WASHINGTON — It has been one year since nearly 4,000 beagles were rescued from horrific conditions at a mass breeding facility in Cumberland, Virginia owned by contract research organization Envigo.
The US Department of Justice sued Envigo after the company received multiple Animal Welfare Act violations for inadequate veterinary care, insufficient food and inhumane euthanasia practices at the facility, which is now closed.
But how did we get here and what happened to the thousands of dogs that were rescued from a life destined for a laboratory?
Horrific Conditions Discovered
Inspectors in November 2021 and March 2022 claimed the facility performed unnecessarily painful medical experiments on dogs and puppies, including euthanasia without sedatives. Inspectors found puppies and dogs were being held in shelters with temperatures exceeding 85 degrees for more than five hours. They also claimed the research conducted at the facility caused distress to nursing mothers and their puppies after food was intentionally withheld for two days.
Inspectors said housing violations at the facility left dozens of dogs injured, including 71 who were hurt when body parts were pulled through the wall of the kennel by other dogs. Fifty dogs were also injured or killed due to "incompatible groupings."
An animal activist with PETA claims to have shot an undercover video while working at the Envigo facility.
"Our investigator found just in the course of her shifts her employment alone more than 360 dead puppies," a PETA representative said.
Senators Call For Action
WUSA9 first started reporting on the fight to rescue the dogs from the facility in April 2022 after U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine (both D-VA) expressed concern about how the dogs were being treated and called for the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) to suspend Envigo's Cumberland facility license.
At the time, Envigo's website listed "caring about each other, our animals and the environment," as one of their core values.
The senators said medical records indicated that nearly 200 dogs were euthanized and many were not provided any anesthetic, which goes against the recommendation of the American Veterinary Medical Association.
4,000 Rescued
In July 2022, a federal judge approved a plan to take thousands of the abused dogs from the Virginia breeding facility and place them in shelters so that they may be adopted by loving families. According to court documents, Judge Norman Moon called for Envigo to pay $100 per dog, and $150 per dog nursing a litter younger than 8 weeks, to help defray the costs to the shelters preparing the dogs for adoption.
Nearly 4,000 beagles were rescued from the facility by The Humane Society of the United States. By September, all of the dogs were rescued and were receiving care in order to get ready to be placed in animal shelters across the country. Some of the dogs were sent to shelters in Florida, Kansas, Kentucky and Wyoming.
The dogs were then adopted, one even got the royal treatment when she was adopted by Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. The dog, named Mia, spent her entire seven years alive breeding more dogs for Envigo.
"If not for this historic transfer, many of these dogs would have been bound for animal testing laboratories," the Humane Society of the United States said in a press release.
Members of the Humane Society of the United States ended up adopting two of the beagles, Franny who spent her whole life being forced to breed puppies to be sold to laboratories, and Enzo a young puppy who was destined for a life inside a lab.
One young pup named June was also featured in Puppy Bowl XIX, an annual program that mimics the Super Bowl using puppies.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy also adopted one of the rescued beagles for his family, a puppy named Morty.
Life One Year Later
Rescuing the dogs was just one step in giving them better lives. Most of the dogs were bred to be used in labs and not trained to live in a home with a proper family.
“These dogs have spent the last year learning how to walk on leashes, finding the most comfortable spot on the couch, and becoming treasured family members in their loving homes,” said Kitty Block, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States. “Dogs used in laboratories typically live short, painful lives. It’s heartbreaking to think about what would have happened to these beagles if Envigo had been able to sell them to laboratories."
Homeward Trails took in a litter of beagles. The litter reunited for a day in July 2023 to celebrate their first birthdays. The animal rescue shared a video of the pups on YouTube. It shows the siblings running around, playing and getting treats in their matching happy birthday bandanas.
The Fight Isn't Over
While this story may have a happy ending, the Humane Society of the United States says nearly 60,000 dogs are used in experiments each year in the U.S. Additionally, tens of thousands more are held in laboratory breeding facilities, the largest housing 25,000 dogs at a time.
Block calls the experimentation "undeniably cruel" and claims that it produces misleading results when non-animal models, such as organs-on-chips, computer modeling and human cell-based tests, provide better results for humans and animals.
"We were able to spare these lucky beagles from that fate, but more are being bred and sold to laboratories every day — it’s on all of us to make the change,” Block said.
Advocates continue to call on state and federal officials to end experiments on dogs and invest in science that doesn’t cause any animal suffering.
The beagles are experiencing many firsts after their rescue.