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Dog · Bone · Thoracic limb

Scapula

A flat triangular blade with a spine dividing the supraspinous from the infraspinous fossa, an acromion at the spine's lower end, and a glenoid cavity for the humerus.

System
Bone
Region
Thoracic limb
Sides
Paired: left and right
Named parts
12

Where it runs from and to

A muscle is told apart from its neighbours by what it takes hold of at each end, which is also what decides what it does when it shortens.

Action
A flat triangular blade with a spine dividing the supraspinous from the infraspinous fossa, an acromion at the spine's lower end, and a glenoid cavity for the humerus.

Written for Vetomica in its own words from the standard reference anatomy of the dog; the books it was checked against are listed below.

Named parts

What to look for on the bone, and what each part is called in the Nomina Anatomica Veterinaria.

Lateral surface

Spine of the scapulaSpina scapulae
The ridge down the lateral surface that divides the two fossae and is felt through the skin.Miller 2020, p. 298
Supraspinous fossaFossa supraspinata
The hollow in front of the spine, filled by the supraspinatus.Miller 2020, p. 299
Infraspinous fossaFossa infraspinata
The larger hollow behind the spine, filled by the infraspinatus.Miller 2020, p. 299

Costal surface

Subscapular fossaFossa subscapularis
The shallow costal face that lies against the chest wall and carries the subscapularis.Miller 2020, p. 299

Borders and angles

Scapular notchIncisura scapulae
The step in the cranial border just above the shoulder joint.Miller 2020, p. 299
Cranial angleAngulus cranialis
The upper front corner, where the thin cranial border meets the thick dorsal border.Miller 2020, p. 300
Caudal angleAngulus caudalis
The upper rear corner; the teres major arises here and on the border below it.Miller 2020, p. 300
Ventral angleAngulus ventralis
The expanded lower end that carries the joint surface; the part that matters clinically.Miller 2020, p. 300

Shoulder end

Glenoid cavityCavitas glenoidalis
The shallow socket that takes the head of the humerus.Miller 2020, p. 300
Supraglenoid tuberosityTuberculum supraglenoidale
The largest tuberosity of the bone, in front of the socket; the biceps tendon arises from it.Miller 2020, p. 300
Coracoid processProcessus coracoideus
The small beak on the medial side of that tuberosity, where the coracobrachialis arises.Miller 2020, p. 300
Infraglenoid tubercleTuberculum infraglenoidale
The roughening behind the socket, where the long head of the triceps and the teres minor take hold.Miller 2020, p. 299

What it meets

Lateral thoracic wall over ribs 1-5; articulates with humerus.

Bones it articulates with

Joints it forms

  • Shoulder joint

Muscles and ligaments that take hold of it

  • Serratus ventralis
  • Rhomboideus
  • Supraspinatus
  • Infraspinatus

Measured on the specimen

What the scapula is in contact with in the model itself, with the share of the other structure’s surface it covers. A contact is not always a joint: bones that simply lie against one another are in this list too.

Measured on the left side.

Terminology

English
Scapula
Latin (NAV)
Scapula
Status
A valid term in the Nomina Anatomica Veterinaria

References

Where to read this structure in full, and where the named parts above were read.

  • Miller 2020Miller 2020, ch. 4 The Skeleton, Scapula, PDF p. 296
  • König & Liebich 2020skeleton of the thoracic limb, p. 171-184
  • Dyce 2017ch. 16 Forelimb of the Dog and Cat, p. 464 (clavicle p. 69)
  • NAV 2017Osteologia