In a commendable display of bipartisanship, Florida lawmakers have joined forces with the White Coat Waste Project (WCW) to put an end to the Department of Defense’s (DOD) inhumane and wasteful experiments on dogs and cats. This effort is a win for animals and responsible government spending.
Recent investigations by WCW have uncovered shocking details about how millions of tax dollars are being wasted by the DOD on painful and deadly experiments on dogs and cats. This includes experimental drug testing that poisons puppies and horrendous experiments that electro-shock and cripple cats to study erectile dysfunction and constipation.
The DOD openly admits that “animal models have limited relevance to humans and poorly predict effects in humans,” but continues to squander tax dollars to abuse pets in experiments. That’s the definition of government waste.
Fortunately, WCW’s revelations about the DOD’s abuse of puppies and kittens have drawn widespread criticism from medical experts, the press, and advocates across the nation, and have also led to a historic legislative victory.
Thanks to WCW’s relentless campaigns and lobbying, the House of Representatives recently passed groundbreaking legislation led by Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-FL) to stop the DOD from funding experiments on dogs and cats. This unanimous bipartisan vote in June marked the first time Congress has ever moved to defund all dog and cat testing at the DOD.
Now, in a new bipartisan letter to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Florida’s own Representatives Jared Moskowitz, Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Mike Waltz (R-FL) and Greg Steube (R-FL) and 21 other lawmakers expressed deep concern and demanded details about the full extent of the DOD’s spending on inhumane dog and cat experiments.
The recent progress to end DOD pet abuse builds on momentum from WCW’s successful campaign that shut down dog and cat testing at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). When WCW launched its effort in 2016, the VA abused 220 dogs and 16 cats in its labs, including for maximum painful experiments in which pain relief was intentionally withheld. Thanks to leadership from Reps. Mast, Wasserman Schultz and other Florida Congress members, the VA has not experimented on any dogs or cats since early 2022 and the agency just canceled a much-criticized plan to resume cat testing.
Read: US Sen. Paul, Colleagues Demand Fauci Answer For ‘Inhumane’ Experiments On Beagle Puppies
Now, the DOD needs to follow suit.
Referencing meetings with WCW and lab survivors, Rep. Moskowitz recently stated, “I’ve had beagles visit my office that were rescued from cruel testing conditions, and hearing what they’ve been through is incredibly upsetting…Taxpayers don’t want their money spent on unnecessary and harmful experiments. I will continue to work across the aisle with my colleagues to end inhumane testing on dogs.”
Taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to pay for the DOD to butcher beagles and cripple kittens in wasteful experiments, and WCW’s mission is to get the government out of the cat and dog testing business.
The solution is simple: Stop the money. Stop the madness!
Justin Goodman is the Senior Vice President at the government watchdog White Coat Waste Project.
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