Leanne Hilgart has dreamed of becoming a veterinarian, but she does not want to dissect a cat.
Dissection is careful, delicate intrusion into once living tissues to study their nature, placement, form and function. I certainly would not wish to have surgery performed on my cat, dog or any other animal by a veterinarian who had never done animal dissection.
There are indeed many so-called “alternative” methods of studying anatomy besides dissection, but they are actually supplementary methods of study rather than alternatives.
There is no completely satisfactory substitute for dissection in studying anatomy–for seeing how muscles fit together, for noting the placement and textures of normal and abnormal tissues, for understanding the placement and function of various ligaments and tendons, for seeing the arrangement and function of blood vessels, etc.
When it comes to the study of human anatomy it is certainly most desirable to use human cadavers for dissection.
There are not enough cadavers available for classes of human anatomy at all levels, however.
Certain animals such as frogs, fetal pigs, cats, rabbits and others may be reasonable substitutes for introductory level classes.
