Hundreds of beagles died at facility before government took action

It took media attention to ‘chilling’ welfare violations and bipartisan calls for action before authorities intervened.

Update: On May 21, a U.S. district court judge ordered Envigo’s Cumberland facility to “immediately cease breeding, selling, or otherwise dealing in beagles” until it separates dogs that don’t get along, ensures every puppy has access to clean water, and submits an inventory of every dog to the government, among other requirements.

More than 5,000 dogs were crowded in small, barren cages lined with feces and mold. A three-week-old puppy was stuck in a waste pan under his cage, dried feces matting his fur. Fights between kennel mates had left some dogs dead, including one by “evisceration.”  

These violations and dozens more were documented in recent United States Department of Agriculture public inspection reports. Yet for months, the USDA, which is responsible for enforcing the Animal Welfare Act, neither confiscated any dogs nor suspended or revoked the license of the animal-breeding facility in Cumberland, Virginia. The facility is owned by Envigo, a privately held company with 20 locations across North America and Europe that provides animals for pharmaceutical

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