NIH says beagles eaten alive by sandflies was NOT their experiment but admits ...

NIH says beagles eaten alive by sandflies was NOT their experiment but admits ...
NIH says beagles eaten alive by sandflies was NOT their experiment but admits ...

The National Institutes of Health has defended itself after shocking images were widely circulated showing beagle puppies being eaten alive by sand flies in experiments allegedly funded by the NIH.

The Maryland-based organization on Monday evening told DailyMail.com that the pictures of the dogs with their heads enclosed in netting - being attacked by the flies as part of research into leishmaniasis, a serious parasitic disease transmitted by sand flies - were not from their experiments.

The NIH said that they did do leishmaniasis research on dogs in a laboratory in 2016, and in an enclosed open space in Tunisia, but not the research pictured.

'The images of beagles were drawn from a manuscript published in July 2021 in the journal PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases,' a NIH spokesman. 

'The manuscript mistakenly cited support from NIAID, when in fact NIAID did not support this specific research shown in the images of the beagles being circulated.'

The White Coat Waste Project published shocking photos of beagle puppies with their heads locked in mesh cages so sand flies could eat the dogs. The National Institutes of Health on Monday night said that they had not funded the experiments in the pictures

The White Coat Waste Project published shocking photos of beagle puppies with their heads locked in mesh cages so sand flies could eat the dogs. The National Institutes of Health on Monday night said that they had not funded the experiments in the pictures

NIAID is the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases - part of NIH. NIAID has been run since 1984 by Dr Anthony Fauci.

The spokesman did confirm, however, that some of the beagles had their vocal chords cut, insisting that the practice was common in scientific settings.

'Vocal cordectomies, conducted humanely under anesthesia, may be used in research facilities where numerous dogs are present,' the spokesman said. 

'This is to reduce noise, which is not only stressful to the animals but can also reach decibel levels that exceed OSHA allowable limits for people and can lead to hearing loss.'

The images were published in September by White Coat Waste Project, a group which describes itself as 'a taxpayer watchdog group representing more than 2 million liberty-lovers and animal-lovers who all agree: taxpayers shouldn’t be forced to pay over $20 billion every year for wasteful and cruel experiments on dogs, cats, monkeys and other animals.' 

In response, a group of 24 lawmakers, led by Congresswoman Nancy Mace, a Republican representing South Carolina, are demanding Fauci provide answers about the experiments they believe to be 'cruel' and a 'reprehensible misuse of taxpayer funds.'

'According to documents obtained via a Freedom of Information Act request by taxpayer watchdog group White Coat Waste Project, and subsequent media coverage, from October 2018 until February 2019, NIAID spent $1.86million in taxpayer funds on drug tests involving 44 beagle puppies,' the letter from lawmakers reads. 

'While documents state that the ostensible purpose of this study was to 'provide data of suitable quality and integrity to support application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and other regulatory agencies,' the FDA itself has recently stated that it 'does not mandate that human drugs be studied in dogs.'' 

The sand flies would gnaw on the dogs' ears, eating them alive

The sand flies would gnaw on the dogs' ears, eating them alive

Two weeks ago, the White Coat Waste Project revealed that close to $1.68million was spent on experiments on a total of 44 beagles at Sri International in Menlo Park, California, in which the puppies received cordectomies and were force-fed drugs before being killed and dissected. 

Another $375,800 was provided as a grant to a lab in Tunisia to drug beagle puppies.

The team had previously, in 2016, strapped the infectious sand flies to beagles at the NIAID lab in Bethesda, Maryland, allowing them to feed on the dogs for 22 months. 

The White Coat Waste Project alleges that the dogs developed infectious legions before researchers killed and dissected them.

This procedure cost $18,430,917. 

The White Coat Waste Project also revealed that close to $1.68million was spent on experiments on a total of 44 beagles at Sri International in Menlo Park, California, in which the puppies received cordectomies and were force-fed drugs before being killed and dissected

The White Coat Waste Project also revealed that close to $1.68million was spent on experiments on a total of 44 beagles at Sri International in Menlo Park, California, in which the puppies received cordectomies and were force-fed drugs before being killed and dissected

In 2016, the researchers strapped sand flies to beagles at the NIAID lab in Bethesda, Maryland, allowing them to feed on the dogs for 22 months, according to the White Coat Waste Project

In 2016, the researchers strapped sand flies to beagles at the NIAID lab in Bethesda, Maryland, allowing them to feed on the dogs for 22 months, according to the White Coat Waste Project

The White Coat Waste Project alleges that the 2016 experiment caused the dogs to develop infectious legions before researchers killed and dissected them

The White Coat Waste Project alleges that the 2016 experiment caused the dogs to develop infectious legions before researchers killed and dissected them 

In September 2020, Fauci’s agency reportedly authorized a $424,000 grant for animal experiments at the University of Georgia, where healthy beagles were drugged and then intentionally infested with parasite-carrying flies

In September 2020, Fauci’s agency reportedly authorized a $424,000 grant for animal experiments at the University of Georgia, where healthy beagles were drugged and then intentionally infested with parasite-carrying flies

In September 2020, Fauci’s agency reportedly authorized a $424,000 grant for

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