Animals in UU Labs Routinely Denied Veterinary Care, Group Says

For Immediate Release:
November 11, 2009
 
Contact:
Kathy Guillermo 757-622-7382

Salt Lake City -- At a news conference today, PETA will reveal the findings of an eight-month undercover investigation inside laboratories at the University of Utah (UU), during which PETA's investigator documented miserable conditions and neglect of animals. The investigator also discovered that UU regularly buys homeless dogs and cats from local animal shelters and performs cruel and invasive experiments on them, including one experiment in which dogs' necks were cut open and medical devices were implanted before they were killed.

When:   Wednesday, November 11, 11 a.m.           

Where:  Salt Lake City Marriott City Center, Amethyst 1 Room, 220 S. State St., Salt Lake City
      
Some examples of the cruelty that PETA's investigator observed at UU include the following:
* For $15, UU bought an orange-and-white tabby cat named Robert from the Davis County animal shelter. Experimenters cut a hole into his skull and implanted electrodes in his brain.
* Kittens born to a pregnant cat purchased from an animal shelter had chemicals injected into their brains and died.
* Mice whose back legs were purposely paralyzed, rats given epileptic seizures, and mice with huge ulcerated tumors covering their bodies were all left to suffer for as long as a week without veterinary care.
* Monkeys who had holes drilled into their skulls were kept constantly thirsty in order to force them to "cooperate" in experiments in exchange for a few drops of water.

"To subject animals to invasive experiments is bad enough, but allowing them to languish in pain and misery without veterinary care is despicable," says Vice President of Laboratory Investigations Kathy Guillermo. "The University of Utah has caused all sorts of animals to suffer needlessly and has betrayed not only homeless dogs and cats from shelters but also the citizens who trusted that these animals would be cared for, not used in painful and deadly experiments."
 
PETA has filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the National Institutes of Health as well as a criminal complaint with the Humane Society of Utah. PETA is also calling on the university to stop purchasing animals from animal shelters immediately.
 
Broadcast-quality video footage and PETA's letter to the university are available. For more information, please visit PETA.org.