For immediate release:
Jul 22, 2021
Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382
College Station, Texas – PETA today sent a letter to Texas A&M University President M. Catherine Banks warning her of the misleading and false claims made by university officials about the Texas A&M Canine Muscular Dystrophy Laboratory (MD), and suggested – again – that the remaining dogs be collected and put them in loving homes.
In December, Peter Nghiem, the lab’s lead experimenter, publicly stated (page 6) that healthy dogs carrying the MD gene were released for adoption through his program, but nine healthy dogs, eight of which are carriers, were transferred to another Texas A&M lab. … not in houses.
The state lawmaker, who called the university, was also told that all dogs still in the lab must remain there for 24/7 veterinary care for sick dogs, but only seven of the 19 dogs still there suffer from the condition.
“Texas A&M is robbing these dogs of their only chance of freedom and lying about it to the public,” says PETA Senior Vice President Katy Guillermo. “PETA is urging the school to stop keeping these dogs and release them from their sterile cages into loving homes.”
Ever since PETA first exposed the suffering of dogs in the laboratory – and under pressure from 500 doctors and people with MD – Texas A&M has stopped breeding dogs for the development of the disease. Many of the nearly 100 dogs have been taken into homes. Recent records show that the remaining 19 are not used in any study.
Two dogs diagnosed with MD, Garen and Grinch, were euthanized in March and May, respectively, after much suffering in the Texas A&M lab. At just 2 years old, Garen’s tongue was swollen and he began to lose weight. The Grinch contracted a variety of medical doctor-related diseases. Both suffered from poor appetite as their condition worsened.
PETA, whose motto is partly that “animals are not ours to experiment on” – opposes arrogance, a worldview focused on human excellence. For more information please visit PETA.org or subscribe to the group on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram…