Envigo medical dog breeding facility to close after investigation
CUMBERLAND COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) – Envigo, the company behind the medical dog breeding facility under fire from federal investigators, has announced the closure of its Cumberland County facility. The announcement came late Monday evening, just hours after the company’s legal team expressed a desire to “reduce” operations according to a federal court filing.
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“The investment required to improve the installation and the time to achieve these improvements have recently increased. As a result, we have decided to no longer invest in this facility and it will be closed,” according to a online declaration of Inotiv, which markets itself as a provider of “non-clinical and analytical drug discovery and development services”.
The breeding facility has been tainted with federal complaints and animal welfare violations cited by the USDA and exposed in Investigative reporting from 8News and a undercover operation by PETA.
The news comes after a federal judge slapped a temporary restraining order on Envigo in late May after inspections found dogs that were malnourished, sick, injured and kept in excessive heat.
Since the first complaints, hundreds of dogs have been handed over.
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Envigo Beagles at the Cumberland facility -
Envigo Beagle at Cumberland facility -
Envigo Beagles at the Cumberland facility -
FILE – Emily Neal feeds her adopted dog Tannis a treat as Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin signs five bills to criminalize animal cruelty and ban the sale of dogs or cats for experimental purposes on Monday, April 4, 2022 in Richmond, Virginia. Federal officials have accused Envigo, a company that runs a Virginia facility that breeds dogs for research, of violating animal welfare law and recently seized at least 145 beagles found in “acute distress,” according to a lawsuit filed Thursday, May 19, 2022. (Alexa Welch Edlund/Richmond Times-Submission via AP, file)
Conditions at Envigo facilities elicited responses from several lawmakers and inspired “Beagle Bills” intended to protect animals in breeding facilities, including five signed by Governor Glenn Youngkin in April.
But what about the future of Envigo’s dogs?
Dan Paden, PETA’s assistant director of evidence analysis, said: “I hope all of these animals will be made available for adoption. Not one more is sent to a lab.
Paden, and an official PETA press release issued before the shutdown was announced, said they believe it would be in bad taste for Envigo to sell the dogs for profit, given the extreme federal violations found. on the spot.
“They want to try and ring every penny they can from these dogs and these buildings before they finally shut it down,” Paden said.
Envigo’s intentions for dogs and their assets were not immediately detailed. The company statement said, “We will implement an orderly shutdown plan.”
A spokesperson for Envigo told 8News no one was available to answer follow-up questions immediately after they were announced on Monday evening.
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