1.
Info She t
o S eet
Dock
king, ca
astrating, and disbu
udding
g
by Susan SSchoenian
Sheep and Goat Specia
d alist
University of Maryland Extension
y d
sschoen@umd.edu
Date of la revision: 9-Nov-11
ast
Docking, castrating, and disbudd ding are management p practices rouutinely perfo
ormed on sheep
and goat farms. Eac producer needs to de
t ch ecide whethe or not to perform the practice
er ese es,
when to do them, an how to do them. Maintaining a h
nd o high standard of animal welfare sho
d ould
be a cons
sideration in all decisions related to docking, c
n castrating, a disbuddi
and ing.
The tail pprotects the sheep's anu vulva, an udder fro weather
e us, nd om
extremes Sheep lift their tail w
s. t when they de efecate and use their
tail, to so
ome extent, to scatter their feces. The ancest of most
, tor
modern s sheep breed (Mouflon) is a hair she with a s
ds eep short tail.
Centuries of selectio for wool p
on production rresulted in s
sheep with
long, woolly tails whhich usually require docking.
According to a 2002 Animal Health Survey, 9 91.7 percen of U.S.
nt
lambs are docked. Docking prev
D vents fecal m
matter from
accumulaating on the tail and hin
e ndquarters o sheep and lambs.
of d
Research has shown that tail docking greatl reduces th
h ly he
incidence of fly strik (wool maggots), while having no ill effect
e ke
on lamb mortality or performance. Docking also facilita
r ates
shearing. Not many shearers wa to shear sheep with long tails.
. s ant
Packers a
also prefer to purchase and process docked lam
t s mbs.
Because hair sheep lambs do not have long, thick, wooly tails, it is usually not necessary t
l , s t to
dock their tails. Lam from the Northern E
mbs e European shoort-tail bree group (e.g Finn,
ed g.
Icelandic Shetland, Romanov, S
c, Soay) also do not require docking. T
o e Though it is a recommennded
practice for most wo ooled sheep, some producers do not routinely d dock their la
ambs or they
y
only dock the ewe la
k ambs. There are researc efforts un
e ch nderway to b breed sheep with short(
p (er)
tails to e
eliminate the need for d
e docking.
Some ma arkets pay le money fo tailed lam
ess or mbs, primari because h
ily having a tail lowers the
l
dressing percentage of the lamb especially if the tail i caked with manure an tags. On the
b, y is nd
other hand, some et thnic buyers prefer undo
ocked lambs For the Mu
s. uslim Festiv of Sacrifice
val
(Eid al-Adha), unblemished lamb are often preferred f ritual sla
bs n for aughter. An unblemished d
lamb is a lamb that has not been docked, castrated, or had its horns removed.
r
1|Page Docking Castrating, and Disbud
g, , dding

2. Docking lambs
The simp plest and mo common method of t
ost tail
docking i ringing or banding, whereby a rub
is bber ring
(or band) is applied to the tail uusing an elas
strator
tool. Bannding is a blooodless metthod of tail docking.
The band cuts off th blood supply to the ta and
d he ail,
the tail f
falls off in 7 to 10 days. Some produ ucers cut
the “dea tail off before it fall off. In fac this is
ad” b ls ct,
a recomm mended prac ctice.
It goes w
without sayin that band
ng ding causes ppain to the l
lamb. Lambs should be at least 24
hours old before ban are applied, and ban should o
d nds nds only be applied during the lamb's fir
rst
week of life. In fact, in the Unit Kingdom there is a law that res
, ted m, stricts banding to the fi
irst
week of a lamb's life If it is pra
e. actical, the u of a loca anesthetic such as lid
use al c, docaine, can be
used to r
reduce the pain felt by the lamb.
p
When the elastrator technique i used, it is very import
e is tant that the lamb be pprotected aggainst
tetanus, since the ba creates an anaerobic (oxygen-f
and free) environnment that is favorable to
e
the tetan organism establishin itself in t tissue. If the lamb's dam was no vaccinated at
nus m ng the f ot
least two weeks prio to lambing or her vac
o or ccination sta
atus is unknoown, the tet
tanus anti-tooxin
should be administer to the la
e red amb at the ttime of band
ding. The annti-toxin pro
ovides
immediate short-ter immunity whereas th tetanus to
rm y he oxoid, while longer last
e ting, takes 10
days to 2 weeks to establish any immunity.
e y
Other methods of ta docking
ail
An electr docking iron cuts and cauterizes the tail sim
ric i d s multaneously It is prob
y. bably the mo ost
humane method of tail docking. It can also be used on older lambs An emascu
t s. ulator can also
be used f tail dock
for king docking An emascu
g. ulator has bo a cutting and crushi mechani
oth ing ism.
