Vegetarian being asked to dissect a cat !

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Oh geesh, classes have just started and ALREADY I have a problem.

You see I'm a vegetarian and my lab for Anatomy and Physiology has a part to it that is dissecting a cat. Problem is I have a respect for life and am a strict vegetarian (no leather, meat of any kind, etc.) This is part of the reason why I want to become a nurse - to help the world not hurt it. If I dissect a cat then I will be directly responsible for that cat having been killed. What should I do? The lab (as a whole) looks like it is one third of the final grade. I've already emailed the dean of students, and I'm waiting to hear back from him. I can't imagine that I'm the only one to ever have had this problem. Nursing schools weigh GPA very heavily. I want to kick ass.. any suggestions?

I can look in on others doing a dissection (as that is their own choice), but if I do it myself then I become responsible. Sigh.

Thank you in advance..

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As a animal lover I had a hard time when we had to do this in school but, in the end i did it because I had no choice. you are not directly responsible for the cat's death. they usually come from the humane society. I look at it like no one wanted this cat so it was put to sleep and came to help us learn. kinda like someone donating their body to science. Life is often filled with things we don't like or want to do. sometimes we just have to do it and move on.

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Specializes in Education, FP, LNC, Forensics, ED, OB.
Oh geesh, classes have just started and ALREADY I have a problem.

You see I'm a vegetarian and my lab for Anatomy and Physiology has a part to it that is dissecting a cat. Problem is I have a respect for life and am a strict vegetarian (no leather, meat of any kind, etc.) This is part of the reason why I want to become a nurse - to help the world not hurt it. If I dissect a cat then I will be directly responsible for that cat having been killed. What should I do? The lab (as a whole) looks like it is one third of the final grade. I've already emailed the dean of students, and I'm waiting to hear back from him. I can't imagine that I'm the only one to ever have had this problem. Nursing schools weigh GPA very heavily. I want to kick ass.. any suggestions?

I can look in on others doing a dissection (as that is their own choice), but if I do it myself then I become responsible. Sigh.

Thank you in advance..

You will not be responsible for the death of the animal. The animal is already deceased and is donated to the school/institution.

I salute you and your humanitarian ways toward the feline, but, you should not view this as compromising your beliefs.

Also, I do not believe the instructor/institution will take this into consideration as an excuse to get out of the dissection.

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Our policy is you do it or you have to drop the class and fullfill you science with another class. Now we all know you MUST have A&P to get into the nursing program. So I don't think you will have a choice. I love cats, I don't want to cut one up either but I'm not going refuse. All that would do is keep me out of the nursing program. I don't want to cut up a human either but I do not have a choice in that either.

You are in no way responsible for the death of the cat, other animals etc.. that are used in A&P. That doesn't even make good sense.

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Hey Roxburin

I'm sure you've figured out that you're just going to have to brace yourself and do it. The rationale of course is easy to see--you're going to be responsible for some small degree of practical biology. After all--as I tell Newbie Nurses--about 70% of what happens to your Pt is biology, about 20% in Nursing, about 10% is Doctoring. That implies you're going to be in charge of 90%.

I could suggest that dissecting a preserved cat is poor preparation. I was lucky because I worked for the first 16yrs of my career in a fairly big teaching hospital that had a residency in Pathology and where many many autopsies are done. (Knoxville Tn--where the real 'body farm' is located.) I found it easy to observe 'posts'. That is were you really see what a heart looks like with Cardiomyopathy, a liver with cirrhosis, a subdural hematoma, etc.

I recommend that approach. (Of course, I don't think I ever convinced any Nurses to DO it....)

Papaw John

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no, i'm sure you're not alone! luckily i haven't gone through that argument since high school and the frogs and lobsters. i agree with the posters who say you aren't responsible for the cat's death, after all the numbers of unwanted pets euthanised far exceeds the numbers of animals used in dissection. however, i'm a firm believer in personal dharma, everyone's set of personal moral that universe calls upon us to follow (ie, i have no problem with my hubby or friends eating meat, if the universe didn't want them to do it, they would know.) your dharma apparently tells you not to dissect the cat. if you feel responsible no-one can convince you it's ok. do all schools in your are require dissection? my a&p didn't, another local college requires a few small things only- like cow eyes. maybe you can transfer in credits from another college that is a better match? good luck!

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hey roxburin

i'm sure you've figured out that you're just going to have to brace yourself and do it. the rationale of course is easy to see--you're going to be responsible for some small degree of practical biology. after all--as i tell newbie nurses--about 70% of what happens to your pt is biology, about 20% in nursing, about 10% is doctoring. that implies you're going to be in charge of 90%.

i could suggest that dissecting a preserved cat is poor preparation. i was lucky because i worked for the first 16yrs of my career in a fairly big teaching hospital that had a residency in pathology and where many many autopsies are done. (knoxville tn--where the real 'body farm' is located.) i found it easy to observe 'posts'. that is were you really see what a heart looks like with cardiomyopathy, a liver with cirrhosis, a subdural hematoma, etc.

i recommend that approach. (of course, i don't think i ever convinced any nurses to do it....)

papaw john

i would love to observe! my a&p was at a college with a mortuary major, our instructor requested several times for us to be allowed to observe their labs, always a no-go.

