Sunday, May 20, 2007

Animal Advocate Wants Research Changes

By Jim Ludwick
Journal Staff Writer

    The University of New Mexico has 7,000 to 8,000 animals for use in research or teaching.
    Most of the animals are mice or rats, but there are other creatures such as hamsters, frogs, fish, rabbits and snakes, said Susan McKinsey, communications director for the university.
    Elisabeth Jennings, executive director of Animal Protection of New Mexico, said controversial experiments that have been criticized by a former lab research veterinarian raise questions about "what the thousands of other animals on campus are being subjected to, and if anyone is paying attention."
    Jennings called for immediate changes in animal research policies.
    She said plans for animal experiments should be posted on a Web site to ensure transparency in the process.
    There should be video of animal experiments, available to the public as part of an open-records policy, she said.
    Jennings also called for an effort "to annually reduce the percentage of the research budget allocated to animal experimentation."
    "If animal research labs had glass walls, the public would not support the vast majority of animal experiments," she said.
    Ray Powell, a veterinarian serving as the regional director of the Jane Goodall Institute, said greater openness about research "would set our university apart and be a beacon for the rest of the country."
    "I would hope the state's premier research facility— the University of New Mexico— would see this as an opportunity to set a new standard for openness and humane treatment of animals," said Powell, a former state land commissioner.
    UNM officials, including Terry Yates, vice president for research, could not be reached for comment.

 

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Related articles:

Good Science or Torture? Experiments at UNM Laboratory Draw Fire

UNM's Attorneys Hid Lab Results

UNM Lost in Maze of Animal-Lab Excuses

Breaking Federal Rules 'Not Uncommon' in Animal Tests, Scientist Says

 

Posted with permission of the Albuquerque Publishing Company.