07/19/12 Beagle Testing Kennel Closed In Italy!

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On the seventh anniversary of rescuing beagles from experiments at the Faculty of the Veterinary Medicine in Zagreb beagle testing kennel closed In Italy!

- The beagles rescued on July 21, 2005 from broken bone testing were from the Italian kennel Green Hill

Numerous reports and protests from animal right activists have brought about a great ethical victory – the Green Hill kennel designed to breed beagles for experiments has been closed and three of its executives are under investigation for animal abuse. After an investigation, carried out by 30 inspectors and publicly supported by the Italian Minister of Agriculture Mario Catania, the five acre kennel including all the puppies and adult beagles housed inside were seized.

On July 21, 2005, 32 beagles were brought from the notorious Italian kennel and taken to the Faculty of the Veterinary Medicine in Zagreb. After the dramatic events in the famous "Beagle Affair" and the blitz action taken by Animal Friends, the deeply traumatized dogs, of which 22 had broken bones, ended up in foster care. Scared, broken, wounded and sick after spending years cooped up in tiny, filthy cages, the dogs touched grass and saw the sun for the very first time in their lives. Intense negotiations with the Dean of the Faculty of the Veterinary Medicine preceded the rescue action with the support of the citizens, the media and public figures. After being placed in foster homes, the dogs have visibly recovered both physically and psychologically and have started to positively respond to music, cuddling and touching as well as overcoming their fears.

Although Animal Friends and SUZA have undertaken all actions to unearth illegal and unethical treatment of animals no one has been punished until now. The people responsible have not borne the consequences of their unprofessional and unethical behavior and are continuing to work with animals.

In 2005, the beagles at the Faculty of the Veterinary Medicine had their bones broken, although research of this kind has already been done on humans. The Animal Protection Act formed the Ethics Committee but, even after five years of the Act coming into force, the Ethics Committee as not come to life, and animal testing in Croatia is still carried out without any control.

Numerous animals hidden in laboratories are undergoing painful, excruciating experiments and left to die. There is no clear criterion or the possibility of insight into what is being done to these animals, and every query into the Croatian institutions which torture said animals is deemed an attack on a closely guarded secret.

It is clear that the Croatian authorities responsible for animal testing remain inert and uninterested, not only for enforcing the law, but also for the achievements of modern science, which offers the advantage of reliable and ethical alternative testing methods, without barbarically inflicting pain on conscious living beings.

After the closure of Green Hill, Italian activist organizations are demanding the Italian Senate adopt a law which prohibits the breeding of animals for experiments. A standard which would prohibit the breeding of dogs, cats, and other nonhuman primates has already been approved by the House of Representatives and is currently being debated by the Senate. Amongst other things, the law would stipulate the requirement of anesthesia and analgesia for testing, ban the practice of war games and coaching with animals and support the alternative methods of testing.

Croatia needs to follow the contemporary, ethical and scientific developments in neighboring countries and the rest of Europe. By investing in modern scientific methods Croatia would show that it cares not only about the exploitation and killing of animals via experiments, but would also protect people as the new methods would be much more beneficial than the currently outdated, repetitive and unrewarding methods of animal testing.

As a member of the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments (ECEAE) and representatives of InterNICHE in Croatia, Animal Friends is urging citizens to build a clear stance against animal testing, to be conscientious consumers and only purchase products not tested on animals. Information about the so-called white list of companies and testing methods which do not involve animals can be found at www.prijatelji-zivotinja.hr, where one can find the petition to ban the sale of products tested on animals.

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