Thanks to you, the country’s longest-running government-funded dog experiments are over!

That’s right, the painful, deadly heart failure experiments at Wayne State University in Detroit are finally a thing of the past!

You may remember that in April, we shared huge news: Because of pressure from the Physicians Committee and our members, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) had stopped funding Wayne State’s dog experiments. For the first time in 35 years, university employees were not cutting open dogs’ chests, implanting devices, and forcing the animals to run on treadmills. The experiments had wasted $15 million in public money, killed more than 300 dogs, and failed to benefit a single patient.

But there was a catch: Wayne State declared that it was trying to get more government money to restart the experiments. Over the last seven months, we have been working every day to make sure that the NIH did not give the university another dime.

When the Physicians Committee first brought the experiments to light, Wayne State was killing as many as 26 dogs each year—on average, a dog every two weeks. Because of our work—and your unwavering support—that number went down and down, until it was zero.

That change happened because of public condemnation from state and federal legislators recruited by the Physicians Committee, letters from NFL players and famous Wayne State alumni Lily Tomlin and Ernie Hudson who joined us, and more than 200,000 petitions from supporters like you delivered in person to university leaders.

Since April, we have been fighting tooth and nail. Federal legislators wrote twice to the NIH, state lawmakers called on Wayne State to change, and Queenie’s Law (a Michigan bill that would outlaw dog experiments like those at Wayne State) received a hugely supportive state Senate hearing.

And we dug up new, troubling public records. We learned that, in May this year, an internal Wayne State committee approved plans, contingent on new NIH funding, to kill 44 more dogs over the next three years. In those same documents, the experimenter admitted many of the 44 dogs would likely be killed due to “instrument failure.” From past veterinary records, we know “instrument failure” means dogs suffering from severe internal bleeding and/or collapsed lungs before they are put out of their misery.

Around the same time that we obtained the new documents, a big development occurred: The Wayne State experimenter died. We shared this information and the new documents with a reporter, who confirmed that there are no dogs at Wayne State and the university is not conducting any dog experiments.

It’s over.

Whether you signed a petition, joined one of our doctor-led demonstrations, sent an email, made a phone call to Wayne State or your legislator, or donated in support of this campaign: THANK YOU.

Let’s take a moment to recognize this huge success. Then let’s get back to work for all the other dogs and animals still suffering in laboratories. With your help, we are building a research system that spares those animals and improves human health.

YOU made this happen. Donate today to make the next victory possible!

Very truly,

Ryan Merkley
Director of Research Advocacy
Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine