"Flying Tadpole" wrote:
FYI

Toads used to be pithed for frankensteinian biology experiments,
particularly dealing with hearts and nervous systems. Take one
live toad, preferably a cane toad, hold firmly by the back legs
so that it doesn't fly across the laboratory on the up swing,
swing around one's head then bring it down hard so that the head
cracks against the edge of the laboratory bench (not so hard that
its head snaps off and flies across the laboratory). Toad should
be unconscious or dead after that. Ignore movement. Sever the
backbone at the neck then with a probe push up the spinal nerve
conduit and pulp the spinal nerve and the cerebellum. Ignore
movement while doing so. Dissect out the heart, suspend between
supports, flood with saline and apply various stimulants. Watch
it beat. dissect out other bits of nerve and muscle, apply
electrodes, charge, watch responses.

The most revolting thing I was forced to do as an innocent
student.

We had to bring in our own frogs for that class. My partner brought in a
dead, dry, perfectly flattened sample of road kill. We had a heck of a time
making the abdominal cut on that sucker and commenced giggling...our biology
teacher was pithed.

Seahag