The Fetal Pig: Muscular System
Procedures:
1. Massage your pig thoroughly to loosen the underlying muscles.
Be sure that the joints in the fore/hind limbs are especially
pliable.
2. Tuft up the skin along the mid-dorsal area longitudinally.
3. Make a “V” shaped incision at the superior end of the tufted
ridge (pointing towards the head at the base of the neck).
4. With your blade up, insert the tip of the scalpel into the tuft and begin
exposing the muscle moving back towards the tail.
5. Carefully remove the skin laterally. Cut any fascia (connective tissue binding the
skin to muscle or muscle to muscle) with the tip of the scalpel.
6. Remove all skin from the torso, legs (to the knees and elbows) and neck.
7. If any fat is apparent, carefully remove.
8. Draw the following views of the muscular system of the pig:
- Dorsal
- Ventral
- Lateral
Label the following on the drawings:
Trapezius, latissimus dorsi, external oblique, gluteus medius, fasciae latae,
biceps femoris, gastrocnemius, triceps brachii
Muscular System Laboratory Report Requirements:
I.
Title Page- Descriptive name of lab, drawing or sketch, group members’
names, date, period.
II.
Terms- origin, insertion, action, fascia
III.
Drawings- as described above. Colored and labeled to the right.
IV.
Descriptive table of the origin, insertion, and action of each muscle group
labeled in the drawings (look carefully for any differences between the pig
and human!)
V.
Summary questions- answer with complete sentences; be detailed in your
response!
1. Compare the muscles of the pig to those of a human. (Hint: Consider
that pigs are quadrapedal (walk on four legs) while humans are bipedal
(upright on two legs). Skeletal systems are different as are the points of
attachments for muscles to bones. The muscles of the neck are quite
different.)
2. Why were the muscles of the fetal pig difficult to identify?