Did you know that Cumberland, Virginia, is home to a massive factory farm that breeds dogs? Owned by Envigo—Virginia’s largest commercial dog breeder—it warehouses 5,000 beagles at a time and produces 500 puppies per month to sell to experimenters all over the world.
Beagles are used for experimentation because they’re small, docile, and forgiving. At Envigo, these gentle dogs are kept caged 24/7 without beds, stimulation, or the opportunity to play or exercise—they don’t even have names. A PETA undercover investigation and a 37-page inspection report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently exposed the cruelty at this hellish facility, which has been operating in Virginia without state oversight since 1961.
USDA inspections of Envigo resulted in 26 citations in 2021. The inspection reports detail the following, among other findings:
- Sick animals left untreated, including 71 dogs who had been injured in fights, five with severe dental disease, and three with serious skin conditions, including one who had patchy hair loss covering approximately 80% of her coat
- Nursing dogs deprived of food (Some were seen “reaching their front paws through the doors of the cages to reach the food in the top of their feeders” and “trying to scoop or dig out food from the feeders,” only to retrieve an occasional piece of kibble. One mother dog was observed “vigorously licking the back of the self-feeder, [and] another was observed intently smelling the side of the feeder.”)
- A “large accumulation of feces, urine, standing water, insects (both dead and alive) and uneaten food under the raised indoor and outdoor kennel floors”
The federal investigation is ongoing, and additional citations are expected. An auditor’s report on Envigo that was filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission outlines possible outcomes of the investigation:
During the period from July through December 2021, one of the Company’s U.S. facilities was inspected on several occasions by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (“USDA”). USDA issued inspection reports with findings of non-compliance with certain USDA laws and regulations. Envigo formally appealed certain of the findings. USDA has indicated it intends to conduct a formal investigation. The inspections and/or the investigation could lead to enforcement action resulting in penalties that could include a temporary restraining order or injunction, civil and/or criminal penalties, and/or license suspension or revocation. Orders resulting from an administrative action, if any, can be appealed to a U.S. Court of Appeals. There can be no certainty as to the end result.
To learn more, read The Washington Post articles “USDA Cites Dog-Breeding Facility in Virginia for Mistreating Animals” and “Virginia Lawmakers Try to Improve Conditions for Dogs Bred for Medical Research.”
But there’s good news, too! Nine Virginia legislators from both sides of the aisle have introduced 11 bills that, if passed, would help improve welfare standards, implement some reporting requirements, restrict state funds that can be spent on animals from facilities that have violated the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA), and more. The dogs need concerned Virginians like you to contact your legislators and urge them to support these bills, which would do the following:
- Increase protections for dogs and cats by ensuring that companies cited under certain provisions of the AWA can’t do business with Virginia state agencies and that the state does not use public funds to procure animals from facilities that are in violation of the AWA [HB 255, SB 87]
- Prohibit the sale of dogs bred for experimentation in Virginia for experiments not required by federal law or regulation and prohibit the sale of dogs for experimentation overseas (This industry is shrouded in secrecy, but documentation shows that animals commercially bred in Virginia are sold to laboratories in Japan and Taiwan—both of which have abysmally low standards for animal welfare policy and legislation.) [HB 1061, SB 457]
- Help ensure that state authorities have oversight of facilities that breed dogs and cats for experimentation by implementing requirements for record keeping and reporting [SB 88, SB 442, SB 535]
- Require that animals at breeding facilities be given a chance to find a loving home (Dogs who have endured such miserable conditions their entire lives should be given a chance to be adopted, loved, and respected. One PETA investigator adopted Samson, a beagle used for breeding who was evidently no longer useful to Envigo. Samson needed urgent care for various health conditions—including broken and rotting teeth, an ear infection, and bloody urine—but he’s currently enjoying life with his adoptive family.) [SB 90]
- Close a legal loophole that currently excludes dogs and cats used as research animals from Virginia’s companion animal–protection laws (This bill would hold facilities that breed dogs and cats for experimentation to the same standards as animal shelters and commercial breeders that sell them as companion animals.) [SB 604]
You can stay up to date on ways to help by following the Virginia Coalition for Beagle Protection’s Facebook page.
For more information about these bills, see below.
Patron: Del. Shelly A. Simonds
Summary (as introduced): Procurement of dogs and cats for research. Prohibits any state entity, including a public institution of higher education, from procuring dogs or cats for research purposes from a person or entity that has received certain citations pursuant to the federal Animal Welfare Act.
Patron: Del. Irene Shin
Summary (as introduced): Breeding dogs or cats for foreign animal testing facility prohibited; penalty. Prohibits a person from breeding or raising a dog or cat for the purpose of selling or transferring the dog or cat, or its offspring, to an animal testing facility outside of the United States. A violation of the bill is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
Patron: Del. Kaye Kory and Del. Hyland F. “Buddy” Fowler Jr.
