PETA Exposé: Injuries and Illnesses Among Monkeys Imprisoned in UMass Laboratory
Last year, over a period of one month, experimenters killed 10 marmosets in the University of Massachusetts–Amherst (UMass) laboratory of Agnès Lacreuse. New records obtained by PETA show that their final days mirrored their miserable end.
An outbreak of “fresh green diarrhea,” ignored injuries, and torn nails are just a few examples of the unrelenting agony detailed in the latest documents, adding to the university’s already abysmal track record of cruelty to animals.
We’re now urging the U.S. Department of Agriculture to investigate this never-ending horror show for possible violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act.
On the Record
The ten marmosets who were killed last summer suffered from numerous health problems in their final months, including infected gums, broken and missing teeth, and chronic diarrhea lasting weeks, according to the records. Yet missing from those records is any indication that staff bothered to treat these conditions or even investigate the cause.
The documents also described several of the marmosets as “thin” or “very thin,” a sign of chronic wasting syndrome, which can cause severe problems including muscle loss, weakness, and organ dysfunction.
Again, absent is any evidence that staff tried to treat their suffering.
Records show that many marmosets endured multiple injuries caused by improper staff handling, unsafe caging conditions, or fights with fellow distressed monkeys.
A monkey named Diana suffered a tail injury after staff transferred her between cages. Another, Gabrielle, suffered a leg injury so severe she could not fully straighten it or move around properly. This went on for more than two months. UMass staff gave her painkillers and called it a day.
Several other monkeys had their nails partially or fully torn because of mishandling, bacterial or fungal infections, bone disease, excessive grooming due to stress or discomfort, or snagging them in their cages. Some marmosets resorted to shredding paper in their cages, a sign of severe stress.
Help Monkeys at UMass
All this suffering happens in addition to Lacreuse’s experimental procedures, which includes screwing electrodes into their skulls, cutting into their necks, zip-tying them, and shoving them into plastic cylinders as part of their scientifically worthless menopause tests—a condition that marmosets do not naturally experience.
There are currently 13 monkeys still trapped inside Lacreuse’s laboratory. Please take action by urging UMass officials to shut down her experiments before they, too, are killed.
