Weismann was aware of the limitations of this experiment, and made it clear that he embarked on the experiment precisely because, at the time, there were many claims of animals inheriting mutilations (he refers to a claim regarding a cat that had lost its tail having numerous tail-less offspring).
Weismann era consciente das limitacións deste experimento, e deixou claro que realizou o experimento precisamente porque, daquela, había moitos que afirmaban que era posible a herdanza de mutilacións nos animais (unha destas afirmacións era que un gato que perdera o seu rabo tivera numerosos fillos sen rabo).