Despite activists' protests, students to continue dissecting cats
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MCMINNVILLE, Ore. - Following a McMinnville school board's decision, students will continue to dissect cats in advanced biology classes.
Animal rights groups have voiced opposition to the practice but their complaints were overruled by the school board. Activists said there were other ways to teach the same concepts without using animals.
Antoinette Marcel with the Yamhill County Cat Coalition said she disagrees with the decision.
"Students in McMinnville have been disrespecting cats," she said, claiming students have been mocking their dissection exercises in Facebook posts. "And the board did not even want to address that, didn't want to mention it. I don't find that acceptable," Marcel said.
Marcel told the Willamette Week newspaper that some students traded photos of the cat's bodies and she has some of the pictures.
The issue prompted some of the most vigorous commenting seen so far on the KATU Facebook page, with over 800 comments posted as of Tuesday morning.
it's against the law in Oregon to kill cats in gas chambers because of the pain and suffering it causes... so why can these people use cats that have been killed this way.   What does this say to these kids.... This isn't "road kill"  these are cats who are hideously killed to teach kids... what????  This is more than disgusting... this teaches these kids cruelty is ok... even interesting....................ugh   where are the parents???
This is disgusting and so is anyone who thinks this is okay. These are animals that USED to be pets, given by the shelter. This leads to criminals stealing pets or turning into the middle men to sell these to the McMinnville School District. Hey, MMV, where are you? The 1800's? No wonder your backwards community is going downhill. Get with the program and learn compassion.Â
I'd prefer to see them use plastic models, or at least non-domesticated animals.
I wonder how they'll respond to the latest report: cats may be killing over 20 *billion* animals a year in the U.S. alone. The affect on birds may be upwards of 15% of the total population.
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Do whatever you want with 'em!
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"And, it seems, the small rodents taken by felines aren't Norway rats or apartment vermin, but native rodent species such as meadow voles and chipmunks, he added."
Dissecting a cat in high school actually showed me I was not cut out for the medical profession. I wasn't sick to my stomach or anything like that, I just didn't react well emotionally to dissecting a cat. The way I reacted gave me reason to think about how I would react to dissecting a human cadaver in med school. I gave up the dream of being a doctor (or vet) at that point.
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As I recall, that cats we used were road kill, etc. It's not like they were being put down just so we could dissect them.
we were required to do this in my Satanology class
So long as they're already dead...
Yamhill County Cat Coalition
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Some people have nothing to do...
We also the dissection of human cadavers, do we not?
 @Torino_v2 they're already dead   not gassed to death while they are still alive and healthy
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 @Torino_v2 Eww...I remember doing that.
I don't eat mushrooms either.
If you'd done it, you'd know why.
I heart dogs.
 @old_dollor  I heart dawgs 2
It's not like they are hand-picked cats to be used for dissection. They're donated by the humane society or vet clinics.
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Although, I will say. I'm not sure what the students are learning from dissecting any animals unless they plan on being vets.
 @Sarbar the humane society is breaking the law by accepting these creatures who have been illegally and cruelly killed......
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 @Sarbar Gets them over being squeamish for when they decide to go to medical school, or become a serial killer. Not being squeamish is a very important aspect of both professions.
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:-P
Now that is a cat lady.
 @sortbait not a cat lady... wouldn't want people have that done to them either.... or any other animal...... the gas chambers take 20 minutes and literally suck out their insides..... are you kiddin???
 @sortbait Careful, dude...she'll scratch out your beady little eyes!!! ;-)
Crime scene clean up schools use pigs.
 @MrAchilles Why does that sound ironic...?
Don't tell our little piggy posters on here! LOL!!
I agree. She puts me into mind one of those crazy cat hoarders my mother watches on Animal Planet.
If it's not cats, it's frogs.
 @katufanman Kermit's mom went that way...
@Mikey @katufanman She croaked first, though.
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 @James Gnau no difference
A good friend of mine became a great vet with this kind of learning! These cats are already dead people!! This world is getting so....CRAZY........
@BlessedLife cats are dead people? I knew there was something wrong with my cat. He looks at me kinda crazy sometimes... CRAP, he's doing it now!
 Just kidding, I agree with you 100%.How do you learn without the real thing?
 @iamtroglodite@yahoo.com  @BlessedLife LMAO!!!
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"No! We no see your cat
No more ask please!
Thank you!"
 The cats are dead, donated from animal shelters that have put them down. What the hell is wrong with these supposedly caring people. This is how young people learn. These "activists" should be out in the neighborhoods spreading the word to sterilize their pets, not whining about a dead cat being used for educational purposes.
I just read a report that cats are the number one threat to US wildlife (birds, small mammals). So really, this is saving lives of other animals. You can't win.
Crazy cat ladies across the world would disagree.
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On a related note, New Zealand is looking at banning cats due to their threat to wildlife.
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Maybe we should dissect crazy people, too.
Boy am I on a roll today.. can't spell, can't use proper words.. and now I can't reply to the correct response. Damn you, fingers! Danm uyo ti ehll!
@JGalt lol!
Is the new trend to be offended by everything and anything? Is it fun to be be like that? I should give it a try.
Please don't Harry we have enough of them running around.
Did anyone ask the cats how they felt about it? I didn't here them speek out. What about the frogs, and the pigglets we used when we were in school. someone always has to have their panties in a twist about something
@Pvpbw piglets? Damn, no wonder I failed the class. I thought it was lunch!
 @Pvpbw I am thinking the cats being already dead due to lazy pet owners not spading their cats likely did not really care. Only the PETA morons are getting anything in a bunch about it...They would rather see tax dollars spent to cook the kitties bodies into dust.