Here’s a roundup of this week’s biggest news stories related to animal research — all the recent media coverage you need to know right now to be the most effective activist for animals in labs.
Ridglan Farms and Marshall BioResources Among Animal Welfare Elite, Per Industry
Rise for Animals, 10/31/2024
As we’ve been covering, Ridglan Farms and Marshall BioResources — the U.S.’s largest breeders of dogs for experimentation — are coming under increasing fire for their unethical and even criminal practices.
According to the animal research industry itself, though, both Ridglan and Marshall are positive animal welfare standouts. No joke. 📰 Full Story →
Doctors Sue Defense Department for Withholding Documents About Deadly Training Exercises on Animals
PCRM, 10/23/2024
“A medical ethics group filed a federal lawsuit [] against the Department of Defense and its health agency for failing to hand over documents related to medical training exercises in which animals are being killed.”
“ . . . doctors being trained at four military facilities . . . perform invasive procedures on pigs, a violation of the department’s own policy and a practice out of step with the vast majority of medical centers nationwide . . . Records previously obtained by [PCRM] reveal that NMCP residents stab pigs’ hearts to stimulate trauma and eviscerate the animals’ bowels.”
“Scientific studies — including many conducted by the U.S., Canadian, and Israeli militaries — reveal that medical training models based on human anatomy are as good or better than animals for learning lifesaving skills, building confidence, and preparing military doctors for battlefield stress.” 📰 Full Story →
Why Is the U.S. So Behind on Animal Welfare?
Peter Singer, 10/26/2024
“It isn’t only hens and pigs who have better lives in Europe than in the U.S. It is not permitted to test cosmetics on animals in the E.U., nor to import cosmetics that have been tested on animals. There are no such prohibitions in the U.S. and no one knows how many such experiments are conducted and what kinds are done. That’s because the U.S. Animal Welfare Act, which gives the Department of Agriculture authority to regulate research on animals, specifically denies the Department authority to regulate research on rats, mice, and birds, who make up over 99% of all vertebrate animals used in U.S. experiments.”
“[] I suggest that the U.S. is so far behind the E.U. on animal welfare, not because Americans care less about animals than Europeans, but because the U.S. political system is less democratic than Europe’s parliamentary system. In most parliamentary democracies, political parties are stronger and individual lawmakers do not need to raise large amounts of money to get re-elected. Money and lobbying have far greater influence in U.S. politics.” 📰 Full Story →
Key Research Beagle Breeder Faces Potential Criminal Probe
Meredith Wadman, 10/28/2024
“Just two research beagle breeding facilities remain in the U.S.: Ridglan and the much larger Marshall Farms….”
“Ridglan has been ‘flying under the radar for decades,’ . . . The facility first came under public scrutiny after animal activists entered a building there one night in April 2017 and took [] graphic video footage….” 📰 Full Story →
Charles River Shipments of Research Monkeys to Canada Spark a Probe
Ed Silverman, 10/28/2024
“A charter company working for Charles River Laboratories, one of the largest U.S. clinical research organizations, was recently fined by Canadian authorities for improperly shipping long-tailed macaques into the country, and the flights have now prompted a probe by officials who oversee an international treaty governing endangered species.”
“A spokesperson for Charles River Laboratories did not answer questions about the flights, which transported nearly 2,000 macaques worth an estimated $40 million. But the incident is focusing renewed attention on the company….”
“Canadian authorities, meanwhile, do not seem poised to take further action, though. The Canadian Transportation Agency, in fact, recently approved a SkyTaxi flight next month from Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to Canada on behalf of Charles River . . . ‘Canada continues to enable Charles River to circumvent U.S. restrictions by allowing it to import thousands of these monkeys,’….” 📰 Full Story →
Be a Smart Chimpanzee & Lead Animals to Escape a Hellish Lab in this Horror Game
Rita Hou, 10/24/2024
“Independent developer THE BROTHERHOOD studio has revealed its next title, Animal Use Protocol. In this 3D first-person survival horror, you play an intelligent chimpanzee leading a group of experimental animals to escape a nightmare lab.”
“ . . . the reveal trailer offers a closer look at Penn, who appears with a realistic portrait, along with [his] rat companion Trip sitting on the shoulder. As the camera moves, one and another caged lab animals come into view, desperately looking at you in the hope of escaping this hellish place. Can you lead them out here [sic]?” 📰 Full Story →
Animal Legal Defense Fund Facilitates Release of Two Pigs from Research Lab
Animal Legal Defense Fund, 10/30/2024
“The Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) announced it has helped facilitate the legal release of two Gottingen pigs from an undisclosed research lab to Ferdinand and Friends, a reputable sanctuary in Jacumba, California.”
“Gottingen pigs are specifically bred for use in biomedical research, engineered to be small, compliant, docile pigs with good ear veins, which make them easier for researchers to experiment on. Their size makes them more convenient to fit into small laboratory cages, and their sweet and gentle nature is exploited to subject them to invasive and often painful procedures, much like beagle dogs. Sanctuary staff have reported that Gottingen pigs don’t even squeal when getting vaccinations — a reaction that is unlike other breeds of pigs.” 📰 Full Story →
Chinese Labs for Cruel Animal Tests Should Raise Alarms
Kelvey Vander Hart, 10/24/2024
“Four years after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a recent investigation has revealed that the United States is still funding animal experimentation in Chinese laboratories.”
“A bill making its way through Congress could help bring an end to American funding for Chinese animal cruelty. The Chinese Laboratory Accountability and Watchful Spending Act of 2024 (CLAWS Act) would reveal how the government is funding animal experimentation in China.”
“The latest investigation into Chinese animal experimentation shows that the United States is spending more than $2 million on a project at a lab called Pharmaron, where researchers are torturing and killing dogs. Experiments have involved injecting dogs with infectious diseases and severing beagle puppies’ spinal cords . . . Another lab has been documented torturing beagles, including removing their teeth through painful dental experimentation.” 📰 Full Story →
Another Look Inside NY’s Infamous Mega-Breeder, Marshall BioResources
Rise for Animals, 10/29/2024
A whistleblower has leaked more inside footage that Marshall BioResources doesn’t want you to see. Discover the truth, then take action for the 66,000+ animals exploited inside. 📰 Full Story →