Target: Tom Vilsack, Secretary of U.S. Department of Agriculture
Goal: Investigate research facility with history of alleged animal welfare violations and mass primate escapes.
Over 40 rhesus macaque monkeys escaped the Alpha Genesis research facility in South Carolina. The monkeys reportedly made their break after a worker left an enclosure door open. While most of the monkeys have since been recaptured, a handful remain free and have seemingly taken up residence in surrounding forests.
Monkeys have escaped this facility at least two other times in the past decade. Over 10,000 primates are apparently kept at the facility for breeding and research purposes. But the facility has long had a troubling history of federal citations that call into question its level of veterinary care, the safety of its enclosures, and its unusually high record of primate fatalities (due to alleged neglect). A state representative has also accused the facility of “painful and deadly experiments involving dangerous pathogens and invasive procedures.”
This representative – along with animal rights advocates – have called for a full investigation of Alpha Genesis by two of the federal agencies responsible for overseeing it. Sign the petition below to join in calls to investigate and end this taxpayer-funded reported animal abuse.
PETITION LETTER:
Dear Secretary Vilsack,
More than 100 million dollars in taxpayer funds have been invested in a primate research facility notorious for its reported animal welfare violations and, most recently, for its escaped monkeys. South Carolina representative Nancy Mace has demanded both the National Institute of Health and this department investigate Alpha Genesis. She claims that “oversight remains minimal, with recent inspections confirming multiple violations, including escaped primates and fatal neglect.”
The latest incident alone has captured international headlines, has caused a mass deployment of local law enforcement resources, has unsettled the surrounding community, and has seemingly placed these young animals in imminent danger. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) has echoed calls for an investigation and appropriate punitive actions –including defunding and potentially shuttering the facility – if wrongdoing is proven. They speak for many other animal welfare advocates with the following statement: “Deprived of all that matters to them, these monkeys were leading a miserable existence—and now the 43 scared, cold, and hungry monkeys are on the loose. The monkey experimentation industry has consistently failed to improve human health, and instead, their actions continue to put the public at risk.” Humane accommodations for the escaped monkeys and the thousands of other primates currently occupying this seemingly abusive facility are also important considerations.
As the agency responsible for ensuring the welfare of America’s animals, please answer these pleas for urgent action in this matter.
Sincerely,
[Your Name Here]
Photo Credit: David V. Raju
_Rhesus_macaque.jpg){kind=link}