Clitoris - in Other Animals - in Cats, Sheep, and Mice

In Cats, Sheep, and Mice

Researchers studying the peripheral and central afferent pathways from the feline clitoris concluded that "Afferent neurons projecting to the clitoris of the cat were identified by WGA-HRP tracing in the S1 and S2 dorsal root ganglia. An average of 433 cells were identified on each side of the animal. 85 percent and 15 percent of the labeled cells were located in the S1 and S2 dorsal root ganglia, respectively. The average cross sectional area of clitoral afferent neuron profiles was 1.479±627 μm2." They also stated that light "constant pressure on the clitoris produced an initial burst of single unit firing (maximum frequencies 170–255 Hz) followed by rapid adaptation and a sustained firing (maximum 40 Hz), which was maintained during the stimulation. Tonic firing increased to an average maximum of 145 Hz at 6–8 g/mm2 pressure" and "hese results indicate that the clitoris is innervated by mechano-sensitive myelinated afferent fibers in the pudental nerve which project centrally to the region of the dorsal commissure in the L7-S1 spinal cord".

The external phenotype and reproductive behavior of 21 freemartin sheep and two male pseudohermaphrodite sheep were recorded with the aim of identifying any characteristics that could predict a failure to breed. Among things recorded were the size and shape of the vulva and clitoris, the length of the vagina, the size of the teats, the presence or absence of inguinal gonads, and the ultrasonographic characteristics of the inguinal gonads: "A subjective assessment of the masculinity of each animal's body form was also made, and its behavioural responses to a virile ram and to an oestrus ewe were recorded. A number of physical and behavioural abnormalities were detected but the only consistent finding in all 23 animals was a short vagina which varied in length from 3.1 to 7.0 cm, compared with 10 to 14 cm in normal animals."

In a study documenting the clitoral structure of mice, it was found that the mouse perineal urethra is surrounded by erectile tissue forming the bulbs of the clitoris, similar to the anatomy of human females: "In the mouse, as in human females, tissue organization in the corpora cavernosa of the clitoris is essentially similar to that of the penis except for the absence of a subalbugineal layer interposed between the tunica albuginea and the erectile tissue."

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