Breaking: OHSU Pauses Pig Mutilation Drills; More Than 175 Physicians Push for Permanent Ban
For Immediate Release:
November 12, 2024
Contact:
Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382
PETA obtained records showing that Oregon Health & Science University paused the use of live pigs in its obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN) residency training program, and in a letter sent today, more than 175 physicians call on the university’s new Board of Directors Chair Chad Paulson and interim President Steve Stadum to make the decision permanent.
In the letter, PETA lets the administration know that it is pausing its campaign against the university’s cruel pig laboratory and offers to support the school in obtaining superior, animal-free technology.
The pig laboratory is currently suspended due to “decreased enthusiasm from the Chief resident class,” according to records PETA obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. Previous records showed that at least 64 OB/GYN residents at the university sliced open dozens of live female pigs in invasive practice surgeries, dissected their organs, and killed any survivors in attempts to learn human medicine.
“PETA thanks the Chief resident class for showing compassion to pigs, and we stand ready to offer OHSU assistance in switching to advanced, human-relevant technology,” says PETA Vice President Shalin Gala. “Cutting open and mutilating live female pigs as stand-ins for women is a cruel and archaic practice that cheats future physicians of the best medical training.”
More than 100 accredited OB/GYN residency programs confirmed that they don’t use live animals in physician training. Programs at Aurora Sinai Medical Center, Rush University Medical Center, and the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center ended their use of live pigs in favor of animal-free simulation technology after hearing from PETA. Henry Ford Hospital adopted a public policy against this practice after discussions with PETA.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to experiment on”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
