The University of Oklahoma has been cited for federal violations by the U.S. Department of Agriculture following an early inspection of one of the university's Health Sciences Center laboratories. The university now faces fines pursued by an animal rights group.
The USDA conducted an inspection on June 3 of an OU laboratory and cited them for five violations of the Animal Welfare Act. Stop Animal Exploitation NOW! filed an official complaint with the USDA to deliver a federal fine.
In this inspection, the USDA cited OU for failure to provide pain relief to several animals while experimenting, failure to provide adequate veterinary care, improper sanitation and improper treatment of psychologically disturbed monkeys.
“We felt the inspections showed clear evidence of negligence,” said Michael Budkie, co-founder and executive director of SAEN.
SAEN regularly monitors USDA inspections for signs of animal abuse and mistreatment to see that research labs and other installations are abiding by the Animal Welfare Act.
The June inspection, coupled with an inspection made in August of 2013 of the same lab that also received three violations, prompted SAEN organization to file their complaint.
OU will not comment directly about the contents of the report conducted by the USDA but assures the public that university laboratories do their best to comply with federal regulations.
“The University of Oklahoma takes seriously its obligation to comply with all federal and regulatory standards related to animal welfare and scientific research,” OUHSC vice president for research James Tomasek said in a prepared statement. “The University of Oklahoma has responded to the USDA with regard to the items identified in the Inspection Report.”
Prior to the violations on the June 3 inspection, USDA reported in August 2013 that the lab used electrocution as a euthanization method for dogs in their labs.
SAEN's request to the USDA to conduct another investigation and serve OU with a federal fine could take up to another year to conduct. In the meantime, Budkie hopes SAEN's decision educates the public about crimes against animals.
