USDA spends $650,000 of taxpayer’s money annually to toxoplasma-infect 100 kittens and kill them
I had no idea that it cost that much to carry out cruel and unnecessary animal experiments on kittens. There is a bizarre contrast between the expense and the vulnerability of the kitten victims.
Having written about this before I have know learnt that this huge amount of taxpayer’s money is being squandered on experiments on kittens the results of which seem dubious at best. The figure of $650k comes from the White Coat Waste Project, a conservative watchdog.
Screenshot via Pinterest from video published on Daily Mail website.
We are told that the USDA have been breeding 100 kittens each year since 1982, infecting them with toxoplasma using raw meat and killing them despite specialist antibiotics being available to cure them. The USDA defend their actions by saying the kittens are unadoptable because of the parasite and that the figure of 100 kittens is an overestimate.
Does this mean that around £23.4 million of taxpayer’s money has been spent on this project? Brian Darling and Christian Josi writing for the Washington Examiner tell us that Congress has taken action to prohibit the Secretary of Veterans Affairs from funding experiments on dogs causing significant pain or harm. Guess what they were doing? They were drilling holes into the heads of 6-month-old puppies and injecting latex into their arteries to induce heart attacks.
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| FULL Maine Coon guide - lots of pages |
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What about the kittens? These experiments on toxoplasmosis are outdated and unwanted today. There was perhaps a time in the US when attitudes towards animal experiments were less sophisticated and sensitive than nowadays.
You may have read that Reps. Bishop and House Agriculture committee member Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., have introduced the Kittens in Traumatic Testing Ends Now Act. I love the name of the Act. It appears that both democrats and republicans are in favour of the Act. The stopping of taxpayer funded cruel animal testing for dubious reasons is a bipartisan cause.
Over a few weeks more than 120,000 have made their feelings known to Congress about these cruel tests using 10-week-old kittens and Michigan Republican Mike Bishop responded,
“You spoke up, so we are stepping up.”
I am sure that in the 21st century there are more sophisticated and more humane ways of doing tests on toxoplasmosis. It is time to plug was pulled on this outdated program.
SORRY TROLLS ARE BARRED FROM COMMENTING.
Nearly all, if not all, animal testing is cruel and archaic. Looking at this picture makes me ill. In this day and age, there is zero percent need for such procedures. Newer and technologically advanced choices are widely available.??
Yes, it depresses me to know it goes on. It is another example of the arrogant and brutal human in their relationship with animals. If I was in charge I’d ban it lock stock and barrel. Finito. Kaput.