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Monkey business: UW researcher under fire from animal rights group
October 31, 2007 The UW is facing accusations from the research
watchdog group Stop Animal Exploitation NOW! (SAEN) regarding
allegations that a UW scientist denied water to research monkeys.
The complaint, detailed in a press release by the animal group, may
be investigated by the United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA). The press release focused on Dr. Michael Shadlen, a staff
member at the Washington National Primate Research Center and Howard
Hughes Medical Institute. The professor is accused of “severely
depriving macaque monkeys of water, giving one monkey just over a
pint of water for an entire week.” The press release claimed “several primates in his lab lost over
30 percent of their body weight during the water deprivation.” SAEN executive director Michael Budkie elaborated. “The practice of depriving primates of water is such a cruel
practice that it should not be allowed by government regulatory
agencies,” he said. The Washington National Primate Research Center is one of eight
such institutes in the nation. There are 12 monkeys in the UW center
and 2,000 in other centers in the Seattle area. Shadlen conducts
studies about primates’ decision-making skills in order to try to
understand how the brain interprets information. He hopes this kind
of work will be relevant for understanding several neurological
disorders. “I have probably more respect for the monkey mind than anyone
else, and it’s always painful to be accused of nastiness,” he said.
“He is right that we do restrict water. The monkeys are on a
water-control system, but it’s very gradual.” Shadlen’s research has the primates follow an image on a screen
with their eyes. They are not given water in the morning so that
they are thirsty when they began the study. After a monkey finishes
each task, they are given water or juice. Shadlen explained that the
tasks are not difficult and if a monkey does not get enough water
during the morning exercises, they will be given more in the
afternoon. “This is a standard practice to use this in animal training
because it taps something natural in the monkey,” Shadlen said. He dismissed SAEN’s concerns regarding the monkeys’ health. “We looked over our records and none of our monkeys have ever
lost 30 percent of their weight,” he said. Shadlen did admit that one monkey became ill. “One monkey did get sick and dropped weight, so of course we gave
him more water,” Shadlen said. He added that the health and weight are closely monitored. In
response, Budkie said that Shadlen “needed to look more closely at
his records.” He disputed Shadlen’s contention that the research is
humane. “[It is] very clear that there is a violation of animal rights,”
Budkie said. “The files are state records, open to the public. …
There are instances of two monkeys in 2004-05 who lost over 30
percent of their weight due to water deprivation.” He claims that each of the primates should have received two
pints of water per day, and that the UW records show that they only
received a pint a week. In Budkie’s letter to the USDA, he cites one monkey who, “during
the week of 1/8/05 –1/24/05 … consumed a total of only 525
milliliters of water, with the total consumption for one day being
only 35 milliliters.” Despite the allegations, Peggy Smith, assistant director of the
primate center, believes her institution will rectify the problem.
“In 10 years we’ve made a lot of progress,” she said. “It’s a
growing field and this primate center is leading the charge. … It’s
something the UW can be proud of.” SAEN’s press release also claimed that a cover-up of “scientific
malfeasance” was being carried out by the University, citing
internal UW documents that contain remarks of researchers and
officials, include one who supposedly said that she would have to
“keep her head in the sand.” Clare Hagerty, assistant director for media relations at the UW
Medical Center, did not find any reason to believe the allegations.
“We have no indication that any of our faculty or staff has
falsified information related to this research,” she said. Budkie, meanwhile, is adamant about an investigation of the
University’s practices. “[The] UW needs to start being more honest — if it isn’t, it’s a
violation of federal law,” he said.
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