The crushing mechan nism seals th blood ves
he ssels on the tail remaining on the la
amb, while the
cutting e vely remove the tail. T emasculator should be left on t tail for
edge effectiv es The the
approximmately 30 seconds to help prevent b
bleeding.
A Burdiz is similar to the ema
zzo r asculator exxcept it does not have a cutting mec
s chanism. A knife
must be used to cut off the tail (inside the Burdizzo). A "baby" (9 in.) burdizzo should be u
o used
for lambs Combinin the use o a Burdizzo with an ela
s. ng of o astrator will lessen the pain felt by the
lamb. Ta can be cut off using a knife; how
ails wever, this t
technique is not recomm
s mended bec cause
it can cause excessiv bleeding. It is also th most pain
ve . he nful method of tail dockking, as
evidence by elevated levels of cortisol in t blood.
ed the
There is disagreement as to how long the do
w ocked tail (s
stub) should be. The Am
d merican
Veterinary Medical Association, American A
A Association o Small Rum
of minant Practitioners, andd
American Sheep Indu
n ustry Associa
ation all agr that tails should be removed no shorter tha
ree s o an
the dista end of the caudal tail fold. Tails d
al e docked shor rter than thi may result in an incre
is t eased
incidence of rectal prolapses in feed lot lam
e p mbs.
In the Un
nited Kingdo the dock must be le long enou to cover the ewe's v
om, k eft ugh r vulva and ra
am's
anus. Mo other cou
ost untries have similar reco
e ons. Short-t docking damages the
ommendatio tail
muscles and nerves used by the lamb's anus It may als contribute to the incidence of
u s. so
vaginal p
prolapses, th
hough there is no data t support th claim. Ne Zealand researchers
to his ew s
found tha short-doc
at cked ewes suuffered high rates of c
her carcinoma o the vulva.
of .
2|Page Docking Castrating, and Disbud
g, , dding

3. All lambs should be docked by the time they are six weeks old, regardless of the method
used. If an older lamb or mature sheep requires docking, the services of a veterinarian should
be sought. Though banded lambs are most vulnerable, immunity from tetanus is
recommended for all tail docking methods.
Castration of ram lambs and buck kids
According to a 2002 Animal Health Survey, 77.4 percent of ram lambs are castrated, with the
average age of castrating being 22 days. Fewer buck kids are castrated. The decision to
castrate ram lambs and buck kids should be based on the management needs of the producer
and the demands of the market place.
Ram lambs grow faster than ewe and wether lambs and when ram lambs
are marketed at a young age (less than 5-6 months), the commodity market
usually does not discriminate in price. Buck kids grow faster than wether
kids until they reach sexual maturity. Bucks in rut may lose weight.
Burdizzo
Ethnic buyers usually prefer intact males and may pay a premium price for
them. Rams and bucks are preferred for the Muslim Festival of Sacrifice. It
is not necessary to castrate ram lambs for the freezer (or locker) trade,
since there is no palpable difference in the taste or tenderness of meat
from a young ram lamb versus a wether or ewe lamb. Older rams may have a slight taste
difference. Some markets prefer older intact male goats, which tend to have a stronger taste,
but the taste is usually masked by spices and marinade.
On the other hand, wethers are easier to manage and eliminate the chances of early and/or
unwanted pregnancies. When males are kept intact, it may be necessary to separate them
from females when they are approximately 3 months old. If this cannot be done, males should
be castrated or marketed at an early age. For later maturing breeds, it may not be necessary
to separate males and females as early. Males sold for grazing or as pets should be castrated
since they will be easier to manage.
Castration by banding
As with tail docking, there are a number of techniques that can be used to castrate ram lambs
and buck kids. An elastrator band can be placed around the neck of the scrotum, with care
taken not to place the band over the rudimentary teats. The scrotum will shrivel up and fall
off in two to three weeks. As with docking, the “dead” scrotum may be removed after several
days.
Both testicles must be below the placement of the band. If one testicle is missed, it will be
retained in the belly cavity, resulting in a "bucky" lamb or kid. A short-scrotum is a male
whose testicles are deliberately pushed above the band. There is evidence to suggest that
short-scrotum lambs grow as fast as ram lambs and produce heavier carcasses. They are
sometimes used as “teaser” rams.
Castration by banding is painful and should be done at a young age (1 to 7 days). Some
experts advocate the use of lidocaine to reduce the pain felt by the animal. As with banding
tails, lambs and kids should be protected against tetanus. Lambs and kids whose dams were
not vaccinated for tetanus should be administered the tetanus antitoxin at the time of
banding.
Surgical castration of ram lambs and buck kids
Testicles may be surgically removed. With surgical castration, a sharp knife or scalpel is used
3|Page Docking, Castrating, and Disbudding

4. to remov the botto one-third of the scro
ve om d otal sac. The testicles ar removed and the wou
e re und
is allowe to drain and heal naturally. Hist
ed a torically, som people u
me used their te
eeth to remo
ove
the testicles.
