KALAMAZOO, Mich. — Three dozen beagles have been force-fed a fungicide and will soon be killed, so scientists can assess the damage done to their organs during the lab test, according to an investigation by The Humane Society of the United States.
The nearly 100-day undercover investigation of animal testing found more than 60,000 dogs are used each year for toxicity testing and research at roughly 350 facilities in the United States.
The Humane Society said some of the dogs it encountered during the undercover operation at Charles River Laboratories in Michigan may die before July 2019 because a handful of the beagles were getting higher doses than the others.
According to the Detroit Free Press, the laboratory -- located outside Kalamazoo -- was contracted by a division of DowDuPont.
Dow's Twitter account released a statement on March 12, saying in part: "Animal testing is not something Dow undertakes lightly, but neither is it something the company can discontinue when it is required by regulatory authorities. Dow keeps its use of animal testing to an absolute minimum."
Later, the company released an updated statement that said the Humane Society had inaccurately attributed an animal testing program to Dow that it said was actually initiated by Corteva Agriscience, which has reportedly been operating independently as part of pending separations. You can read both statements in their entirety by clicking here.
For its part, Corteva said it agreed there were better ways to attain the data needed for the study and has been working closely with the Humane Society of the United States to encourage regulators to amend animal testing requirements for pesticides. Click here to read the Corteva statement.
A petition demanding the release of the beagles had more than 143,000 signatures by 2 p.m. Thursday.
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