Beagles rescued from South Texas laboratory, spend first day outside

The Beagle Freedom Project rescued seven beagles from a border area laboratory Tuesday. The beagles spent their first day of freedom with treats and TLC on a soft, green grass. The Beagle Freedom Project rescued seven beagles from a border area laboratory Tuesday. The beagles spent their first day of freedom with treats and TLC on a soft, green grass. Photo: Courtesy/Beagle Freedom Project Photo: Courtesy/Beagle Freedom Project Image 1 of / 36 Caption Close Beagles rescued from South Texas laboratory, spend first day outside 1 / 36 Back to Gallery

SAN ANTONIO -- Seven beagles, ranging in age from 2 to 9, are feeling the grass under their paws and the wind in their fur, for the first time.

The Beagle Freedom Project rescued the five females and two males Tuesday from a South Texas laboratory near the border, where the beagles spent their lives in cages and underwent tests for multiple experiments.

The organization held a rescue event in Hutto, a town north of Austin, where Candy, Luca, Frida, Dolly, Nina, Bobby and Grumpy were able to roam around and get a feel for normal life.

The beagles were then introduced to their foster homes, where they will stay for two weeks and get veterinary care.

A 3-year-old beagle named Elvis was adopted by Martin Palmer, a Hutto resident, earlier this year. Palmer told KEYE-TV in Austin on Tuesday that he found Elvis through the program.

"It angers when I see that stuff and when I hear about the things that he's possibly gone through," Palmer told the station.

He said even though it took a while for Elvis to adjust to life outside the lab, he was worth the wait.

"He's the most loving dog and he loves people he just loves everything we give him," Palmer told KEYE-TV.

Kevin Chase, director of operations for the Beagle Freedom Project, said Wednesday that some of the beagles were in "bad shape," with rough skin, malnourishment and dental problems. The beagles also will be spayed and neutered.

During their foster stays, the beagles will adjust to life around humans, outside of the laboratory environment. Then, the beagles will be ready for adoption.

"Our fosters do important work of training them to be dogs, essentially," he said, because the dogs have never walked on a leash or addressed by a human, for example.

"They're sort of like puppies in full-grown dog bodies," Chase said.

He said dogs, as well as cats, rabbits and pigs, are used for toxicity reports for various chemicals, paint thinners, detergent, powders and pharmaceutical drugs. He said the substance is either poured down the animal's throat, or the animal is hooked up to a gassing machine.

Animal experimentation is legal in the United States, but is not required of companies, Chase said, adding that in this country, 65,000 dogs in 385 laboratories are used for experimentation. Texas has 25 laboratories that test on animals.

Of all the dogs experimented on in the country, 96 percent are beagles. They are the "breed of choice" because they are friendly, gentle and forgiving, Chase said.

After the dogs fulfill their purpose in a laboratory, they usually are euthanized.

"They're laboratories, they're not kennels. They don't have the space or professional capacity to be looking for homes," he said.

Enter the Beagle Freedom Project. The organization reaches out to laboratories to get the dogs adopted instead of euthanized.

The organization forms an agreement with the laboratories, in which the organization removes the animals free the laboratory, pays for transportation and veterinary costs, and signs a confidentiality agreement and liability waivers.

Established in 2010, the organization has rescued more than beagles and other animal species from laboratories across the United States.

rsalinas@mysa.com