Spey Blade

I grew up working cattle and cowboying, and was a foreman for a beef operation for a couple of years. So I have castrated a lot of calves.

You first cut off the end of the scrotum, exposing the testicles. Then you pull each testicle out until the spermatic cord is pulled about as far out as you can pull it. Then you cut it off up high.

Really a pretty simple operation if you have some good help "tailing" the calf. I usually castrated them standing up with their head in a headgate and somebody pulling their tail up over their back. This pulling of the tail slows their kicking down a little bit. It seems to kind of "throw them out of gear." At least that's what an old cowboy I used to work with said. I used all three blades of my old pocketknife when we woulf be castrating a lot of calves, simply because the spey blade would eventually get dull.

Hope that helps.
 
Call me a sissy city slicker if you want, but reading that description made me wince. And, no, I'm not some PETA whacko or a vegetarian...but wow, that's some raw stuff right there.

I'll never look at a Stockman pattern the same.
 
I bet this technique will work on those dreaded teenage boys that like to come around.

From now on, show 'em your Stockmand and tell them what the spey blade is for.:eek:
 
I've been practicing wild, maniacal looks for just such a situation. Whenever my daughter brings a boy over, or one is to pick her up, I try to be seated in the living room, holding/sharpening, doing something with a knife.

So far, I believe it has worked.
 
You mean you CUT the cords? Back on the farm, we used to bite them off. 'Course that was about 35 years ago. My, how things change.
 
Well that sure was pleasant to read about! ;) Do you mean to say that you actually cut the calves' nuts off with them standing there? :eek: Do you use a tranquilizer or local anesthetic or anything? I assume that these same animals are going to be slaughtered eventually, but it does seem somewhat cruel nonetheless. What, besides the obvious, is the purpose of the procedure? I'm no "PETA whacko" either but I am a human and a male one at that! :(
 
You guys ARE a wealth of info. I've always HATED spey blades and wondered who designed such an ugly blade and WHY they were put on so many older pocket knives? My brother who lives about ten miles up the road has a few head of cattle. I think I'll go up there and work out with this folder I have that has a spey blade. No, better yet, where's Dexter? :)
 
Gene - it's gonna take a MUCH bigger knife than a puny stockman :p :D

For non-castration purposes, I have found the spey blade to be a good scraper, given the semi-rounded blade tip.
 
I've been practicing wild, maniacal looks for just such a situation. Whenever my daughter brings a boy over, or one is to pick her up, I try to be seated in the living room, holding/sharpening, doing something with a knife.
Click to expand...

Get some throwing knives, practice a little, and let it be known that you are into knife throwing. That works great! Course my whip work doesn't hurt either.
 
Siege, the purpose of castrating calves is at least threefold--first of all, it prevents them from reproducing. Secondly, a steer will weigh more at market time than a bull calf of the same age. Nutrients go into producing steaks and roasts instead of being"wasted" on developing sexual maturity characteristics. Finally, a steer tends to be more easily handled and docile than a bull.

As to the question of anasthetic, the sad truth of the matter is that that would take too much time and cost too much money. If you think castration is gruesome, you should ask me about dehorning and branding.

I am not a cruel person, but I guess when you grow up doing something, you don't tend to look at it the same as someone who is unfamiliar with the practice.
 
For some reason, a very young calf or sheep doesn't seem to feel anything more than a slight sensation during the procedure. The dozens of lambs I've castrated didn't even wince. Maybe what they didn't know didn't hurt them. How much of "pain" in humans is psychological? Be that as it may, I have reshaped that ugly spey blade on every stockman I've ever carried. I'm glad to see more makers are giving us a pointy Wharncliffe blade instead.
 
I only wish they could sharpen the top portion of the spey blade, to make the point double-edged.
That way, paper bags, plastic etc could be more easily opened.
 
Coonskinner,
im just curious, it sounds not too sterile -
is there any medical aftercare needed?
No infections, bleeding ?

Seems to be not a serious "THING" to the animal?
 
FYI - currently used technique on my buddy's livestock is a rubber band stretched over a tool and then slipped over the scrotom and released. Within a couple of weeks everything just drops off! We brand and dehorn them at the same time as well as innoculate them. Most of them are quiet during the process. There are some that bawl quite loudly, but after being released they just stand quietly with the others. Really doesn't appear to have any affect on them.
 
Well, you learn something new everyday. I guess our grassmunching friends don't mind someone poking around their genitals with sharp objects as much as we do. I'm not even going to ask about the dehorning, though! ;)
 
Spey blades are great for removing old calibration lables, and for skinning out squirrels. Siege, I saw a cattle de-horner at an antique store today. You don't want to get any stray digits in that thing, thats for sure.
 
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