The HSUS

Tell the USDA to protect animals in laboratories

Animals in research facilities need someone to make sure they are getting the care they need. That’s supposed to be the job of the United States Department of Agriculture, which once a year is expected to inspect regulated research facilities to ensure the animals in their care are receiving care that meets the standards of the Animal Welfare Act. But starting in 2019, USDA secretly stopped doing that very important job. And that needs to change.

They should be ensuring, with their own inspections, that animals in research facilities are receiving humane treatment.

But now we have new leadership at USDA that has promised to take animal care seriously. Help us to urge USDA to renew annual, extensive inspections of regulated research facilities to protect the lives of animals who live there.

TAKE ACTION

Please send a brief, polite message to the USDA using the form provided.

This action alert is for U.S. residents. International advocates, please visit Humane Society International.

Your Message

Subject*

Secretary

Tom

Vilsack

Dear Secretary Vilsack,

In 2019, USDA changed its inspection policy - shifting to smaller "focused" inspections for research facilities accredited by the Association for the Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care International.

Generally, full USDA inspections involve looking at records, the animals, and the facilities. However, when USDA made this change in 2019, inspectors were told that they only needed to look at one of those aspects or a sampling of them for research facilities accredited by the AAALAC. This shift puts animals at risk because it means that inspectors can give a facility a "clean bill of health" despite never having laid eyes on any animals in that facilities' care. This could mislead the public into thinking that all the animals are cared for properly when this may very well not be the case.

USDA is placing its trust in an accreditation body- the AAALAC that is not a federally regulated or enforced program and lacks transparency. This must change. I urge you to require annual, extensive inspections of all research facilities regulated under the Animal Welfare Act.

Please renew annual inspections of regulated research facilities and get the agency back to doing its job: protecting the animals regulated under the Animal Welfare Act.

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