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VANCOUVER (March 2, 2011) – Today, Stop UBC Animal Research urged the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) to spare endangered green sea turtles scheduled to die at the hands of university researchers later this month. Over the weekend, the animal advocacy group was tipped off by a UBC insider about the university's plans to kill six to eight imperiled turtles in early spring. The whistleblower claimed UBC was killing the turtles because the university was closing some animal research facilities on UBC’s south campus and had no place to move the animals.
“While the world undertakes heroic efforts to save endangered sea turtles, it is shocking UBC is plotting to kill one of the most imperiled animals on Earth," said Brian Vincent of Stop UBC Animal Research.
According to UBC Zoology Department head, Dr. Bill Milsom, who spoke with Stop UBC Animal Research, UBC obtained the turtles ten years ago from a turtle farm in the Cayman Islands. Dr. Milsom confirmed to the animal organization that the turtles have been used in research and would be killed at the end of the experiment. He denied UBC was killing them because of space constraints.
Under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wildlife Fauna and Flora (CITES), UBC would have been required to obtain a permit to transport the sea turtles into Canada. Stop UBC Animal Research has asked UBC to provide the group with a copy of the CITES permit to verify the animals were obtained through the proper channels and to learn any details that would have been provided in such a permit. In addition, the animal advocacy organization requested specific information about the experiments UBC researchers have conducted on the turtles while housed at the university. UBC has yet to respond to the group’s requests.
All seven species of sea turtles are at high risk of extinction. Listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, sea turtles face a host of threats. Those threats include: pollution, especially from oil spills, beach front development, ingestion of marine debris, such as plastic bags, the illegal turtle shell trade, and turtle egg and meat consumption. In addition, artificial lighting along beaches often discourages female turtles from nesting and disorients hatchlings who may mistakenly wander inland, exposing them to predation.
“All species of sea turtles are protected by international law because they are highly endangered,” said Vincent. “Instead of killing these at-risk animals, UBC should contribute to the long-term conservation of sea turtles by handing them over to a sanctuary or to the Vancouver Aquarium. Killing the animals after UBC has experimented on them for ten years just adds insult to injury. They've suffered enough.”
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VANCOUVER (March 9, 2011) – Today, Stop UBC Animal Research expressed serious concerns about a deal UBC was brokering over seven endangered green sea turtles currently housed at the university. According to a Postmedia news report, “A United Kingdom-based entertainment group, which operates more than 30 aquariums in European countries as well as Sea Life Minnesota, has offered to take UBC's young turtles in exchange for old or injured turtles reaching the end of their lives.” The news report also noted UBC planned to carry out invasive and ultimately “terminal” experiments on the new arrivals from Britain. Stop UBC Animal Research said it could not support such an arrangement because it would “trade one life for another” and cause stress and trauma for the turtles shipped from abroad.
“While we are encouraged UBC wants to find homes for the seven endangered sea turtles, we cannot support any deal that trades one life for another,” said Brian Vincent of Stop UBC Animal Research.
Last week, a UBC insider tipped off the Vancouver-based animal advocacy group about the university’s plans to kill the highly imperiled turtles, which were obtained from a Cayman Islands turtle farm more than ten years ago. That story was featured on the front page of the Vancouver Sun, picked up by international media, and gained world-wide attention. Stop UBC Animal Research launched a vigorous campaign – that included a global call-in week to UBC officials – to pressure the university to spare the animals.
“It is clear UBC is worried about its public image and is trying to save face with this exchange,” said Vincent. “But shifting the suffering from the turtles at UBC to those from the UK is a deal that is dead in the water for us.”
Stop UBC Animal Research has waged an assertive months’-long effort to expose UBC’s animal research programs, including recent stories about the university’s experiments on monkeys and UBC’s plans to build an animal testing facility at its Okangan campus. To counter the animal activists’ successes, UBC unveiled a slick, new website today – a site Stop UBC Animal Research described as “nothing more than PR puffery.”
“UBC’s new website touting its animal research is a lot like cotton candy. A lot of fluff with little substance,” said Vincent.
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VANCOUVER (March 7, 2011) – Today, Stop UBC Animal Research condemned the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) plans to build a new animal testing facility at its Okanagan campus. The new building, the In Vivo Research Facility, is being contructed in the basement of the Arts and Sciences II building and is scheduled to open in September.
The UBYSSEY newspaper, which broke the story in its paper today, reports “According to Scott Reid, a professor of biology at the Okanagan campus and the acting facility manager of In Vivo, the university wanted to keep the project low profile in order to protect the safety of the facility and researchers from those opposed to animal research.”
But Stop UBC Animal Research said that UBC was simply trying to hide the grim reality of animal experimentation from the public because the university realizes just how much opposition there is to such research.
“At a time when there is growing concern and disapproval of UBC’s experiments on animals, it is deeply troubling the university plans to expand its animal research programs,” said Brian Vincent with Stop UBC Animal Research. “Equally disturbing is UBC’s continuing lack of transparency. The fact that UBC wanted to keep this new facility hush-hush, tucked away in a basement out of sight, shows the university does not want the public to know what it is doing to animals behind closed doors.”
It was unclear from the UBYSSEY report what species and how many animals will be housed at the In Vivo facility. Stop UBC Animal Research been able to determine what experiments will be conducted on the animals at the new building.
