WAN Exclusive: New Investigation Finds U.S. Department Of Defense Abusing Dogs In Outdated Drug Testing

A new investigation by the White Coat Waste Project has exposed cruel and unnecessary drug testing on beagles, which is being funded with tax payer dollars by the Department of Defense (DOD).

WCW has uncovered federal records showing that the U.S. Army has ordered $949,108 worth of experiments on beagles to test the toxicity of an experimental drug. The project started in August 2023 and is scheduled to run until July 31st, 2024.

The DOD-funded toxicity tests involve dogs being poisoned with massive doses of an experimental drug for months on end. In these tests, pain relief is often withheld entirely, and the dogs are horrifically poisoned to death. WCW has filed Freedom of Information Act requests to obtain more details about the current project and is briefing Congress as it debates the DOD’s budget for next year.

The DOD dog tests aim to secure approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for a new drug, despite the FDA publicly stating, “The FDA does not require human drugs to be tested on dogs.”

Furthermore, WCW reports that the DOD has prohibited the use of dogs in wound and weapons experiments for a long time. However, a loophole has enabled them to continue mistreating dogs in drug tests. The DOD also acknowledges that “animal models have limited relevance to humans and poorly predict effects in humans.”

WCW previously exposed the abuse of puppies as young as one week old in cruel and unnecessary drug tests funded by government agencies for FDA approval. Some dogs were de-barked and had their mouths duct-taped shut to prevent them from spitting out the drugs.

In 2022, the government canceled plans for a series of five drug safety tests on puppies totaling $1.8 million and acknowledged that alternatives could be used instead, following a WCW investigation and congressional pressure.

“The DOD’s barbaric and unnecessary drug tests on dogs and puppies must be defunded and shut down before any more animals suffer and die and before any more taxpayer dollars are wasted,” Justin Goodman, WCW’s senior vice president of advocacy and public policy, told WAN. “Since the 1980s, the Pentagon has banned the abuse of dogs in weapons and wound experiments, but a loophole has allowed it to continue, butchering beagles in wasteful drug tests. This needs to stop.”

WCW has exposed numerous taxpayer-funded experiments on dogs that have squandered millions of dollars and caused the deaths of many animals. The cruel experiments involve injecting puppies with cocaine, infecting abandoned hounds with sand flies, and subjecting dogs to septic shock.

Human clinical research and advanced human biology-based technologies like “organs-on-a-chip” are proven to be more effective than animal tests. They will not only save billions of dollars and countless animal lives but also bring about more timely and reliable cures.

WCW first exposed dog testing at the DOD and other agencies in 2016 and has successfully ended testing at the Department of Veterans Affairs and other agencies since then. Presently, the organization is collaborating with bipartisan lawmakers like Representatives Nancy Mace (R-SC), Jared Moskowitz (D-FL), Greg Steube (R-FL), Don Davis (D-NC), Dina Titus (D-NV), and Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) to pass legislation such as the Preventing Animal Abuse and Waste (PAAW) Act to cut funding for painful government experiments on dogs and cats.

“A supermajority of Americans across the political spectrum oppose the DOD’s disgusting dog experiments and we’re working with Congress to cut this cruelty,” said Goodman. “White Coat Waste Project is proud to lead the efforts to get the government out of the dog testing business. The solution is simple: Stop the money. Stop the madness!”

WCW is encouraging people to contact their legislators and ask for their support of the Preventing Animal Abuse and Waste (PAAW) Act, HERE!