Anna Kirwan

Mr. Silva
Anatomy
5-9-12
Pig Dissection Lab
A pigs orientation is very similar to the humans. We started the dissection process by
skinning the pigs. Their skin is very hard to cut through in certain areas. Some of the areas it
was harder to cut through were the arms and legs, the shoulders, and the chest. After we got the
skin off the pig, we started identifying the muscles. Obviously pigs are on four legs and we only
have two, but our internal organs are almost in the same places. Being on four legs, the pigs
have different muscle make ups than humans do. Our muscles are based on our arms and two
legs. However, some of the muscles are the same, like the rectus abdominus. After the muscles,
we cut into the pig, making a line down the middle of the pig. The diaphragm was the hardest to
cut through because it was bone. When we opened the pig, we realized that the orientation was
very similar to ours. The heart of the pig is in the chest under the ribs and the lungs. The liver is
directly inferior to the heart, with the stomach behind it. The kidneys of the pig were located
towards the dorsal side of the pig. This is similar to humans because our kidneys are located
towards our backs. To find the kidneys, we had to take out the large and small intestines. When
we did that we could see straight to the kidneys and the descending colon. My group happened
to cut off our reproductive system, however if we did have one it would have been located
towards the pigs back, behind the intestines of the pig. The only pig difference between humans
and pigs orientation is that the pig has different muscles. Other than that they are extremely
similar. Dissecting the pig was a good experience because we got to see what the human
anatomy looks like without dissecting an actual human.