NYC has dealt with more than its fair share of severed (and sometimes decorative) goat's heads littered throughout our parks. But we thankfully haven't had to deal with what's stored inside those heads, unlike the residents of the town of Gouverneur, New York, who are currently dealing with a very brainy mystery.
According to North County Now, police found nine animal brains by a railroad crossing in St. Lawrence County this week. No one is entirely sure where they came from, or from what animal. Some have speculated they could be sheep's brains (they are "commonly used in dissection laboratories" according to Alisa Woods, an assistant professor of chemistry and biomolecular science at Clarkson University), although one local veterinarian thinks they may be dogs' brains: "In examining the specimen, weighing and measuring…it weighed 70 grams, which is consistent with a dog, beagle-sized brain," Dr. Timothy Monroe said.
He added that the brains had been professionally removed and preserved, and were in perfect condition: "You have to appreciate when you remove a brain from a skull, which is made of bone, you have to cut the bone all the way around. This had not been damaged, or nicked, or cut in its removal," Monroe said. "I supposed it was somebody’s collection that had outlived its usefulness and been disposed of."
Yes. Somebody's collection. Of dog brains. Yes.
