USDA Fines University of Connecticut Health Center

October 2012

Following a complaint filed by PETA in 2008, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) ordered the University of Connecticut Health Center (UCHC) to pay more than $12,000 in fines for its cruel and incompetent treatment of animals in its laboratories. UCHC was cited for 10 violations of the Animal Welfare Act between 2008 and 2010—including failing to seek non-invasive alternatives to the use of animals in medical training exercises and the death of a rabbit caused by improper anesthesia and poorly trained employees.