If you go back in time and look at the Da Vinci sketches of the human anatomy there is a very visceral and at the same time beautiful look of them.

I dissected a cat in Anatomy and was not thrilled about it. The teacher explained to us that it was not a mandatory 'hands on' part of the class but she expected people to watch.

She also told us to name our cats and to treat them with dignity and respect, for they were there to teach us and if we looked at them with that kind of honor, we would be able to get thru that part of the course.

Our cat was named Bubbles and to this day, when I see the innards of animal or human, I flip back to that cat and appreciate how and what I was able to to take away from those classes and I can really say that it helped me really
honor and respect a very tough and challenging part of my education.

Had those animals just been killed and dumped or cremated I would have never been able to have come away with the knowledge I have of the human body, muscles and the skeletal structures.

The Amerinds had/have a wonderful ideal when it comes to animals they killed for food and fur.

They would only take the animals they needed and prayed over the bodies and honored their lives, deaths and what they left behind.

I think we can all learn from that ideal.