Cats Will No Longer Be Used At USDA's Research Lab In Maryland

The United States Department of Agriculture said that it will stop using cats for research at any of its Agriculture Research Service laboratorites.

The cats were being used as part of the agency’s research on the toxoplasma gondii parasite, which causes toxoplasmosis. The USDA said the disease is considered to be a leading cause of death from foodborne illness in the U.S.

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The laboratory conducting the research had worked to minimize its reliance on cats. According to the USDA, no cats had been infected with the parasite or euthanized since September 2018.

“Food safety research in ARS is of paramount importance for agriculture and the public we serve,” Dr. Chavonda Jacobs-Young, ARS administrator, said in a statement. “We are continually assessing our research and priorities and aligning our resources to the problems of highest national priority. We are excited for the next chapter of work for these scientists and this laboratory.”

Toxoplasmosis research has reached its maturity and the USDA said that while more research is needed regarding human health, that research area is outside of the agency’s mission.

Employees of the USDA will adopt 14 cats that were never infected with the parasite and are still at the ARS lab. Cats will no longer be used as part of any research protocol at any ARS labs, the USDA said.

According to a press release from Oregon Democrat Sen. Jeff Merkley’s office, the USDA has spent $650,000 every year since 1970 to infect and then euthanize kittens at the Beltsville, Maryland lab. According to Merkley’s office, the kittens were fed parasite-infected raw meat when they were 2 months old and parasitic eggs from their feces were harvested for other experiments. The kittens were then euthanized when they were 3 months old, according to Merkley.

“The USDA’s decision to slaughter kittens after they were used in research was an archaic practice and horrific treatment, and it’s past time to end it,” Merkley said in a statement. “The USDA made the right decision today, and I applaud them for their willingness to change course. It’s a good day for our four-legged friends across America.”

Merkley and California Democratic Congressman Jimmy Panetta were lead sponsors on the KITTEN Act, which would have required the end of the use of cats and kittens in USDA experiments that unncessarily hurts the animals.

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