Glimpses
(Life and Death inside the University of Louisiana, New Iberia Research
Center)
Research laboratories are secretive places. The doors are locked
tight, as much to keep the public out as to keep the animals in. Most of
the population of the United States lives in blissful ignorance, not
knowing or caring about what happens in the laboratories that are paid
for by their tax dollars. It is much easier to simply not know than to
deal with the truth. Even though the doors are closed, and the widows
locked, occasionally the truth sneaks out. It comes in little snatches,
small pictures, and tiny glimpses. Even the tiny glimpses are horrible.
Your
donation will help us to continue fighting for the freedom of these
animals!
The New Iberia Research Center of the University of Louisiana (Lafayette
- ULL) is one such place. Very little is known about the inner workings
of this facility, except that it is huge. For the year 2006 ULL/NIRC
reported the use of 6489 primates, most of whom were part of breeding
programs, not actual experimentation. Only a few primates step out of
the mists to allow us to look into their lives.
Chimpanzee A155E was born on January 1, 1983. By November 9, 2007 he is
dead. In between those dates his life appears to have little uniqueness,
one day is about the same as another. The only notations we see are for
dosages of Fibercon, a dietary fiber pill being given to handle gastric
issues.
When he dies A155E is described as being “thin and there is
apparent muscle atrophy” and “the abdomen is distended.” Additionally,
the necropsy further states several things which indicate very serious
pathological conditions that have gone untreated.
The necropsy report
describes approximately 2 liters of fluid in the abdomen, as well as a
cardiac abnormality. The report also mentions “a large abscessed area
(20 cm diam) adherent to the body wall.” This mass is described as
containing “a greenish purulent material” and a “necrotic center.”
However, from May 23, 2005 through the death of this primate in November
of 2007, the only treatment that this chimpanzee received was fiber
tablets. His condition was likely unnoticed because he was only one of
over 6000 primates.
Chimpanzee A096 was born in January of 1963.
Other than the date of
birth, the available NIRC records provide nothing between 1963 and 1990.
Decades have disappeared into oblivion. From 1990 to 2006 little is
known about this chimp other than weights and CBC values. He had been
part of a study that ended in 1992.
He died in August of 2006 just after
a vasectomy on the 24th of August. On the 26th of August he is listed as
having swollen testicles, and is D.O.A. on the 28th.
The only treatment
that this animal received during this period was Motrin, and the cause
of death is left open. However, it is apparent that he had serious heart
issues due to the 500 ml of yellowish fluid in the pericardial sac, a
situation which can be connected to cardiac tamponade. A vasectomy is an
elective surgery and likely should not have been performed in a
chimpanzee with a serious heart condition.
Chimpanzee A272 was born in January of 1968, spending 38 years in
laboratory settings until dying of gastric bloat in November of 2006.
Bloat is a condition that can be related to improper diet and is
extremely painful. Additionally, his records do not list any treatment
for this condition; it was discovered only at death.
Rhesus monkey A4P001 was born in captivity in April of 2004, surviving
only until November of 2006, just over two years. He is diagnosed at
death with toxemia (blood poisoning) and 6-7 cm of gastric (jejunal)
intussusception (blockage, possibly torsion). The veterinary records
state that “Approximately 3cm of involved gut was necrosing” (dying). In
other words, over 2 ½ inches of the small intestine was blocked and over
an inch of this tissue had died. This monkey had not seen a veterinarian
for 5 months.
Rhesus monkey A4PO15 was born in captivity in July of 2004, and died in
August of 2006. She was admitted on the day before death and is
described as “thin, dehydrated, poor sparse hair coat” and “blood found
oozing from the rectum.” This monkey received a physical exam on June
19, 2006 and received no treatment of any kind in the intervening
period. She had suffered from a similar condition two years earlier. She
was allowed to deteriorate, receiving no treatment of any kind in the
intervening period.
Rhesus monkey A4P010 came into the world on June 22, 2004. During his
short life he suffered through several bouts of enteritis (inflammation
of the small intestine) with serious diarrhea. He was diagnosed with
this condition again in the days before his death. He was allowed to
deteriorate to the point of developing a septicemia, a life-threatening
infection. Rhesus monkey A3P012 was also diagnosed with chronic
non-responsive diarrhea.
Two infant primates, A7P001 and A7P003 are listed as dying due to
maternal neglect and/or maternal trauma. In other words these infants
died of injuries caused by attacks by their mother. A7P001 is described
as having “multiple wounds and bruising to: arms, legs, tail, face and a
large (nickel sized) hole in skin covering head with skull exposed.” The
mental state necessary to cause a mother to abuse her offspring so
violently is incomprehensible.
Over 69,000 nonhuman primates suffered in experimentation in the U.S.
during 2007, and an almost equivalent number languished in seemingly
endless captivity for the purpose of producing more victims for the
knife. We will never know anything about most of these innocents whose
only ‘crime’ was to not be born human.
As non-humans they are allowed no
freedom. They live in stainless steel boxes or fenced corrals that
resemble the exercise yards of human prisons. They have been reduced to
mass produced commodities whose sole purpose is monetary – rhesus
monkeys often sell for over $5000 each – and they are the raw materials
used to attract research grants or contracts in six or seven figures –
the University of Louisiana receives over $6 million per year in federal
money for the maintenance of these 6000 victims.
As a whole these relatives of ours are hidden from view. Their lives are
unknown, their deaths unmourned. They pass through the world as shadows
robbed of everything but the capacity to feel pain. Most of us choose
not to see, for the pictures are too uncomfortable; and as long as we
ignore them we can tell ourselves that they really don’t exist.
These primates live and die in anonymity. But every now and then we are
forced to look. Sometimes we see the truth, unpleasant as it is, and we
are changed. Facts have a price, truth holds a debt, and reality has an
unavoidable claim on us. Once we see the truth we must either act or
admit that we don’t care – and both of those options have ominous
consequences.
Glimpses can change your life forever.
See:
University of Louisiana
Necropsy Report - 2007
- a7p003
Necropsy Report - 2007
- a7p001
Necropsy Report - 2007 -
a155f
Necropsy Report - 2006
- a4p015
Necropsy Report - 2006
- a4p013
Necropsy Report - 2006
- a4p010
Necropsy Report - 2006
- a4p001
Necropsy Report - 2006 -
a272
Necropsy Report - 2006 -
a096