This latest revelation about UBC’s animal research comes on the heels of two major stories Stop UBC Animal Research broke about experiments at the university. In January, Stop UBC Animal Research alerted the Province newspaper about UBC’s invasive experiments on monkeys. Last week, the animal advocacy group was leaked information from a UBC whistleblower about the school’s plans to kill seven endangered sea turtles. That story was featured on the front page of the Vancouver Sun and picked up by international media.
“Because UBC is so tight lipped about its animal research – research funded with taxpayers dollars, mind you – the public has no ability to scrutinize the university,” said Vincent. “Fortunately, more and more courageous souls inside UBC are coming forward with information. But public disclosure by whistleblower is not sound public policy. It is time UBC came clean about its animal experiments.”
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WHAT: Stop UBC Animal Research is staging a week-long vigil and public outreach effort at UBC to protest UBC’s cruel experiments on monkeys. Next month, the university is expected to kill four monkeys currently used in research at UBC. Animal advocates will be dressed in monkey costumes to help bring attention to the issue and will call on UBC to release the primates to a sanctuary.
WHEN: From Monday, March 28th until Friday, April 1, Stop UBC Animal Research is maintaining a presence on the UBC campus. Each day, members of the animal advocacy group will gather on the southside of the UBC Student Union Building. During that week, Stop UBC Animal Research will be on the UBC campus in shifts from 9AM-12 and 12-4PM.
WHERE: UBC Student Union Building. (Click here for SUB address and directions.)
WHY: Earlier this year, Stop UBC Animal Research learned of UBC's experiments on non-human primates. According to documents obtained by the organization, UBC has been:
Injecting toxins into monkeys' brains to simulate “parkinsonism.” A UBC report obtained by Stop UBC Animal Research states that one researcher is using four to eight non-human primates to create in the animals “a new, progressively degenerative ‘model’ of Parkinson’s Disease.” According to the document, the UBC researcher’s experiment “uses rhesus monkeys which are receiving injections of proteasomal inhibitors into their brains. Head-holding devices have been surgically implanted into the monkeys’ brains, and protrude from the top of the monkeys’ heads, to be hooked up to frames when the researchers want to totally immobilize the animals presumably for injection of drugs and for scans at 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. The monkeys have been scanned after implantation but before injection, for baseline (or starting point) information. Some animals are to be killed at 6 months, some at 12 months.” According to an April 12, 2010 progress report published by TRIUMF, Canada's National Laboratory for Particle and Nuclear Physics, UBC’s Parkinson’s experiment is active and ongoing. It is anticipated the monkeys will be killed by April, when federal funding for the project ends. Stop UBC Animal Research has offered to buy the monkeys so they can be placed in a primate sanctuary.
VISUALS: Activists dressed in monkey costumes; Stop UBC Animal Research banner; information table.
QUOTE:
"Four monkeys are sitting on UBC's death row," said Mya Wollf of Stop UBC Animal Research. "The clock is ticking for these poor animals. We're here this week urging UBC to grant the monkeys a stay of execution."
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Conference to feature live dissection of animals
WHAT: This week, animal rights advocates will be protesting a national animal research conference in Toronto that activists claim promotes the “cruel and unnecessary use of animals for teaching purposes.” From May 14-17, the Canadian Association for Laboratory Animal Science (CALAS) – an association of lab technicians – will be holding its 50th Annual Convention at the Sheraton / Best Western Convention Centre in Richmond Hill. Many of the workshops at the convention will be using animals in demonstrations and hands-on training, including live dissections on animals. Animal advocates urged CALAS to shift away from the use of animals in testing and teaching to non-animal alternatives.
WHEN: Protest will be held Sunday, May 15, Noon-3PM. The four-day conference is scheduled for May 14-17.
WHERE: Conference Centre at the Sheraton/Best Western Parkway, Toronto North Hotel, 600 Highway 7 East, Richmond Hill (Highway 7, near Leslie St).
WHY: Animal advocates will be protesting the conference because they claim the event promotes the cruel and unnecessary use of animals. Many of the workshops, which will be held off-hotel grounds at area research facilities, will be using animals in demonstrations and hands-on training, including live dissections on animals. Conference workshops include demonstrating “appropriate handling, sexing and basic examination of” live mice, rats, and rabbits. Conference participates will also “implant transmitters in laboratory rats.” One workshop on pigs gives attendees “a chance to perform endotracheal intubation, place the animal on a ventilator, IV line placement and anaesthetics monitoring.” In another, “each participant will perform a splenectomy on a rat.”
QUOTES:
“Mice, rats, rabbits, and pigs are sentient animals who experience physical and psychological pain much the same way humans do,” said Anna Pippus of the Student Animal Legal Defense Fund. “Many people are opposed to vivisection, supporting instead humane alternatives.”
“These are animals are being tortured and killed for frivolous purposes. If any one of us did this to a cat or dog, we would face animal abuse charges,” said Paul York of STOP University of Toronto. “This conference should be promoting humane alternatives to the use of animals, not more animal testing, which is cruel and unnecessary.”
“Experimenting on animals is at odds with Canadians sense of compassion,” said Brian Vincent, Director of the Canadian Coalition Against Animal Research and Experimentation, a national network of animal advocates. “It is time Canada moves away from such cruel research to more humane, non-animal alternatives.”
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Click here for conference details.
Click here for CALAS conference schedule. |
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