KEY POINTS

The skeleul system provides a supporting framework for the body, a firm base to which the muscles of locomotion are attached, and protects the softer tissues enclosed within the framework.

■ The skeleton can be considered to be made up of three parts:

1. Axial skeleton, forming the central axis of the animal and comprising the skull, vertebral column and the rib cage

2. Appendicular skeleton, comprising the fore and hind limbs and the limb girdles which attach them to the body

3. Splanchnic skeleton, which in the dog and cat consists only of the os penis found within the soft tissues of the penis.

Each part of the skeleton consists of many bones, each of which plays an imporunt part in the function of the skeleul system.

Bones are covered in 'lumps, bumps and holes’. Each has a specific descriptive name and a function which contributes to movement, i.e. muscle atuchment. or to ma∣nuining the health of the tissue, i.e. blood or nerve supply.

■ Bones are linked together by means of joints.

Joints can be classified according to the type of tissue from which they are made,e.g. fibrous, cartilaginous or synovial joints, or according to the type of movements they allow, e.g. hinge or gliding joints.