Navy’s DSEND Diving Suit Must Replace Archaic Animal Tests: PETA Statement

For Immediate Release:
September 9, 2026

Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382

Please see the following statement from PETA Vice President Shalin Gala regarding the U.S. Navy’s new DSEND diving suit, which may reduce or eliminate the risk of decompression sickness in divers:

The development of the DSEND diving suit proves that innovative, human-relevant research is the key to scientific advancement—and it must replace the Navy’s archaic practice of squeezing the life out of animals in ineffective decompression sickness and oxygen toxicity experiments. For decades, the military has squandered millions of tax dollars on cruel experiments that fail to produce treatments, including recently stuffing pigs into diving suits and watching as they suffered and died in simulated deep dives. PETA urges military officials to build on the DSEND breakthrough by ending all experiments on animals and redirecting funding to superior, human-relevant, animal-free research methods.

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.