PETA Statement: Animal Welfare Violations at the University of Maryland–Baltimore

For Immediate Release:
September 2, 2021

Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382

Please see the following statement from PETA Senior Vice President Kathy Guillermo regarding federal documents that reveal serious animal welfare violations at the University of Maryland–Baltimore:

The University of Maryland–Baltimore (UMB) needs to get out of the bloody animal experimentation business. According to a just-posted federal inspection report obtained by PETA, a macaque in one of its laboratories died of dehydration after workers failed to notice that the monkey didn’t have water for two full days. The death—which must have been excruciatingly painful and terrifying—was not reported to UMB’s animal experimentation oversight body, as is required. A whistleblower finally did that nine months later. In another incident, an experimenter deviated from an approved experimental protocol, in violation of the law. Such deviations can jeopardize the health and welfare of the animals involved.

In 2020, UMB used 661 animals who are covered by the federal Animal Welfare Act—including 223 guinea pigs, 89 primates, 45 rabbits, and two dogs. Of these, 214 were used in “Column E” experiments—painful experiments for which the animals were denied pain relief.

UMB’s treatment of animals is wildly out of step with today’s science and ethics.

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