4,000 beagles rescued from Virginia research facility need new homes: How to adopt one
Known for their friendly nature, beagles are often the dogs of choice when it comes to animal testing.
The Humane Society of the United States, a nonprofit organization focused on animal welfare, stepped in a few years ago when three dozen beagles were being force-fed fungicides in Michigan. Now the organization is trying to find homes for 4,000 beagles rescued from a research facility in Virginia.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials have received approval for a plan to rescue 4,000 beagles from Envigo, a research facility in Cumberland, Virginia, according to an article in the New York Times.
The plan was approved by a federal judge last week after officials filed a complaint in a Western District of Virginia federal court.
Multiple investigations of the facility have shown many beagles at the facility were underfed, ill, injured and even dead. Numerous beagles were euthanized instead of being provided with veterinary care. Many were euthanized without anesthesia via an injection into the heart muscle, the article said.
Earlier in the year, the USDA inspector general and other law enforcement agencies executed a federal search warrant and seized 145 dogs and puppies from the facility. The dogs were in “acute distress” according to veterinarians.
Federal authorities now have 60 days to move the beagles from the facility and find them homes. They are currently being moved to the care of The Humane Society.
Here’s how you can help:
If you’re interested in adopting a beagle, you can contact your closest Humane Society branch and inquire about whether it plans to facilitate the adoption of the beagles.
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Currently, the society is partnered with organizations in Massachusetts, California, Virginia and Wyoming. While some dogs will be placed on the West Coast, most dogs will be placed on the East Coast and in the Midwest.
Your local shelter can also contact the Humane Society if they are willing to take any of the dogs.
The organization is also accepting donations to facilitate the rescue.
Contact Navya Gupta at ngupta@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: 4,000 Beagles are being rescued from a Virginia facility: How to adopt
