Washington, DC – Today Congresswoman Dina Titus (NV-01), a member of the Congressional Animal Protection Caucus, and Congressman Brian Mast (R-FL) sent a letter to the Director at the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to express their concerns about the use of taxpayer dollars to fund a colony of dogs bred to suffer from bleeding disorders, and to finance deadly experiments on these dogs.

“Since 1947, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has maintained and grown a taxpayer-funded colony of dogs with hemophilia and related disorders. Through documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by nonprofit organization White Coat Waste Project, the cruelty and inhumane nature with which these dogs are treated has recently come to light,” the Members wrote.

“Documents reveal that many dogs in the colony ‘exhibit hemorrhages of the legs, chest, face and head, hips, and along the neck and back.’ We are especially disturbed to find that UNC researchers have recorded an exorbitant death toll of newborn puppies, where their condition often leads to fatal injuries after birth or when their mother moves the puppies by their neck.” The Members continued. “Sadly — and unsurprisingly — dogs are killed upon the conclusion of the experiments, with UNC noting that ‘necropsy will be performed on dogs, experimental or control, after completion of the planned experiment.’”

“Our new investigation exposes that for 75 years—since the Truman Administration—NIH white coats have been bleeding taxpayers by bankrolling a secretive dog colony that breeds thousands of sick beagles and other puppies for the government’s wasteful blood disorder experiments,” said Justin Goodman, Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Public Policy at the White Coat Waste Project. “For years, we’ve proudly worked with Rep. Titus to unite Congressional Democrats and Republicans to successfully shut down a record number of federal dog labs. Now, a supermajority of taxpayers across the political spectrum wants Congress to defund NIH dog experiments and we applaud Rep. Titus for once again leading bipartisan efforts to investigate and end this waste and abuse. Seventy-five years is long enough: stop the money, stop the madness.”

Read today’s full letter here.

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