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At least 82 monkeys were injured or died due to negligence and inadequate care at a South Carolina animal experimentation facility and breeder, a startling new report alleged, just six weeks after 43 monkeys escaped from the same lab.
Documents leaked to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals show that, between 2021 and 2023, multiple primates housed at two Alpha Genesis Incorporated locations in the Palmetto State endured preventable injuries and deaths, the Guardian reported.
A whistleblower veterinarian reportedly provided emails, reports and grisly photos to back accusations of unsafe equipment usage, incompetence, inadequate care and disregard for animal welfare at AGI, according to the outlet.
A 270-page-long complaint to the United States Department of Agriculture by Peta further alleges that AGI personnel lack qualifications to care for the animals.
The federal department is now investigating the claims.
“We can confirm that we recently received a complaint from Peta with detailed allegations about that facility,” a USDA spokeswoman told the outlet. “We take all complaints seriously and look into the allegations to determine whether there are Animal Welfare Act noncompliances that need to be addressed.”
One example outlined in the complaint alleges that, in December 2022, a young, long-tailed macaque was discovered dead in his pen, with one arm stuck in a fence in front of a heater. In AGI’s autopsy report, dehydration and entrapment were listed as the causes of the death, and it was noted that no one had checked on the monkey since the afternoon prior.
In May 2021, an infant monkey reportedly strangled itself to death using a piece of gauze that had secured a water bottle to its crate – which was only used because the appropriate clips to secure the bottles didn’t fit the holders properly, according to an email to AGI staff from one of the facility’s clinical vets.
One year earlier, a monkey died from a fractured leg and dislocated knee after getting caught in a slide bolt lock.
According to the complaint, other monkeys under AGI’s care died from hyperthermia and heatstroke, as well as from infectious diseases.
Internal documents also allegedly showed that monkeys suffered injuries like broken arms and fingers, torn tails and severed tongues as a result of incorrect handling by AGI staff, and died from fighting with other primates, insecure cages and unlocked gates.
On Nov. 7, 43 monkeys escaped from AGI’s Yemassee, South Carolina, location after a gate was left unlocked. All but four were since caught or returned to the facility.
AGI provides pre-clinical trial services for drug developments, according to its USDA registration.
The primate breeder and supplier holds an eye-popping $19 million in US National Institutes of Health contracts.