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The Chicken Thread

Super Universe

Super Universe

Defender of God
Why does a chicken's body flop around after it's head has been severed?

Why does a snake's body still twist about after it has been cut from the head?
 
Fluffy

Fluffy

A fool
In the case of the chicken, I would assume because the decapitation failed to fully remove the brain stem.

This is certainly the case here if its not a hoax.
 
Buttercup

Buttercup

Veteran Member
CAUTION: Postmortem photographs. DO NOT view if squeamish!



chicken.jpg
 
Booko

Booko

Deviled Hen
Hm, there's a Moroccan cornish game hen dish this makes me thing about...dinner for tomorrow!
 
Nanda

Nanda

Polyanna
Super Universe said:
Why does a chicken's body flop around after it's head has been severed?
Click to expand...

Because most of a chicken's reflex actions are controlled by the brain stem - the chicken runs around because, while the head has been severed, enough of the brain stem remains to control its motor skills. The chicken eventually dies from loss of blood, but in certain rare cases, where the carotid artery is not severed, the chicken can continue to live for an indefinite amount of time without its head. See Mike the Headless Chicken.

Why does a snake's body still twist about after it has been cut from the head?
Click to expand...

I'm going to guess for similar reasons.
 
cardero

cardero

Citizen Mod
Sunstone said:
Because their soul is wrestling to escape from their dying body?
Click to expand...
Close, but I suspect the soul has already left the theater and this is just biological Nature taking over just as I believe that the movement in a mother's womb is not subjected to ensoulment but that the soul arrives during birth (or some time after).
 
Booko

Booko

Deviled Hen
cardero said:
Close, but I suspect the soul has already left the theater and this is just biological Nature taking over just as I believe that the movement in a mother's womb is not subjected to ensoulment but that the soul arrives during birth (or some time after).
Click to expand...

We pithed frogs in biology many years ago. They wiggled quite a bit afterwards as well. One of the things we did during dissection was to put a couple of drops of coffee on one area, to watch the residual nervous activity increase from the caffeine.

It takes a while for the body's chemical factory to shut down entirely. You should talk to someone who's worked in a morgue -- they can tell you some terribly funny stories about dead bodies twitching, sometimes to the point of nearly sitting up.
 
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