SOURCES OF SPECIMENS VERBIAGE

*Any requests for additional information beyond the contents of this document, must be referred to Phebe Bowman.

GENERAL NON-SPECIFIC SPECIMEN SOURCE QUESTIONS

Many of the specimens Carolina offers for dissection are products of the food industry.
- For example, fetal pigs, sheep and cow materials, fish, crayfish, and frogs are all products of the food industry.
Fetal pigs are stillborn. They would normally be a waste by-product, but we preserve them for educational purposes.
Sheep and cow materials come from animals slaughtered for meat.
Fish, including dogfish sharks, come from commercial fishing interests and would normally have been used for human consumption.
The bullfrogs and grass frogs we preserve come from agricultural sources and would have been sold for frog legs.
The cats and dogs we preserve for dissection come from governmentally operated or regulated humane shelters.
- They are dead when we receive them, having been humanely euthanized at the shelters under their policies and on their schedules.
- We have no involvement in their euthanization or the shelter decisions to euthanize or not.
- We repurpose these humanely euthanized animals for educational use rather than having them simply go to waste in landfills.
The humane treatment of all animals, and the sustainability of all animal populations, both wild or domesticated, are very important to Carolina and we strictly adhere to all government regulations and recommendations.

Shelter Information

Sometimes we are asked to provide the names of specific shelters from which we procure animals.

We do not provide information about the specific shelters that work with us.
Please make it clear to them that we will not provide specific shelter names.
As is typical with companies, we hold our supplier list as confidential.

Supplier Information

Sometimes we are asked to provide the names of specific companies from which we get animals.

We do not provide specific source information. Our supplier list is confidential. This applies to any specimens about which we are asked.
For example:
Frog collectors’ names, sheep farms’ names, slaughterhouse names, etc., Under no circumstances do we provide that information.

SPECIMEN SPECIFIC INFORMATION

CATS AND DOGS

All cat and dog specimens that we preserve come from governmentally operated or regulated shelters.
They are euthanized at the shelters under their communities’ policies, procedures, and schedules.
They are already dead when we receive them.
We provide them for educational use rather than their simply being wasted.

Note: If asked about cats with no mention of dogs, or vice-versa, do not mention the other.

FETAL PIGS

The fetal pigs that Carolina preserves and sells for dissection are by-products of the food industry, i.e. pork production.
The pigs we sell were stillborn, a common occurrence among pigs.
As there is no market for fetal pigs in the food industry, we procure some of the fetal or stillborn pigs for diversion to educational use rather than being wasted.

DOGFISH SHARKS

The dogfish sharks that Carolina preserves for dissection (normally Squalus acanthias) are obtained from commercial fishing sources.
The U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service enforces sustainability by monitoring populations and establishing fishing grounds and quotas each year.
The commercial fishing industry catches the dogfish for the human food market until the season’s quotas are met.
We purchase a very small portion of the catch.
We don’t get any dogfish from outside the established quotas.

Note: Oftentimes the expressed concern is about sustainability, as in some parts of the oceans dogfish shark populations are threatened. That we get dogfish only from managed fishing grounds with quotas shows our commitment to sustainability.

SHEEP BRAINS / HEARTS / PLUCK

Sheep organs are by-products of the food industry.
They come from sheep that have been slaughtered for the human food market.
We convert waste by-products to materials for educational use.

COW ORGANS

We procure cow organs for dissection from food industry sources. They are by-products of beef production. These organs are taken from cattle that have been slaughtered for the human food market.

RABBITS

The rabbits we preserve are farm raised. They are obtained from responsible USDA-regulated commercial rabbit breeders. They would have been destined for food use had we not diverted them for educational use.

RABBITS

FROGS

We sell grass frogs and bullfrogs for dissection. Both are products of the food industry. The grass frogs have flourished in formerly arid areas that are now irrigated for agriculture crops, and they are collected for the food industry for frog legs. Most bullfrogs are farm raised, also for frog legs. We procure only a very small percentage of these frogs. We only preserve these abundant frogs harvested for the food market. Carolina practices humane treatment of animals, and we source our materials in a sustainable fashion.

Note: Often the concern regarding frogs is the claim of some animal activists that biological supply houses are decimating frog populations. The fact that we only use agriculturally-derived frogs refutes that claim.

RATS

The rats we preserve come from reputable breeders and are grown primarily for the pet food market.

CRAYFISH

The crayfish we preserve are products of the food industry. They come from farmers who cultivate crayfish for the human food market. We purchase some of these for educational purposes.

STARFISH

Starfish come from areas where they prey upon shellfish beds. They are removed by divers to prevent the destruction of the shellfish beds.

BEES

The dried bees are from domestic hives. They are collected as bees die off in the hives.

EARTHWORMS

Our preserved earthworms are farm raised. They are raised for a variety of purposes, including for fishing bait.

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