Last year, a laboratory in Germany made headlines after a video that showed monkeys and other animals in their lab screaming in pain with harnesses around their neck went viral on social media.
That Germany lab has had its license revoked and has been ordered by the authorities to hand over the animals on their premises.
The Mienenbüttel-based site, which is being run by the Laboratory of Pharmacology and Toxicology, has been ordered to be shut down.
The shutdown order was issued after an inspection was done.
The lab will be shut down permanently and has been ordered to hand over all the animals in their care in the next 2 weeks.
The Cruelty-Free International, an animal charity, conducted its own investigation, which made horrifying discoveries in October 2019.
After the thorough investigation, the lab has 2 weeks to hand over all the animals that are in their lab.
Kerry Postlewhite, the director of Public Affairs of the Cruelty-Free International, released a statement about the order.
Kerry said, “We are delighted that the authorities have taken action to hold LPT accountable. The levels of animal cruelty and breaches of law exposed by our investigation are totally unacceptable.”
Kerry added, “The evidence from our findings has lifted the lid on the secrecy that continues to surround the use of animals in these outdated tests and highlights the need for a review of toxicity testing throughout Europe. The cruelty of this nature cannot be allowed to take place in any laboratory.”
After the order, the Cruelty-Free International is calling for a review of toxicity testing throughout the whole of the European Union.
The horrible videos that went viral last year showed monkeys and other animals crying like newborn babies as they were forcibly tied by metal harnesses.
The harnesses were around their necks.
At that time, Friedrich Mülln worked with the Cruelty-Free International to bust the German laboratory.
Mr. Mülln talked about the animals in the laboratory.
He said, “The animals were even still waggling their tails when they were being taken to be killed, the dogs were desperate for human contact”
He added, “The worst treatment was kept for the monkeys. The macaques breed of monkeys are small, relatively light primates, which are often used for animal experiments at LPT.”
He continued, “They are kept in cramped conditions in small cages. Many of the animals have developed compulsive tendencies and are seen going round in circles.”
The horrible videos showed tests being taken on monkeys, dogs, rabbits, and cats.
The animals were being used for toxicology tests.
The Cruelty-Free International said the toxicology tests involved poisoning the poor animals to see how much of a certain chemical or drug will take to cause serious harm to humans.
The tests were done to know how much a safe dose of drugs or chemicals will be safe for humans.
The animals are said to have been injected or forced to eat more and more of the substances so testers could measure the toxic effects.
Horrible side effects of the toxicology tests included vomiting, respiratory distress, organ failure, lethargy, skin problems, internal bleeding, and even death for some.
The staff at the German laboratory were not trained to care for the animals.
The CFI said the animals in the videos were never given pain relief.
It’s a good thing to know that the animals will be freed and the lab will be shut down.