Sitting at the very back of the Pitt Art Gallery was a free-standing installation which featured a freeze-dried pregnant cat.

The cat’s body was tied to a tray containing dissecting tools. Behind the tray were some glass jars, a vacuum pump, a can of cat food, a roll of toilet paper and a couple of empty beer bottles.

The cat body used in this installation started out as a feral cat living in a city. While it was pregnant, it was captured by animal control officers who took it to an animal shelter where it was later euthanized. The animal shelter then sold the dead cat to an educational supply company which converted its body into this catalogue item:

Cat. Embalmed. Pregnant. 18 inches and up. Triple injected. Each specimen is full-sized and guaranteed to be thoroughly preserved and completely injected (except for appendicular veins which may not be entirely filled because of valve closures). Plastic bags and waterproof student name tags are furnished free with each cat. US$35 (subject to availability).

The following picture of the cat on the dissecting table shows the strings used to spread out its dead body and a syringe that was used to moisten tissues during the dissection.

Below is a close-up of two fetal kittens with their paws resting on their heads.

Their lower bodies are still tucked inside the uterus.