(btw i find it ironic that this is in knoxville. you may or may not know that one of the early anatomist surgeons was named dr knox. infamous for dissecting bodies obtained by less than legal means.)

so far, i've learned by far the most in the or. i truly believe that dropping or rotations from nursing school curriculums (used to be several weeks instead of 1 or 2 days) was a big mistake! all nurses should scrub in and hold retractors and learn what pathology is all about...esp with a teaching surgeon. when you have them scrubbed and in the middle of surgery they have no choice but to answer all your questions about how the disease started and what he'll order post-op. i do encourage students to ask to shadow in the or even if they know they will never work there. the exposure is great! i think i heard of a hospital recently that is encouraging it's ortho floor nurses to observe total joint replacements to better understand their post-op role.

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Specializes in IMC, ICU, Telemetry.

While it may not convince you one way or the other on what you should do - you have to come to that decision on your own - knowing the facts will help you make a more informed choice. I don't know about your school - you'd need to check with them - but our school's dissection cats were doomed feral (wild) cats that were humanely euthanized. They were not someone's reliquished pet or a collared kitty that some family lost. They were extremely overpopulated feral cat colonies. They would have never been able to be tamed and adopted out.

Personally, I think it's better that these doomed creatures aid in the teaching of future healthcare workers than be ground up for cattle feed (which is a real destiny for many euthanized animals). It's a much more noble ending IMO.

Best wishes for whatever you decide to do - I really admire your convictions.

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I can well understand your revulsion at the idea of dissecting a cat. Of course, there are plenty of unsettling things that you will encounter in nursing that are unsettling for vegetarians as well as carnivores.

For years, I worked with a vegetarian physician. She could faint at the sight of blood being drawn. Yet, she had no problem stitching up fairly heinous wounds. She had no problem burning off genital warts. She had no problem cutting into hemorrhoids. No problem looking at exposed muscle tissue.

Nursing and medicine in general deals with the biology of human life and the processes of disease and injury. There is nothing very pretty about disease and injury to human flesh. There is much that is unsavory and hideous. Even a good birth is bloody and fleshy.

When I was a kid, I recall my cousin who was majoring in biology bringing home a cat carcass in a bag. Looked horrible.

Unfortunately, biology has a lot to do with biology.

I don't think there is any way around having to dissect the cat.

Personally, I would rather study plants. I grow a lot of exotic indoor plants and I find them fascinating.

But I make my living dealing with the ailments of the flesh. Human beings are made of flesh and blood, just like the cat.

Do you think that what you might gain from the study of flesh and blood outweighs your natural aversion?

Marsha Faizi

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I should have added that I also admire your conviction to help humankind. I do admire that.

But helping is not pretty. There are not always nice outcomes to helping. Helping often involves the unsavory.

I hope that you can overcome the cat hurdle. Because that is all that it is -- a hurdle.

I know how you feel. I instinctively brake to avoid hitting squirrels or rabbits or birds with my car. I hate the thought of anyone or anything being killed, even if I do eat meat. If I had to kill my own meat to live, I would have a problem with it. I am that much of a hypocrite.

You are not responsible for the death of the cat that you will dissect.

I do hope that you continue with your nursing program.

Marsha Faizi

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Oh I know how you feel. This was why I took the A&P that didn't dissect animals. Is there another class that you can take? Quite a few professors will say that either you dissect or you will fail. Good luck in your decision. I know it is a hard one. I have been there and hope I never have to be there again.

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I have been there myself (vegan), In my situation it was a sheep's brain. I was allowed to abstain from it due to personal beliefs. I am fairly confident that you will be granted a "hands off experience" I told my instructor that it is a shame that there is not enough donated human organs for use in dissection (after all we are in school to learn how to treat human beings) because then at least there was consent. I asked to see the sheep's hoof print on the consent form! Don't worry. good luck let me know what happens. colleen

Oh geesh, classes have just started and ALREADY I have a problem.

You see I'm a vegetarian and my lab for Anatomy and Physiology has a part to it that is dissecting a cat. Problem is I have a respect for life and am a strict vegetarian (no leather, meat of any kind, etc.) This is part of the reason why I want to become a nurse - to help the world not hurt it. If I dissect a cat then I will be directly responsible for that cat having been killed. What should I do? The lab (as a whole) looks like it is one third of the final grade. I've already emailed the dean of students, and I'm waiting to hear back from him. I can't imagine that I'm the only one to ever have had this problem. Nursing schools weigh GPA very heavily. I want to kick ass.. any suggestions?

I can look in on others doing a dissection (as that is their own choice), but if I do it myself then I become responsible. Sigh.

Thank you in advance..

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