handles goats, so I'm loathe to risk infection.

DH offered to just cut him like they do the calves on his grandfather's farm, but I couldn't do it. He'll have to wear the chastity dress until I'm sure it worked, I guess, but it's better than constant fear he'll die.


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## milkmaid (Sep 15, 2010)

I haven't before, but I plan on doing it this year if I get any buck kids.
In the past I have always had the vet cut. Just costs a few dollars, and the kids don't cry much. I suspect the burdizzo hurts less, but I don't know.


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## Dayna (Aug 16, 2012)

Yikes, I'd find a new vet! I've had many many animals neutered and never had an issue. The worst thing I had happen was a bit of a hernia on my last female dog because she was a puppy and too active right after her spay.


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## Scottyhorse (Feb 11, 2013)

I'm also going to use a burdizzo if we get any bucklings from a doe who had an "unplanned, wasn't supposed to happen" breeding. I think that it is a lot safer, since you are not opening up the skin, so they can't get an infection. Worse thing that happens is you have to do it again a few weeks later.


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## Axykatt (Feb 1, 2013)

Dayna said:


> Yikes, I'd find a new vet! I've had many many animals neutered and never had an issue. The worst thing I had happen was a bit of a hernia on my last female dog because she was a puppy and too active right after her spay.


Three different vets! Two different states, in fact. And I had the animals treated by three OTHER different vets that said botched neutering was the culprit. There are a LOT of incompetent vets out there. The only one in 3 hours of here that would even see my goats told me to bring my kids in for disbudding when they were 6 weeks old. Wouldn't see them before that because "it would be too early." Calves are disbudded at 6 weeks, not goats.

Of course I also had my horse's sprained ankle resulting from a SHALLOW puncture (stepped on a 1 inch roofing nail and twisted the ankle) misdiagnosed as a coffin bone injury and recommended he be put down. Thank god for the farrier!


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

Axykatt said:


> I'm actually nervous of the bands because I've heard several horror stories about gangrene and abdominal infections. Then when I checked Fiasco for their take they said it was terrible and dangerous and they would not provide info on how to do it...
> 
> I have terrible luck with pet castration. I've had one cat die, one cat need $1800 in medical treatment, and recently my dog got a ruptured abscess in his abdomen (another $500 I didn't have) all from botched neutering. I don't have a local vet that handles goats, so I'm loathe to risk infection.
> 
> DH offered to just cut him like they do the calves on his grandfather's farm, but I couldn't do it. He'll have to wear the chastity dress until I'm sure it worked, I guess, but it's better than constant fear he'll die.


Burdizzo is a great way to go, just have to make sure he is shrinking, otherwise you'll have to re-clamp. But I think Burdizzo is very humane :thumb: Don't be too quick to re-clamp, sometimes it takes awhile to start seeing a difference.

I used Blu Kote spray to ward off any infection on my banded boys ... didn't have a problem. I sprayed them several times a week. Blu Kote is great stuff.

Do you know Fias Co Farm's site? She uses the Burdizzo. I was actually planning to, but it was on backorder, so I banded instead.


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## StaceyRosado (Oct 5, 2007)

make sure you explain to buyers that they will still have a sack just shrunk. in 4H they cant have anything hanging so the Burdizzo wouldnt work for those kinds of sales - just an FYI


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## Axykatt (Feb 1, 2013)

Fias Co is where I learned about the side clamp method. They are very much against the banding. I'm just so worried about problems!


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## ThreeHavens (Oct 20, 2011)

Fias is VERY against banding, but after doing it myself, she seriously over-reacted IMO. There have been problems from the Burdizzo as well ... really there are pros and cons to each method of castration.

I still would like to try the burdizzo in the future, but since we banded at night and gave them OW-eze, they slept the worst of it off, and were playing the next day. I banded at 5 weeks.


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## Axykatt (Feb 1, 2013)

StaceyRosado said:


> make sure you explain to buyers that they will still have a sack just shrunk. in 4H they cant have anything hanging so the Burdizzo wouldnt work for those kinds of sales - just an FYI


I'm keeping this wether since he's my first little boy. 

There really isn't much 4H or FFA here. The county school system doesn't have any ag programs any more. It's really sad. My wethers are sold as pets, though I suppose my registered wethers will have to be cut for show.


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## Broski1984 (Jul 21, 2011)

Fias Co freaks out a bit much over a lot of things, in my experience. Burdizzos are still a good way to go, though, if you aren't worried about the appearance of the goat and 4-H.

I like it better for sheep, and usually just band our goats. Either is a viable method. It's honestly pretty good to have both tools. I only got a burdizzo because our one lamb kept having a testicle slip past the band, and it was frustrating me endlessly.


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## Goats Rock (Jun 20, 2011)

I have banded over 30 of my own bucklings at about 3 months of age and never had one problem. I showed a friend how to band and she and I banded some kids that were probably 
pushing 5 or 6 months old. (her son got them at a goat sale, but that's a whole nother story). We did 6 of hers. All the bands worked well, the sack dried up and fell off in around 
3 wks. leaving a small spot that got blue coated. 

I keep the bands in the fridge until I use them. I have found that if you band your boys in the morning then make them move around for half an hour or more, they only have moaning 
and discomfort for an hour or so. (They try to flop down, just keep them moving around, outside if possible). The few I did late afternoon and let them just lay and cry, lasted into the evening. 
All were fine the next day- I always checked to see if any hair was rolled into the band. (that will make them cry!). 

I was interested in the burdizzo, but no one around here had one.

All the goat sites on the internet have mostly good information, but, the person writing them will always have their opinion on how to do things. One has to sift through all the 
information and decide what best suits their style and beliefs. I believe banding is the way to go, I have had good luck with it. Someone else may think it is awful because of 
something that went wrong. Do what you are most comfortable doing!


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