Beagle breeder to face hefty $35 million penalty, a first in Animal Welfare Act proceedings.
Around 4,000 beagles were rescued from a facility in 2022 as part of an investigation, with the Humane Society of the United States assisting in adoptions.
The punishment against Inotiv has come after one of its subsidiaries, Envigo RMS, confessed to conspiring to deliberately break the Animal Welfare Act regulations, and another, Envigo Global Services Inc., was charged with a felony for conspiring to violate the Clean Water Act, both concerning the dog-breeding facility located in Cumberland County, Virginia. The district attorney, Christopher Kavanaugh, made the announcement on Monday.
Insiders at Envigo had known since July 2021 that the Virginia facility was in violation of the Animal Welfare Act, according to Kavanaugh. The infractions included inhumane euthanasia methods, causing "unnecessary pain and distress" to several dogs, inadequate veterinary care, and failure to adhere to minimum standards relating to the treatment, housing, feeding, watering, and hygiene for the beagles. A visit by officials found nearly 450 beagles in "acute distress," as stated by the US Attorney's Office.
Furthermore, the facility also stopped operating and maintaining its wastewater treatment plant, resulting in discharges of untreated water into a local waterway. Federal prosecutors revealed this in their announcement.
Nine months' worth of inspections discovered more than 70 violations of animal welfare regulations at the facility. Examining records from the US Department of Agriculture revealed greater than 300 puppy deaths between January 1, 2001, and July 22, 2021, with causes unknown. The facility also did not attempt to investigate the cause of the deaths to avoid them happening again in the future.
Envigo employees estimated that $8 million would be needed to bring the facility up to the required Animal Welfare Act standards, but upper management postponed and resisted these requests, favoring a company culture that prioritized profits and convenience over adhering to legal requirements, Kavanaugh said.
The violations of the Clean Water Act and the Animal Welfare Act by Envigo directly contributed to the contamination of a waterway, causing harm to the local community, and the torture of more than 4,000 beagles. As mentioned by Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares in a Justice Department news release.
"Despite the beagles now being in nice homes and leading comfortable lives, recalling the initial meeting with these animals brings back strong emotions from two years ago," said Adam Parascandola, vice president of the Humane Society of the United States' Animal Rescue Team in a news release. "My team and I spent several sweltering days evaluating the thousands of dogs in the facility as part of the search warrant. We rescued around 445 dogs and puppies during that period, and in the weeks that followed, over 4,000 beagles were taken care of by the Department of Justice. Everyone involved felt a great deal of relief and pride when the Department of Justice asked us to come back and save the remaining dogs, and we're thankful that the ones responsible for their suffering are being penalized."
With the assistance of the Humane Society, the beagles were all placed with over 120 shelters and rescues, making it possible for them to find "nurturing homes."
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The Humane Society of the United States worked closely with us to ensure the rescued beagles found nurturing homes.Despite the significant penalty imposed on Inotiv, the impact of their actions remains with us, as thousands of beagles suffered under their care.
