Beagles are being poisoned and killed in a Michigan Lab because Brazil requires these experiments despite there being alternatives... The company behind the tests said 'there are better ways to attain the data needed' but that it will continue doing them.
"At one time, the EPA required that dogs be force-fed pesticides for a full year but eliminated this requirement 10 years ago when scientists realized that the test did not add valuable scientific information."
I recently read a most disturbing essay by Nina Golgowski called
"Investigation Finds Dozens Of Beagles Force-Fed Pesticides In Lab Test"
with the subtitle, "The company behind the tests said 'there are better ways
to attain the data needed' but that it will continue doing them." That
company is Charles River Laboratories in Mattawan, Michigan. Another essay
titled "HSUS undercover investigation shows beagles being poisoned with
pesticides and drugs, killed at animal testing lab" summarizes how these
dogs are treated in these incredibly inhumane experiments.
You also can learn about how these horrific experiments were exposed in a
piece called "Toxicity Testing on Dogs Exposed: An undercover investigation
by the Humane Society of the United States." In this exposé we read, "What
the HSUS investigator found will shock those who are unaware of what happens
in these labs. Beagles and hounds from two massive dog breeding companies
(Marshall BioResources and Covance) were used to test a variety of
substances. Some of the dogs were killed within days of arriving at the
laboratory. Others were still confined to their lonely stainless-steel cages
when our investigator left, such as dogs used in a year-long pesticide test
that is universally considered scientifically unnecessary." There also is a
video here. The images accompanying some of the above pieces are extremely
difficult to view, but they clearly showed the horrific abuse to which these
beagles and other dogs are subjected in these sorts of studies.
I was incredulous and disgusted when I learned of this study, as were all
of the many people who emailed me or with whom I spoke about it. So too, are
animal welfare organizations. I see sickening material like this almost
daily, and I also look forward to people writing to me about it. I'm never
disappointed because my inbox "rings off the hook" as news about abuse like
this spreads in mass media. It's always interests me how few people actually
know about experiments like this, but in their busy world, it's difficult to
keep up with what they need to do and animal abuse often doesn't get the
attention it deserves. Some people also refuse to believe that experiments
like this are routinely performed, and when they learn about research like
this they're surprised, appalled, and many want to get involved, often for
the first time, in activities supporting animal protection.
I was unsure about writing much about this horrific study until three emails
came in from youngsters. They were outraged, to say the least, and their
messages were: (1) "I cannot understand why people do these things to dogs
and other animals. If they tried to do this to my dog I would protect her
from them, even if it meant they got upset and threatened me." (2) Where can
I write to these people? I bet they wouldn't do it to their pet." (3) I
cried when I read about these experiments and cannot understand how these
researchers can be so heartless."
Other emails reflected these sentiments from people of all ages from all
over the world. I fully support youngsters who protest animal abuse and who
will inherit the world we leave them. My hope is that they'll inherit a
world that is far more compassionate to all animals, nonhuman and human,
than the world in which we now live. Like millions of people globally, I'm
inspired by recent global activism against climate change by youngsters who
are deeply concerned about what the world will be like for them as adults.
Surely, we can do better than we are for future generations.
Brazilian regulations are driving this brutal research, not the
EPA
It's also interesting that requirements originating in Brazil are driving
this research by a laboratory in Michigan. As I noted above, the EPA decided
10 years ago that there sorts of studies "did not add valuable scientific
information." One person asked me, "Why don't they just do them in Brazil?"
Along these lines, Ms. Golgowski writes, "Corteva Agriscience responded to
public outcry over the tests this week, saying in a statement that 'there
are better ways to attain the data needed' but that the experiments are
required by Brazilian authorities." She goes to note, "It’s not entirely
clear why the company needs or is willing to cooperate with Brazilian
authorities. The company did not immediately respond to a request for
comment on Thursday." Why don't the researchers just say "No," we will not
do this. There are other methods and researchers admit this is so, and the
EPA doesn't require them for pesticide testing here.
Would the researchers feed their own dogs Adavelt?
I would like to believe that none of the people involved in these sordid
experiments would treat their own dog(s) in this manner. So, if they
wouldn't do it to their own dog, why would they do it to other sentient and
emotional beings such as these beagles? I suppose that some do it because
"it's their job." However, there's no reason why they couldn't refuse to
torture the beagles because they know the studies are useless and also
because they're causing deep pain and suffering and eventually the dogs will
be killed. These beagles and other laboratory animals surely aren't dying
"in the name of science."
Where to from here?
In the United States there are approximately 90 millions dogs living in 68%
of all households. If even a small fraction of these people would sign this
petition and make their voices heard in one way or another, it would make a
huge difference for these beagles and other animals who are used in abusive
research, including projects that don't generate useful information such as
the one about which I'm writing.
As the late Gretchen Wyler aptly said, "Cruelty can't stand the spotlight."
Let's keep the spotlight on the plight of these beagles and millions of
other lab animals. Your voice matters. t
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