Summary (as introduced): Breeders; records of animals sold or transferred to animal testing facility; report. Requires entities that breed dogs or cats for sale or transfer to an animal testing facility to keep records of each animal for two years from the date of the sale or transfer, and to annually submit a summary of the records to the State Veterinarian. Such entities shall also report certain information to the State Veterinarian on a monthly basis. The report shall include information regarding the birth, acquisition, death, sale, transfer, or other disposition of a dog or cat in the prior month.
Patron: Del. Kaye Kory and Del. Hyland F. “Buddy” Fowler Jr.
Summary (as introduced): Breeders; records of animals sold or transferred to animal testing facility; report. Requires entities that breed dogs or cats for sale or transfer to an animal testing facility to keep records of each animal for two years from the date of the sale or transfer, and to annually submit a summary of the records to the State Veterinarian. Such entities shall also report certain information to the State Veterinarian on a monthly basis. The report shall include information regarding the birth, acquisition, death, sale, transfer, or other disposition of a dog or cat in the prior month.
Patron: Del. Robert B. Bell
Summary (as introduced): Dealers; sale of dogs or cats for experimental purposes. Prohibits a dealer or commercial dog or cat breeder from importing for sale, selling, or offering for sale a dog or cat bred by a person who has received certain citations pursuant to the federal Animal Welfare Act. Current law only prohibits such activities related to the sale of dogs. The bill also clarifies that selling includes selling the dog or cat for experimental purposes.
Patron: Sen. William M. Stanley Jr.
Summary (as introduced): Dealers; sale of dogs or cats for experimental purposes. Prohibits a dealer or commercial dog or cat breeder from importing for sale, selling, or offering for sale a dog or cat bred by a person who has received certain citations pursuant to the federal Animal Welfare Act. Current law only prohibits such activities related to the sale of dogs. The bill also clarifies that selling includes selling the dog or cat for experimental purposes.
Patron: Sen. William M. Stanley Jr.
Summary (as introduced): Breeders; records of animals sold or transferred to animal testing facility. Requires entities that breed dogs or cats for sale or transfer to an animal testing facility to keep records of each animal for two years from the date of the sale or transfer, and to annually submit a summary of the records to the State Veterinarian.
Patron: Sen. William M. Stanley Jr.
Summary (as introduced): Breeders of dogs and cats for animal testing facilities; adoption of dogs and cats. Requires a breeder of dogs and cats for sale or transfer to an animal testing facility that no longer has a need for a dog or cat in its possession to offer the animal for adoption prior to euthanizing it. Currently, only animal testing facilities are subject to this requirement.
Patron: Sen. Jennifer B. Boysko
Summary (as introduced): Breeding of dogs and cats for research; reporting. Requires any person who or entity that breeds dogs and cats for animal testing facilities to report certain [information] to the State Veterinarian on a monthly basis. The report shall include information regarding the birth, acquisition, death, sale, transfer, or other disposition of a dog or cat in the prior month.
Patron: Sen. Jennifer B. Boysko
Summary (as introduced): Breeding dogs for certain research prohibited; penalty. Prohibits a person from breeding or raising a dog for the purpose of selling or transferring the dog or cat, or its offspring, to an animal research facility outside of the United States, or to an animal research facility located in the United States that will use the animal for testing or research not required by federal law or regulation. A violation is a Class 1 misdemeanor.
Patron: Sen. David W. Marsden
Summary (as introduced): Oversight of research breeders; Animal Welfare Oversight Officer; Animal Welfare Oversight Advisory Committee; civil penalty. Directs the State Veterinarian to hire an Animal Welfare Oversight Officer to inspect and oversee the operations of research breeders, defined in the bill as a person or entity that breeds dogs or cats for sale or transfer for use in testing or research within or outside the Commonwealth, and report any violations of state or federal law by the research breeder. The bill requires each research breeder to register with the Animal Welfare Oversight Officer, pay a registration fee as determined by the Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and allow the Animal Welfare Oversight Officer continuous access to its facilities located in the Commonwealth. The bill subjects a research breeder that does not register, pay the fee, or allow the Animal Welfare Oversight Officer access to its facilities to a civil penalty of $1,000 for each day of noncompliance. The bill also establishes an Animal Welfare Oversight Advisory Committee.
Patron: Sen. William M. Stanley Jr.
Summary (as introduced): Animal cruelty; companion animals; penalty. Clarifies that dogs and cats in the possession of a person who or an entity that breeds dogs or cats for sale or transfer to an animal research facility are considered companion animals for the purposes of animal cruelty statutes. The bill also provides that breeding dogs or cats for sale or transfer to a research facility, or breeding dogs or cats within a research facility, does not constitute bona fide scientific or medical experimentation for purposes of animal cruelty statutes.
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