My anatomy students learn the heart every year which ends with the dissection of a preserved sheep heart.  This year, a hunter friend brought me a fresh deer heart which I was able to dissect in front of the class to show my students how the deer heart compared to the sheep heart.   There isn’t much difference, except for the size, and of course, the amount of blood.

I can also store the fresh heart in the freezer until I’m ready to share it with my students.

This photo album shows images of an elk heart.

In the larger fresh heart, the interventricular sulcus is more clearly visible. Students can also compare the texture of the preserved heart to a fresh one. Preserved hearts tend to be rubbery and tough. If you don’t have a hunter friend to bring you heart, you can also call a local butcher and get a cow or pig heart.