University Stops Shelter Testing

Following a months-long effort by animal-welfare groups such as PETA, the University of Utah has confirmed that it will no longer use dogs and cats from animal shelters for biomedical experiments. University Vice President for Research Thomas Parks said that the school will instead obtain specially bred dogs and cats. While PETA is thrilled that the school has “stopped using animal shelters as dirt-cheap sources of living lab equipment,” PETA’s Vice President for Laboratory Investigations Kathy Guillermo says she hopes that the added costs of special breeding will drive the school to consider options other than experimenting on live animals.