Acute pancreatitis is a disease still not fully understood. Early pathophysiologic event escape clinical observation because patients typically present only some time after the acute onset of the disease. Also, many ethiologic factors can lead to acute pancreatitis and the clinical course can range from mild, self-limiting to severe and life- threatening. Therefore, experimental models are necessary for any research into early acute pancreatitis. In accordance with the varying clinical picture of acute pancreatitis, many different model exist. In this article, we describe the most commonly used models and show their advantages and disadvantages.