Stop Animal Exploitation NOW
PMB 280
1081-B St. Rt. 28
Milford, Ohio 45150
513-575-5517
www.saenonline.org
10/12/06
USDA/APHIS/AC
Western Regional Office
2150 Centre Ave.
Building B, Mailstop 3W11
Fort Collins, CO 80526-8117
To the Director,
I am contacting you today to file an official complaint against the
University of Washington, Seattle and the Washington National Primate
Research Center. Internal documents which we have obtained from this
facility have raised very serious issues with regard to animal care at
this facility.
A large number of the primates at this facility are suffering from
serious diseases and have reached a substantial level of deterioration
so as to be referred to as “emaciated” in post-mortem records.
Dehydration is also a substantial problem.
The incidence of conditions such as encephalitis and meningitis at
this facility also appear to be very high. Listed below you will find
references to specific primates whose deaths are a cause for major
concern and should be the target of individual investigations.
Primate 04090 was also used in neurological research, and had a “head
cap” and a spinal implant, as well as wires run under the skin of the
arm and connected to muscles. The animal had developed paralysis of the
arm and compression of the spinal column directly related to the variety
of experimentation in which this animal was used.
Primate A03068 had a severely deteriorated leg, having lost 40 – 50%
of the muscle mass. This muscle loss is due to deterioration of the left
hip joint. The joint contained a mixture of synovial fluid and blood.
The bone had eroded sufficiently to have developed a flat head. This
condition was not reached overnight and the documentation shows no
evidence of treatment.
Primate 91386 was found upon examination to have a 3 – 5 mm mass of
connective tissue, which upon cutting revealed a piece of surgical gauze
that had apparently been lost during surgery. Primate 02049 died of
sepsis, or massive bacterial infection.
Possibly most distressing is the case of primate A01136. The cause of
death for this animal was never determined because the researcher, in
whose experimentation this animal was used, had cut off the primates’
head and refused to allow the veterinary staff of the UW to examine it,
despite a specific request for this vitally important organ. This
primate was used in the research of Dr. Albert Fuchs. We must begin to
wonder what Dr. Fuchs had to hide.
The conditions of the animals at this facility are clearly cause for
concern because they elucidate an overall situation in which the
primates are clearly severely stressed (as evidenced by a high incidence
of gastro-intestinal tract disease, over grooming, and amputation of
digits). However, the apparent negligence of UW staff in killing
primates through allowing encephalitis and/or meningitis to become a
part of neurological research calls into question not only the
humaneness of experimentation at this facility, but also the scientific
value of information obtained from experimenting on clearly ill animals.
Therefore, SAEN is officially requesting the United States Department
of Agriculture to investigate both the deaths of the specific animals
listed above and the research of Drs. Perlmutter, Fetz, and Fuchs. We
will ask for the most severe penalties allowable under current law.
I look forward to receiving a response to your inquiries, and if you
need further information regarding the University of Washington,
especially the documentation which we have obtained, please contact me
at 513-575-5517.
Sincerely,
Michael A. Budkie, A.H.T.,
Executive Director, SAEN
See:
University of Washington, Seattle, WA
