The U.S. Department of Agriculture has warned a major research hospital that it provides inadequate veterinary care to monkeys at its primate research center, Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) said on Thursday.
The Aug. 6 warning letter, the lowest-level penalty issued by the USDA, followed an inspection that found that more than half of the rhesus macaques at Oregon National Primate Research Center were experiencing hair loss, and that 15 monkeys had been injured in a fight that left six of the animals dead, OHSU said.
In a statement issued on Thursday, OHSU said Oregon National Primate Research Center officials “believe in an ethical mandate to ensure that all of our animals are treated respectfully and humanely.”
Another monkey had died during surgery due to a mistake with an anesthesia machine, and inspectors found muddy bedding and cracked walls in some monkey housing areas, OHSU said.
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