Progress! Two Animal Protection Bills Become Law in Virginia

Virginia continues to make progress for animals! Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin has signed two PETA-supported bills into law. This victory wouldn’t have been possible without the help of compassionate legislators and dedicated PETA supporters from all over the Commonwealth who contacted their senators, delegates, and eventually the governor as the bills progressed. 

Two Steps Forward:  

• Senate Bill 907: Introduced by Senator William M. Stanley, Jr. (R-Moneta), this bill requires animal experimenters at publicly funded facilities to consult with the facility’s attending veterinarian to assess the appropriate options for nonhuman primates whom they are done experimenting on—and they must consider releasing the animals to an accredited sanctuary. While experimenters in Virginia have previously killed primates once they were done experimenting on them, this bill now gives the animals a chance at reaching accredited sanctuaries, where they would finally have the chance to know comfort, enrichment, and a life free of intentionally inflicted pain.

• Senate Bill 1127: Introduced by Senator Jennifer B. Boysko (D-Herndon) and co-patroned by Senator Stanley, this bill addresses the lack of transparency from publicly funded facilities that subject animals to painful, often deadly experiments. It closes a loophole in current law by specifying that publicly funded animal testing facilities must make available (within 30 days) any U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) official warning notice of alleged violation, settlement agreement or stipulation, administrative complaint, decision or order, or any other enforcement record.

The Work to Protect Baby Captive Wild Mammals Continues

Senator Boysko also introduced Senate Bill 1125, which would have prohibited the premature separation of baby captive wild mammals from their mothers. Roadside zoos and “exotic pet” dealers often tear still-nursing infant animals from their mothers to sell them or force them into “encounters” with the public, condemning them to a lifetime of psychological suffering, a higher risk of weakened immune function, and diminished survival skills. 

Senate Bill 1125 would have also banned hybridization (cross-breeding of different species) of captive wild animals. Despite hearing from many concerned constituents across the state, Gov. Youngkin vetoed the bill—but of course, PETA will not give up.

Much more work must be done to protect animals in the Commonwealth. PETA will continue to support legislation to do so in future General Assembly sessions.

Want to Help More Animals? Stop an Experimenter in Virginia

Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) experimenter Gerald Pepe has spent 50 years impregnating sensitive, social olive baboons, injecting them with various hormones, and then cutting out and killing the fetuses. Please take action below to help.