Where it is
On the chest, from the sternum to the humerus; from the side their edge shows below the thorax.
- Layer
- Muscles
- System
- Muscles
- Region
- Trunk
What it is and what it does
Extrinsic muscles that fasten the limb to the sternum. The superficial pectorals insert on the crest of the greater tubercle of the humerus and support the limb, pulling it inward; the deep pectoral, the heaviest muscle of the forelimb in the greyhound, pulls the trunk forward over the supporting limb and extends the shoulder.
Worth remembering
The deep pectoral pulls the trunk forward over the leg planted on the ground; in the greyhound it is the heaviest muscle of the front leg.
Names
- Latin term: musculi pectorales.
- In Romanian: Pectoralii (Romanian page).