Monkey fight at ASU animal research lab draws scrutiny

Rachel Leingang | The Republic | azcentral.com

Two monkeys tussled in a lab at Arizona State University last year, leaving one of the rhesus macaques with the tip of its finger amputated.

In a separate incident in early 2018, an inspection found a chinchilla missing large swaths of hair and appearing unwell.

And in April, federal inspectors found a rabbit enclosure with a soda can that had been chewed through, leaving sharp edges that could injure the animal.

These incidents show there's a pattern of problems at ASU's facilities that violate the Animal Welfare Act, an animal rights watchdog group claimed in a complaint filed Aug. 18 with the federal government.

Stop Animal Exploitation NOW!, based in Ohio, filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which inspects labs with animals. The complaint asks the USDA to investigate ASU's facilities and levy fines against the university.

"This facility is demonstrating a significant pattern of major non-compliances and must be penalized before animals or people are endangered or injured further," the group's executive director, Michael Budkie, wrote.

In its most recent annual report, filed with the USDA in November 2017, the university said it had 12 nonhuman primates, four cats, four rabbits and 90 “other animals.”

The report says all of the animals in the university's care could be used for experiments, teaching, research, surgery or tests that involved pain or distress to the animals.

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Monkeys 'engaged in confrontation'

Budkie's group filed Freedom of Information Act requests with the National Institutes of Health, which netted a letter from ASU to the institutes detailing the monkey incident in 2017.

In the letter, university officials outline an incident on July 31, 2017, at ASU’s Biodesign B building on the Tempe campus.

Two animal care technicians were moving monkeys, identified as NHPs or “nonhuman primates” in the letter, to clean cages. One technician brought in clean cages. Another technician moved one monkey into one of the clean cages, but a door on it wasn't locked.

When the technician transferred the next monkey, the technician realized the previous monkey was in a corner of the room and not in its cage. The technician immediately “followed procedure” by leaving the room and notifying a supervisor.

Upon returning to the animal enclosure, the technician and a supervisor saw the two monkeys “engaged in a confrontation.”

The first monkey retreated to its cage, and the employees were able to separate the monkeys and secure them in their cages.

Rhesus macaques are relatively small primates, typically about 20 pounds and 2 feet tall, according to National Geographic.

Veterinarians were brought in after the fight to assess the monkeys’ injuries, the letter says. Both monkeys were anesthetized to stitch their wounds.

The second monkey lost the tip of its left fourth finger in the scuffle, so the top portion of the finger was amputated “to avoid further pain and distress for the animal,” the letter says.

Both monkeys recovered.

The university investigated and found there was a “communication breakdown” between the two technicians.

ASU's Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee reviewed the incident and came up with a corrective action plan including more training for non-human primate animal-care staff and written standards for macaque cage security and escapes.

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Chinchilla and rabbit issues found

In routine inspections this year, the USDA found other problems at ASU's animal research facilities.

In January, a USDA inspector found an 18-month-old chinchilla squinting his left eye, which had a clear, dried discharge. The chinchilla, who was in a cage with two other chinchillas, had a small hairless patch under its chin.

In another cage, the inspector found a second 18-month-old male chinchilla with a large area of hair loss on his back. The skin on those areas appeared inflamed. His right ear was damaged and had two puncture wounds. He had dried blood on both ears and at the base of his nose.

The wounds appeared to be from fighting, other documents from ASU say.

The chinchilla “appeared to be quiet in demeanor and unthrifty (weak) while sitting on top of its plastic shelter,” the inspection report says.

The chinchilla was housed with two other chinchillas in a cage, which investigators said had a “large amount of hair debris” in it. The chinchilla was immediately moved to a separate cage and a veterinarian was called.

The facility had received the chinchillas five days before the inspection, the report says. Animals who are housed together must be compatible and must not interfere with each other’s health.

The facility's staff told the vet they hadn’t noticed the animals’ conditions, and the facility didn’t have any records to signal whether the conditions were previously treated.

It’s important to observe animals daily and address any issues in a timely manner so as not to prolong any suffering, the report says.

“The facility must use appropriate methods to prevent, control, diagnose, and treat diseases and injuries,” the report says.

After the inspection, the facility provided veterinary care for the chinchillas and addressed the problems in the report, the inspector wrote.

In April, a routine inspection found a rabbit enclosure had a soda can that the rabbit had chewed holes into, creating sharp edges that could injure the animal.

Soda cans are used for “enrichment” by rabbits at the ASU facility, the report says. The can was removed from the cage during the inspection.

The group filing complaints

Budkie, of the animal rights group, said primate escapes like what happened at ASU endanger the health of animals and the people working in the research facility.

Even nearby neighborhoods could be affected, he said, pointing to an incident in South Carolina were research monkeys escaped a facility and were roaming.

"The only thing you can say that is in any way positive about Arizona State is their negligence has not yet killed an animal, and we’re hopeful that if the USDA takes meaningful action, that will be prevented," he said.

Budkie’s group, which has fewer than five full-time staffers, files complaints about animal research facilities across the country, many of which are at universities.

Recently, the group filed complaints against North Dakota State University and Washington State University for animal deaths.

Budkie hopes the USDA fines ASU for the incidents. The maximum fine is $10,000 per infraction, per animal.

The group opposes animal research and argues it should be replaced with other technologies like 3D printing or computer simulations, Budkie said. Researching on live animals is an old technology, Budkie said.

“If you were using a cell phone that was more than five years old, you would be considered out of date, right? The approach of using animals in research is over 100 years old,” he said.

Other college facilities in Arizona have had issues with animal research, USDA inspection reports show.

In 2016, the University of Arizona took 28 minutes to euthanize a pig in its care, potentially prolonging pain and distress, because the solution used for the procedure was in another room, an inspection report says.

Routine inspections at UA in 2017 and 2018 found no issues.

Pima Medical Institute, based in Tucson, had multiple issues with expired medications in 2015 and 2016, inspection reports show. In 2015, three students put a male Labrador retriever at the school through three procedures to insert a urinary catheter, an inspection report shows. Only one attempt per student is allowed.

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ASU: We need animals for research

ASU provided documents showing responses from the federal government about the incidents, all of which were addressed promptly.

The National Institutes of Health responded to ASU’s letter about the monkey confrontation saying it agreed with the actions taken to prevent future incidents.

The university’s animal care oversight committee requires all faculty using animals for research or teaching to submit plans and get approval before performing studies, ASU said. The committee also oversees animal housing, husbandry and veterinary care.

ASU said its research can potentially profoundly affect quality of life for people with cancer, Alzheimer’s and infectious diseases. Its work on investigating Ebola, Zika and cancer wouldn’t be possible without animal research, the school said.

Most medical discoveries today come from animal research that set the stage for future human clinical trials and federal approvals, the university said.

“The university fully supports the responsible study and humane care and treatment of animals in research and teaching. At this point in time, many lifesaving treatments and critical medical advances cannot be achieved any other way,” ASU said.

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