PETA Blitzes Seattle With Ads Blasting Animal Experimentation

Experiments at the University of Washington Amount to Murder, Group Says

For Immediate Release:
June 15, 2011

Contact:
Robbyn Brooks 202-483-7382

Seattle — Using mobile billboards and gas-pump toppers, PETA's aggressive new ad campaign against animal experimentation has reached Seattle. Why? Seattle is home to numerous animal laboratories, and more than $225 million of public money funded experiments on animals at the University of Washington (UW) in 2010 alone. The ads—which read, "If You Call It 'Medical Research,' You Can Get Away With Murder," and picture animals suffering in laboratories where PETA conducted investigations—aim to show that animal experiments are cruel, wasteful, and archaic. PETA will place the ads in the vicinity of the university, where more than 1 million animals are tormented in experiments every year.

PETA had planned to place the ads on billboards in the downtown Seattle area, but the company that owns the boards—and ran ads in favor of animal experimentation earlier this year—rejected PETA's artwork. The organization then turned to mobile billboards and gas-pump tops.

"Experimenters are raking in millions of dollars' worth of public funds and using the money to cage, cut up, and kill animals," says PETA Vice President of Laboratory Investigations Kathy Guillermo. "Whatever their stated goals, experiments on animals are about misery, pain, and death, and compassionate people don't want to support this—financially or in any other way."

The following are just three examples of the many experiments that have been conducted in Seattle:

• Rats who had their skulls cut open and their brains damaged were placed in boxes that shocked their feet in order to cause them to screech and induce fear in other rats who were forced to watch. They were then killed, and their brains were removed. 
• Dogs had holes cut into their chests, had tubes inserted into their arteries, were forced to run on treadmills, and were then killed and dissected.  
• In a sensory deprivation experiment, dozens of newborn monkeys were separated from their mothers, locked up alone in the dark, and forced to wear masks that allowed them to see only a display monitor. Three newborns died during the experiment; the others exhibited irreversible brain damage.

The campaign has also targeted other heavily funded animal experimentation centers, including facilities in Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; Boston; and Los Angeles. For more information, please visit PETA.org.