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Stop Animal Exploitation NOW!
S. A. E. N.
"Exposing the truth to wipe out animal experimentation"

Newsletters
The Defender
From Spring 2008 Issue

Charles River Labs – Maiming Monkeys and Rabbits

One year ago SAEN placed Charles River Laboratories (CRL) fourth on the list of the worst labs in the nation for violating the Animal Welfare Act. During a nine month span in 2005, CRL violated federal law 22 times. One incident at CRL left dozens of dogs with bleeding paws from improper caging. In 2006, this led the USDA to issue an Official Warning to CRL for this atrocity and other substantial violations.

During 2006, illegal activity persisted at Charles River as the company piled up another 24 federal violations including episodes where rabbits suffered untreated skin lesions measuring up to 3.5” x 1.5”. In a different experiment a rabbit lost 27% of his/her body weight without receiving any veterinary treatment.

In the first half of 2007 Charles River Labs accumulated another 11 infractions in areas of housing, enclosures, sanitation, etc. The most startling of these violations were 4 separate incidents where primates were injured sufficiently during transportation between labs to require amputation of fingers. The same USDA report also disclosed that during 2006 the leg of a primate was broken due to improper caging. These animals were victimized by the negligence of unqualified personnel at CRL.

We believe that the suffering inflicted on animals by Charles River Laboratories is inexcusable and was primarily caused by negligence. Therefore, we feel that the USDA must take immediate and severe action against this criminal laboratory.

On March 2, 2008, SAEN exposed the abuses inside CRL to Nevada news media including the Associated Press and the Reno Gazette-Journal, who produced dramatic stories (available on our website) which spread across the U.S. revealing the truth about the suffering of these innocent animals inside many CRL facilities.