On January 14, the Anatomy students started preparing for their first dissection of the year – cats. The cats were purchased from the Humane Society after they were euthanized and dedicated to Science, according to Anatomy teacher Eric Keller.

After weeks of studying the different systems and their important functions, the students were given their first assignment, allowing them to get used to the tools and the materials they’ve been learning before beginning the lab. The assignment was given to them in groups of two and each group was responsible for dissecting their own chicken wing to practice. There were numerous things that the students were required to identify while relating them back to the human body, for example: the muscles, tissues, and tendons of the wing.

“I think it helped because it was good practice for the cat dissection. It wasn’t hard, it was a pretty simple dissection,” junior Joey Brubaker said.

On January 25, each group began observing the anatomy of their assigned cat. The students started off with an external exam of their cat and then immediately began skinning it’s fur. The classes have been working on identifying certain muscles and will continue their dissections periodically throughout the rest of the year.

Allie Hartnett, Co-Editor