Here’s a roundup of the latest, 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.
The False Divide Between Animal Research & Animal Agriculture
Rise for Animals, 9/17/2026
What do animal research and animal agriculture have in common? More than many people realize.
At this year’s Fauna Connections symposium, Rise for Animals’ Head of Programs, Lindsey Soffes, explored how these industries overlap in their history, language, funding, lobbying, and political power—and why treating them as separate fights can weaken the animal protection movement.
Watch the presentation and learn why bridging this divide could help us build greater solidarity, efficiency, and power for animals. 📰 Learn More & Watch →
Watchdog Says NIH Approved More Than $225 Million for Dog and Cat Experiments Despite Shift Toward Alternatives
[your]NEWS Media Newsroom, [your]NEWS, 9/12/2026
“A new White Coat Waste investigation says the National Institutes of Health has awarded, renewed, supplemented or extended more than $225 million in dog- and cat-related research since February 2025, even as the agency directs major funding toward human-based alternatives to animal models.”
“Nearly 44% of the spending identified by White Coat Waste — more than $98 million — involved pharmaceutical companies conducting testing with dogs, while another $11.7 million was connected to invasive experiments involving cats, according to the group’s accounting. . . . The group said the $225 million-plus it traced to those projects exceeds NIH’s highly publicized $150 million investment in new approach methodologies by more than $75 million.”
“Among the projects identified in the report is a University of Minnesota grant of up to $2.4 million involving 60 kittens as young as two months old. White Coat Waste says the experiments include opening the animals’ skulls, introducing viruses into their brains, inducing strokes and ultimately euthanizing them.”
“White Coat Waste also identified dozens of Small Business Innovation Research awards collectively worth tens of millions of dollars that it says support pharmaceutical testing involving dogs for experimental treatments addressing cancer, ALS, opioid-use disorder and other medical conditions.” 📰 Full Story →
How the Right Is Taking Over Animal Rights
Current Affairs, 9/13/2026
“‘ . . . they do not have to be coherent to be effective in terms of their politics. . . . they are speaking to ordinary people’s concern and compassion for animals. They’re having their cake and eating it too, and that’s not new.’”
“‘I keep bringing it back to MAHA, but it’s worth just noting that phenomenon was able to happen because there was a vacuum that the right could step into. It is true that Democrats are not confronting Big Pharma in the ways they should. We’re not standing up to shitty food manufacturers. There’s a sense by people that this side’s not doing it, and so they came in. . . . we noted that feeling big time in the animal rights and animal welfare movements. There are people who are feeling betrayed by the lack of prioritization for years and years that they’ve seen both from the left and again from the more institutional Democratic Party.’”
“‘Even in our movement, I think there’s a sense that caring about animals is this sort of individualistic life choice, and it doesn’t get at the structural things that we should be caring about, like capital and labor and these more systemic things. I think one thing that people should understand is that these fights are completely systemic. They’re completely structural, and in fact, taking on these fights fits in perfectly with the sort of populist anti-corporate agenda that we know is going to win us a supermajority, if anything can. These are big corporate bad actors that we’re up against, and there’s no inconsistency between fighting for working people and fighting against Big Ag folks like Tyson and others who are hurting people and animals.’”
“‘ . . . we’re seeing folks like RFK Jr. leading the charge and saying we’re going to try to get rid of animal testing. We’re seeing major right-wing influencers raising these issues much more prominently than we’re seeing anyone on the left. And so, if you’re someone who is out there and cares a lot about animals, where are you hearing about this issue that you care about? Who’s being loud and out front on it? You’re not going to be really associating with folks on the left or the Democratic Party right now.’” 📰 Full Story →
Back-to-School Protest at York University to Demand Freedom for the “York 9” and an End to Primate Experiments
Last Chance for Animals, PR Newswire, 9/14/2026
“Last Chance for Animals (LCA), The Anti-Vivisection Alliance (TAVA), Animal Rights Toronto, Direct Action Everywhere Toronto, and advocates Vikki Lenola, Jenny McQueen and Peter McQueen will hold a peaceful back-to-school protest and public outreach event at York University on Friday, September 18, calling for an end to invasive experiments on macaques and the release of the nine rhesus macaques known as the ‘York 9.’”
“As thousands of students return to campus, organizers will bring the issue directly to York University, where students and members of the public will have an opportunity to learn about the shocking conditions documented in LCA’s undercover investigation into York’s primate laboratories. . . . The protest organizers are calling on York University to end macaque experimentation and retire the macaques to a sanctuary. They are also calling on Ontario to end animal experimentation and make a decisive shift toward New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) and other modern, human-relevant research methods.” 📰 Full Story →
FDA Orders 20 Young Baboons for Whooping Cough Studies Amid Push to Reduce Animal Testing
[your]NEWS Media Newsroom, [your]NEWS, 9/15/2026
“The Food and Drug Administration has authorized the purchase of 20 young baboons for whooping cough research at its Maryland laboratory, creating a sharp contrast with a broader federal effort to reduce animal testing and expand human-based research alternatives.”
“Federal contracting records show the FDA awarded a purchase order worth approximately $368,600 on Aug. 31 for ‘Bordetella-free baboons for pertussis infection and vaccination studies.’ Procurement records identify 20 animals between 6 and 8 months old for use by the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research.”
“The new purchase [] arrives while the FDA publicly emphasizes reducing animal use. . . . Animal-testing critics argue the new baboon purchase illustrates how substantial gaps remain between that long-term goal and current federal laboratory practices.” 📰 Full Story →
Number of animals used in Swiss experiments lower than ever
swissinfo.ch, 9/15/2026
“In total, around half a million animals (507,863) were used in experiments in Switzerland in 2025, according to figures published . . . by the Federal Office for Food Safety and Veterinary Affairs. This around [sic] 15,000 animals (3%) fewer than in the previous year. The total figure is therefore at its lowest level since records began in 1983.”
“The most commonly used species were mice, accounting for 66%, followed by birds (13%) and rats and fish (8% each). While the number of mice used fell, the number of fish rose significantly.”
“While the total number fell, the number of animals used in highly distressing experiments increased. . . . The number of animals used in experiments classified as severity level 3 – the highest category – rose by 7.4% compared with the previous year to around 29,400. This is the highest figure in 26 years.”
“Politically, the issue of animal testing in Switzerland is likely to continue to be a subject of debate in the coming years. A popular initiative tabled in 2024 calls for a comprehensive ban on animal testing. It is not yet known when it will be put to a vote. The government recommends rejecting the initiative.” 📰 Full Story →
207-Mile March to Abolish Animal Testing from Albany to Marshall BioResources Calls for an End to Animal Testing
The Daily Post, 9/16/2026
“Animal advocates have launched the March for Animals, a 207-mile journey to raise awareness about animal testing and demand a transition to modern, non-animal research.”
“Organizers are calling for an end to animal testing and for the release of animals held at [“Marshall BoiResources, the largest facility for lab animal breeding and training in the country”], including more than 16,000 beagles and more than 40,000 other animals, according to the organizers.”
“The March to Abolish Animal Testing is calling for taxpayer-funded research dollars to be redirected toward modern, human-relevant, non-animal research technologies that organizers say can provide better scientific models while eliminating the suffering of laboratory animals.” 📰 Full Story →