Event Details
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A CALL TO END ANIMAL TESTING
On May 30th, animal rights advocates will hold the first in a series of peaceful protests outside the Charles River Laboratories and Biomere research facilities at 55-57 Union Street in downtown Worcester, from noon-4.
Our goal is the end of all animal experimentation — and we are starting with the dogs, because Massachusetts law gives us a powerful tool to fight for them.
Charles River Laboratories — the world's largest contract animal research organization — operates active canine research laboratories occupying multiple floors at this address. The company's own website advertises "large canine colonies ready for study starts" and "in vivo" drug testing services here in downtown Worcester. In vivo testing means live animals are dosed with pharmaceutical compounds, monitored, and killed so their organs can be examined.
Charles River is a documented buyer of beagles from Marshall BioResources, the nation's largest commercial beagle breeding facility, which has accumulated more than 20 federal Animal Welfare Act violations since 2007. The dogs at CRL are also sourced from facilities like Ridglan Farms, who have also been found guilty of many animal welfare violations.
Charles River Laboratories — the world's largest contract animal research organization — operates active canine research laboratories occupying multiple floors at this address. The company's own website advertises "large canine colonies ready for study starts" and "in vivo" drug testing services here in downtown Worcester. In vivo testing means live animals are dosed with pharmaceutical compounds, monitored, and killed so their organs can be examined.
Charles River is a documented buyer of beagles from Marshall BioResources, the nation's largest commercial beagle breeding facility, which has accumulated more than 20 federal Animal Welfare Act violations since 2007. The dogs at CRL are also sourced from facilities like Ridglan Farms, who have also been found guilty of many animal welfare violations.
The supply chain is established: they are bred for this purpose, sold to research labs, dosed with pharmaceutical compounds, and killed. Most Worcester residents have no idea any of it is happening inside a building they pass every day.
Beyond the fundamental wrong of using any animal for experimentation, Massachusetts law specifically prohibits this outcome for dogs and cats. The Beagle Bill (MGL c. 140 § 174D½), signed into law in 2022, requires research facilities to offer healthy dogs and cats for adoption once their research use ends. Charles River appears to circumvent this requirement by mandating necropsy — killing and dissecting every animal at study's end — thereby eliminating any legal obligation to offer them for adoption. The spirit and intent of Massachusetts law is being systematically exploited by one of the most profitable contract research organizations in the world, operating in plain sight in downtown Worcester.
Charles River is currently under civil and criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice for violations of federal monkey importation laws. The SEC is separately investigating the company for misleading shareholders about its animal supply chain.
Beyond the fundamental wrong of using any animal for experimentation, Massachusetts law specifically prohibits this outcome for dogs and cats. The Beagle Bill (MGL c. 140 § 174D½), signed into law in 2022, requires research facilities to offer healthy dogs and cats for adoption once their research use ends. Charles River appears to circumvent this requirement by mandating necropsy — killing and dissecting every animal at study's end — thereby eliminating any legal obligation to offer them for adoption. The spirit and intent of Massachusetts law is being systematically exploited by one of the most profitable contract research organizations in the world, operating in plain sight in downtown Worcester.
Charles River is currently under civil and criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice for violations of federal monkey importation laws. The SEC is separately investigating the company for misleading shareholders about its animal supply chain.
The FDA Modernization Act 2.0, signed into law in December 2022, eliminated the longstanding federal requirement that drugs be tested on animals before human trials, allowing alternative methods such as organ-on-a-chip technology, organoids, and computer modeling to be used instead.
Furthermore, the FDA has announced a plan to phase out animal testing requirements, acknowledging what the data has long shown: more than 90 percent of drugs that pass animal studies fail in human clinical trials.
The science doesn't work. The law is being ignored. The killing continues anyway.
That ends now.
That ends now.
OUR REQUESTS:
— End all animal experimentation at 55-57 Union Street and immediately transition to non-animal New Approach Methodologies (NAMs)
— Release all research dogs and cats at this location to verified rescue organizations
— Comply with the Massachusetts Beagle Bill in full
— End the commercial relationship with Marshall BioResources
Animal lovers, concerned citizens, advocates, members of the press, and all individuals or groups opposed to animal testing are welcome. Bring a sign or just bring your voice.
Date: Saturday, May 30
Time: Noon–4 PM
Location: 55-57 Union Street, Worcester, MA
Contact: Steve 'Chip' Brown
Email: vegan.dog.runner@gmail.com