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Letter of Complaint to Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef, University of California, Davis, CA
1/15/09 Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef Dr. Vanderhoef, I am contacting you today regarding animal research conducted at the
University of California, Davis. As you may know, I have recently
requested that the USDA/APHIS/AC conduct an investigation into the
treatment of non-human primates within UC Davis. The reason that I have
taken this action is rooted in information contained in documents which
I have obtained from UC Davis. These documents include animal care
records for the primates within UC Davis facilities. I find that these
documents contain shocking information which raises very serious
questions about the condition of the primates. Postmortems for 404 UC Davis primates show 117 diagnoses of colitis,
and inanition – a bodily condition resembling starvation – was diagnosed
108 times. Dehydration is noted 91 times. Treatment records for these
animals disclose 403 instances of traumatic injuries, including 143
amputations. There were 387 wounds, 221 bites, 70 abrasions, and 40
fractures. Additionally, the clinical records for these animals reveal
multiple indications that a very serious problem exists regarding the
existence of self-destructive behavior in many of these primates. The
findings of your own veterinary staff clearly show that animal care at
UC Davis is inadequate at best. In addition to the issues raised by these documents I am very
seriously concerned about UC Davis experiments which involve
controversial practices such as the use of restraint chairs, water
deprivation, and surgically implanted head restraint bars. These
practices and procedures can cause serious problems for the animals
involved in them and have been demonstrated to cause problems at other
laboratories. At least two UC Davis researchers, Kenneth Britten and
Gregg Recanzone, use these procedures. For your information, these
procedures have been criticized severely by many veterinarians
(including two former UC staff), a colleague of Dr. Jane Goodall, an
expert in primatology who is considered an authority on rhesus monkeys,
as well as Dr. Martin Stephens of the Humane Society of the United
States. I would also like to raise one other issue, that of the reports filed
by UC Davis with the United States Department of Agriculture. Federal
Regulations (9CFR2.36) Section 2.36, clearly state: (7) State the common names and the numbers of animals upon which As you can see from the attached statements of experts in veterinary medicine, ethics, primatology, etc. it is clear that the research of Britten & Recanzone, and any other UC Davis staff that utilize similar procedures, would cause unrelieved pain and distress. In fact, the concept that confining primates to restraint chairs, bolting restraining bars into the bones of the skull, and depriving the same primates of access to water would not cause unrelieved pain and distress is simply ludicrous. I would like to know how the staff of the University of California, Davis could file an annual report (i.e. the 2007 report) and list no animals as having endured unrelieved pain and distress? Additionally, many of the primates at UC Davis are subjected to the simian equivalent of HIV. How is it that these animals are not listed as enduring unrelieved pain and distress? As long as UC Davis continues to experiment on animals, the university has an obligation to report these experiments honestly. This is apparently an obligation that the university has chosen to ignore. Therefore, in light of UC Davis’s apparent history of inadequate
animal care, as well as the highly invasive and controversial procedures
performed at within your laboratories, and the apparent filing of
fraudulent reports with the federal government, I feel it is necessary
for your laboratory to have more than the usual supervision. Therefore,
I hereby officially request the ability to perform an inspection of all
UC Davis primate research facilities including the California National
Primate Research Center, and the Center for Neuroscience including the
laboratories of
Kenneth Britten and
Gregg Recanzone. In order that this tour can be most effective, I would also request that it should include members of the news media from all TV stations, radio stations, and newspapers. The checkered history of the
University of California
(Davis) with regard to violating the Animal Welfare Act, abusing and
killing animals through negligence, has stirred controversy and damaged
the reputation of your university. One way to take a positive step
toward restoring the tarnished reputation of UC Davis would be to open
laboratory facilities to outside and independent inspections. I look
forward to your response and will expect to hear from you within five
days. With Respect For All Life,
Michael A. Budkie, A.H.T., Attachments: UC Davis 2007 Annual report, pg1 See: University of California, Davis, Ca Return to Articles and Reports |
