R&R E-News

Project R&R Presents at ASP

Photo © Fauna Foundation

(Photo: NEAVS, sanctuaries, and animal protection groups presented at ASP and spent an afternoon at the Primate Rescue Center. Left to right: Gloria Grow, Fauna Foundation; Kathleen Conlee, HSUS; April Truitt, Primate Rescue Center; Amy Fultz, Chimp Haven; Patti Ragan, Center for Great Apes; John Mulcahy, Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest; and Theodora Capaldo, EdD, NEAVS/Project R&R)


NEAVS/Project R&R president Theodora Capaldo, EdD, recently presented at the 33rd meeting of the American Society of Primatologists (ASP) in Louisville, Kentucky, on a panel hosted by the Humane Society of the United States and also featuring Chimpanzee Sanctuary Northwest. The panel, Great Ape Research and Retirement: Policy, Ethics, Economics and Science, was the first time ASP accepted a submission for such a panel dealing with the use and housing of chimpanzees in research and efforts to end their use and retire all chimpanzees to sanctuary.

Read More...
http://www.releasechimps.org/2010/06/30/neavs-presents-at-asp/

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NEAVS joins call for end of primate use in military, air, and space research.

Despite the rainy weather, numerous supporters who attended the June 10th protest let McLean Hospital know that the use of living animals in egregious air and space experiments — the likes of which have been going on for decades — must end.

(Photo: Protestors outside of McLean Hospital. Photo © NEAVS)

The protest followed news of NASA’s funding space radiation studies that will be done on live squirrel monkeys. The plan — which will cost $1.75 million taxpayer dollars — was proposed by researchers at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA. The monkeys will be exposed to radiation at Brookhaven National Laboratory (Upton, NY) and then be shipped to McLean Hospital where they will be made to perform tasks to test for cognitive impairment. These highly intelligent and social primates will be housed alone in steel cages for at least four years and be subjected to daily restraint in primate chairs.

(Photo : An example of a restraining device for monkeys. Photo © PETA)

If you were unable to attend the protest, it's not too late to voice your opinion:

Please contact (public-inquiries@hq.nasa.gov) NASA Administrator Charles F. Bolden, Jr., and ask him to put a stop to these cruel and unnecessary experiments. Administrator Bolden needs to hear from you.

Please call (202) 358-0000 or e-mail (public-inquiries@hq.nasa.gov) and let him politely know that:

1. You support the mission of NASA,
2. You oppose space radiation studies involving the use of live animals because they are cruel, repetitive and pointless,
3. The experiments are in direct violation of the NASA Principles for the Ethical Care and Use of Animals,
4. Monkeys are sentient beings who experience pain and suffering just as we do, and
5. There are viable non-animal research methods that can, are, and should be used.

(Photo left: Protestors outside of McLean Hospital. Photo © NEAVS)
(Photo right: An example of a restraining device for monkeys. Photo © PETA)

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Bravo Alternatives!


Photo © AFAAR

NEAVS, one of the first animal protection groups in the country, was founded shortly after Harvard University established the first dedicated animal laboratory in the country — essentially, we are in each other’s backyards!

NEAVS applauds the growing number of researchers who are developing cutting-edge alternatives that save both animal and human lives. Most recently, scientists at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University have created a “lung-on-a-chip” — a non-animal alternative that can be used to test the effects of environmental toxins and drugs on living lung tissue. Stated by Dr. Donald Ingber, lead scientist, “Organs-on-chips could replace many animal studies in the future” — hope that one day we will no longer be haunted by photos of beagles and others animals restrained to gas-mask like machines and forced to inhale toxic substances.

Please thank Dr. Ingber at 617-919-2223 or don.ingber@wyss.harvard.edu. Researchers need to know we are behind GOOD research.

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Cruelty-free tanning... FUN in the SUN!


http://leapingbunny.org/sun.php

As you know, it is important to get enough sun for good health, but also to protect your skin from the risks of overexposure. Unfortunately, many commercial sunscreens are tested on animals. But we’ve got the low-down on some oh-so-fabulous sun products that will not only protect you — but that you can feel good about. Copy and past the link (http://leapingbunny.org/sun.php) to be taken to the full list of Leaping Bunny* certified sunscreens, and enjoy that beach time knowing you've made the humane choice to go cruelty-free even while working on your summer tan!

*The Leaping Bunny Program provides the best assurance that no new animal testing is used in any phase of product development by the company, its laboratories, or suppliers. NEAVS is a founding member of the Coalition for Consumer Information on Cosmetics (CCIC), which oversees the Program.