There is an "All-in-One" tool that can be use to perform surgical c
ed castrations. The teeth o the
of
All-in-On tool are used to grab the testicle after cutt
ne u es ting off the b
bottom one third of the
e
scrotum with the sci issors portio of the too
on ol.
According to researc conducted in Great B
ch d Britain, surgi
ical castration is the mo painful
ost
method o castration as it results in higher levels of co
of n, r ortisol in the blood, as c
e compared to the
o
banding method. It also has the greatest po
a otential for i
infection and fly infestaation. Surgic
cal
castratio should be done befor or after fl season
on re ly
Other methods of castration fo lambs and kids
or d
A Burdizz emascula
zo atome is a to that is us to crush the sperma cord, which crushes the
ool sed h atic s
blood ves
ssels, thereb depriving the testicle of blood supply and c
by g es causing them to shrivel up
m
and die. The cattle-ssize Burdizz should not be used to castrate lambs or kids. Each cord
zo t o
should be crushed se
e eparately. CCombining the use of a Burdizzo wit an elastra
th ator will les
ssen
the pain felt by the lamb or kid..
Males shoould be cast
trated by the time they are six wee of age, regardless of the method
e eks f d
used. Sin males ca
nce astrated durring their first month of age are mo prone to urinary calc
ore culi
(because their ureth does not grow as large), some veterinarians advocate d
e hra s delaying
castratio until after they reach puberty. If later castra
on h f ation is done it may be advisable t
e, e to
have the procedure performed b a veterinarian. At th same, tim proper nu
e by he me utrition and
managem ment will preevent urinar calculi in early castra
ry ated ram lam and buc kids.
mbs ck
In the Unnited Kingdo
om, veterina
arians must p
perform all castrations in lambs ove three mo
er onths
of age. TThough band lambs ar most vuln
ded re nerable, immmunity from tetanus is rrecommendeed
for all ca
astration me
ethods.
Disbuddi (removing the horn buds of ba goats)
ing n aby
by Jeann Dietz-Ban and Susan Schoenian
ne nd n
Most goa are born with horns, which will b
ats begin growin shortly af
ng fter birth. O
Occasionally
y
naturally polled (hor
y rnless) goats are born. Breeding tw polled goats may result in the birth
s wo
of a herm
maphrodite (infertile go with both sex organs
oat h s).
The purppose of disbu
udding is to destroy the horn cells
and prev
vent the horn from grow
ns wing. Disbuddding is not
the same as dehorning. Dehorning is much more
e
involved and should be done by a large anim mal
veterinar
rian, with th goat unde anesthesi Some
he er ia.
producer have foun success us
rs nd sing elastrat bands to
tor o
remove hhorns from larger goats..
It is common to disbud dairy goa and othe goats that
ats er t
will be handled frequently. Hor rned goats that are keptt
in close q
quarters can cause injury to people each
n e,
other, an other live
nd estock. They often get t
y stuck in feeders and fen
their heads s nces. Some
shows ma still require market g
ay goats to be disbudded.
4|Page Docking Castrating, and Disbud
g, , dding

5. Meat goats are usually not disbudded. They tend to require less handling and feeding and
their horns serve as a natural cooling mechanism. The decision to disbud goats is often a
matter of personal preference or management needs.
The most common and recommended method of disbudding is with an electric disbudding
iron. This is a circular iron that is placed over each horn bud. The circular tip of the iron
should be about ¾ of an inch in diameter. The iron is left over the horn buds for
approximately 8 to 15 seconds.
The manufacturer’s recommendation should be followed when using a hot iron for disbudding.
Wattage varies somewhat between different pieces of disbudding equipment and the amount
of heat produced will determine the length of time for the procedure. An extension cord
should not be used to plug the disbudding iron into the power supply, as this will compromise
the iron's ability to reach optimal temperature.
The areas over and around the horn bud should be clipped prior to the iron being placed on
the kid's head. The heated side should be allowed to cool before the iron is put back to the
kid's head to do the other side. There will be a “copper-colored" ring around the horn bud if
the procedure is done properly.
The kid is usually placed in a holding box for disbudding, but a second person is still needed
to steady the head during the procedure. Afterwards, it is a good idea to put an anesthetic on
the horn buds. Kids should be disbudded as soon after birth as possible, usually 3 to 7 days.
The exact timing varies by breed and goat. You can disbud as soon as the horn buds can be
distinguished.
Inexperienced producers should seek the assistance of an experienced goat producer or large
animal veterinarian when disbudding for the first time.
5|Page Docking, Castrating, and Disbudding