U.S. shoppers hopping mad over frog dissection kit

[Tim]

NEW YORK (Reuters) - On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me ... a frog dissection kit?
Shoppers at upscale U.S. menswear and accessory store Jack Spade in Manhattan's trendy SoHo district were hopping mad to see frog dissection kits selling alongside $775 leather file cases and $145 Italian calfskin passport holders.
The $40 kit came in a cloth bag complete with a vacuum-sealed formaldehyde-treated frog, scissors, magnifying glass, forceps, probing sticks, ruler, instruction booklet on how to explore the animal's innards, and a moist towelette.
After a barrage of complaints from shoppers and animal activists, the store said Tuesday that it had cleared its shelves of the kits and would no longer offer them.

"We're going to issue an apology," said company spokesman Mordechai Rubinstein.
"The intent was to celebrate science and biology, present something educational for children and adults," he said. "Jack Spade doesn't support the unethical treatment of animals."
Animal campaign group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said it wrote to the company last week after receiving complaints about the product.
"We were shocked to discover that the dissection kit contains the carcass of a real frog," said spokesman Michael McGraw.
The Jack Spade store said it only sold a handful of the kits before ditching the idea.

I swear, people are so freaken uptight these days. There was a "barrage" of complaints from shoppers and animal rights activists???? WTF, they have a problem with a frog used for learning purposes but didn't notice the $775 leather file cases and $145 Italian calfskin passport holders next to it. Maybe if it was sold as a doit yourself frogskin wallet kit, then it would have been ok. God forbid some kid might just become a doctor someday because they were introduced to science at a young age.

 

[Peter Parka]

If that was in Australia, it would be great because of their cane toad problem.

 

[TheOriginalJames]

hahaha Along side of Tims point, which made me almost spit out Dr Pepper after realizing it... The frog is ALREADY DEAD, how is it unethical to open it up and explore the innards?!

 

[Charmer]

Yea, when I was younger, no parents complained about their kids dissecting frogs in school. This kit would be perfect for home-schooled kids or kids who want to learn more about science on their own time.