PETA Files Complaint After Monkey Mauled to Death at OHSU Primate Center

For Immediate Release:
July 22, 2025

Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382

Please see the following statement from PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo regarding a monkey who died after his arm became trapped in a cage, leaving him exposed to injuries he could not escape at Oregon Health & Science University’s (OHSU) National Primate Research Center. This was the second time in about a year that the monkey became entangled in an enclosure, the first causing swelling, abrasions, and a dislocated shoulder. Today, PETA filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture:

The horrific death of this macaque—left trapped in chain link fencing, unable to escape, while other monkeys in the enclosure responded in fear and confusion—should be the final nail in the coffin for the OHSU primate center. Not only did OHSU not make changes to the monkey’s enclosures to prevent more injuries or death, but the primate center also apparently did not report the previous incident to the National Institutes of Health as required. The monkey was in what the industry calls “enriched housing” with a social group, room to climb, and a view of the sky. Still, he died trapped and mauled. OHSU failed him. They cannot keep monkeys safe—not in the laboratory, and not outside of it.

PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to experiment on”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.