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No Cruel Practices

No Cruel Practices image
Parent Issue
Day
11
Month
October
Year
1895
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Humane Ageni l'eteisoii, otherwise knowh as Uity Marshal fetersou, pockeíed his star and bis eity marsiialship yejterday afternoon and inspected me University laboratorles u bi'iüiif fit the society for the prevention oí cruelty to miniáis, lresideul ,!. J. Goodyear and Agent Peteisou l.ave been receiving nuinerous appeals from lender-heaned persons and hiluiaoie societies about the siate, retiuesting that the local society süow its vigor by overthrowlng the terrible customs supposed to prevail on the campus. Horrible tales have obyiously beeu told, oí writiiing, torture;! cats and dogs. gloated over in ttemlísh scientific glee by professors and síudeuts; killed by inches to illustrate some physiological fact, as readily itaught from charts or models, if the teachers could only be induced to thiuk so. It was in response to sueh appeals and representations tha.t yesterday's inspectiou was undertaken. The university people were surprised. as Mr. Peterson failed to notii'y itheiu of his coming. Mr. Frank Booms had learned of the ntimerous complaints coming in to the local socit'ty and readily agreed to escort Mr. l'eterson about and show him the most saered precinets. So yesterday afteruoon the descent was made. The hygieuic laboratory of which Dr. V. C. Vaughan is director was Bist taken in: Here hundreds of rats and iiüuiy rabbits and guinea pigs die anmially of díseases fatal to the human family. Dr. Vaughan in person showed the way rats were used for te.-ting the hundreds of samples of Mater submitted annually to that laboratory. "We inject a healthy rat with a hypodermic syringe with some of the water submitted to us. If he dies shortly of typhoid fever, we noiify i he people sending the water that it was found dangeious to health. We also test cheese, ice cream, meat and many other foods in riiuch the game way, using giiinea pigs and rabbits." The cages and rooms in which the animáis wére kept were found surprisingly clean, and the animáis sleek, well fed and lively, except two rats. suffering in behalf of a Washteuaw county farmer who had a suspicion of his well. His suspicions were evidently well founded. "When an animal dies his cage is thoroughly cleaned, fumigated and sterilized. It would six)il our work to have our animáis snffering in any way or from any cause, except from the diseases we give them purposely,'4 explaioed Dr. Taughan. The rats used there are ra.ised by the University, the white and spotted vaiieties being preferred. A fine young family was disturbed for the amusement of the spectators. Dr. Cuslmy was next visited, in the oíd medical building. Frogs are his principal material, with au occasiomil cat or dog for eertain special purposes. In this laboratory the work in testiug ithe action of drugs upon the human system is carried on, and so f ar as it is safe the students experiment on themselves or each other. Here the students are taught to administer ether, chloroform and other anestheties, their first subjects being dogs. "It is better to kill such animáis learniug to handle these dangerous, but necessary drugs, tlian to kill human beings," remarked Dr. Cushny. "No animal in a conscious eondition. would be worth anything to us here. The dog must be perfectly passive or we cannot try our delicate tests or apply our delicate apparatus; aud when the experiment is over we kill the animal, if he has been cut into or injured, never aïlowing him io recover his coiiseiousness. It's a painless death." Dr. Lombard, who has charge of the work in physiology, was then seen. frogs are his principal subjects also, but a few cats, rabbits and dogs die annually before his classes. "A frog," said the Doctor," is worth more to me dead, than alive. 1 kill him first and then experiment always. Other animáis cannot be used in my work to advantage unless perfectly passive. They are always reduced to unconsciousness by means of ether or chloroform, then opevated upon and finally killed without being permitted to recover consciousness." The rooms where the animáis are kept, now in the basement of the old medical building, were visited. Frogs were there in great numbers, some magnificenf big; bullfrogs attracting especial attention. Several dogs were there, one puppy belonging to the janitor of the building, put there for ((ïnvenience in caring for, and uot for scientiiic purposes, he explained. All the dogs. cats and rabbits confined here were in well lighted and ventilated rooms and plentifully supplied with food. "These rooms," said Mr. Bourns. "cause all the evil reports about us. Some lonely dog howls, and it is promptly reported that the medies are torturing another poor animal." The surgical laboratory was next visited, in the old homeopathie hospital. Here dogs are chloroformed and some surgical operatioa performed upoii tlieni. They ase altowèd to recover eoiiscionsness af ter the ! tion, and are nursed back 10 sound health again. When the wouud is cvired the dog is killed painlessly and the dissected by the student who treated him, who tlms iuspects the exact results obtaiued. The operations i are entirely confined to opening the body of the animal. It is thought wise to let the young surgeon remove tiie verniform appendix of a dog at least once before attacking a man. Prof. Wooster's laboratory was nol visitcd, as earthworius and frogs are a.bout the only animáis slaughtered ' there, the other specimens being of lower forms of life than those. Mr. Petersron expressed himself is well saitisfied that the animáis used by the University are well cared for up to the point of reaching the elassroom, and he waa nnable to see why anyone should complain of the further proeeedings. The facts learned will be duly reported to the soeiety whose I agent he is.

Article

Subjects
Ann Arbor Argus
Old News