What do you during your last pork chop dinner and the Bob Jones forensics students have in common? You both spent a considerable time cutting up pigs.

In order to learn more about autopsies and pathologists, Mrs. Sewell’s and Mrs. Baker’s forensics students got a chance to perform their very own fetal pig autopsy.

Their subjects: Penny the Pig and his siblings.

“Penny was a very kind soul,” comments one of his pathologists Joylyn Bukovac, “with really squishy intestines.”

Following a careful set of instructions, students had to open the pigs, remove all their organs, carefully weigh and measure everything, and finally stitch Penny’s poor family back together.

For bonus points, students could also try their hand at removing the brains.

“Her head will forever be open to the world,” says Bukovac tearfully.

I hate to SWINE, but the smell coming from the forensics lab was enough to knock out a small bear. But forensics students toughened up, broke out the Vics, and powered through it.

In the end, it was quite the learning experience. Students stitched back up their piglets feeling as if they had really gained something—whether it was forensic knowledge or an interesting stench, we’ll never know.

We all can rest assured that Penny and her friends are in a better place.

“May she ever rest in pieces.”