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The Fight to End Taxpayer-Funded Cat Torture

The Fight to End Taxpayer-Funded Cat Torture

Delilah the lab cat

How one rescued lab cat exposed taxpayer-funded cat torture in the United States

Delilah showing lab number tattoo
Delilah showing lab number tattoo

Los Angeles, August 22, 2024 — In a remarkable show of resilience and hope, a cat named Delilah has become the symbol of a nationwide campaign against the horrific practice of taxpayer-funded cat torture in laboratories. Delilah, an 11-year-old survivor of the now-defunct USDA’s “Kitten Slaughterhouse,” is one of the few fortunate animals to escape the fate that befalls thousands of cats and kittens trapped in federal laboratories every year. This story, however, is not just about Delilah. It’s about the broader fight led by Anthony Bellotti, the President and Founder of White Coat Waste Project (WCW), a bipartisan watchdog organization dedicated to ending wasteful U.S. government spending on animal testing. Under Bellotti’s leadership, WCW has exposed and shut down several federal laboratories notorious for their inhumane treatment of animals, particularly cats. Bellotti (along with Delilah) joined UnchainedTV’s Jane Velez-Mitchell in a conversation that you can watch here:

Click Here to Pass the PAAW Act!

White Coat Waste is currently working hard to get a bill through Congress that would cut NIH (National Institutes of Health) funding for painful cat and dog experiments! It’s called the PAAW Act and it’s a bipartisan effort to shut off the gusher of U.S. government money into these outdated, unnecessary and ineffective experiments. WCW organizers say they need the public’s help in the form of signing a letter to their representatives, which can be done with one click. And, donations are crucial as well to get the word out.

The High Cost of Cruelty

Anthony Bellotti and Delilah
Anthony Bellotti and Delilah

Delilah is a survivor of a lab that killed over 5,436 dogs and cats, and her 22 kittens were slaughtered and incinerated in a decades-long wasteful government spending program. Bellotti adopted Delilah after WCW exposed her lab and led a winning campaign that closed it.

Bellotti, driven by a personal encounter with animal testing during a high school internship, has made it his life’s mission to end such practices. Through WCW, he has successfully campaigned to “cut the purse strings” of these cruel experiments, a strategy that has proven effective in shutting down several labs, including the USDA facility where Delilah was held.

The United States government has long been involved in funding experiments that subject animals to unimaginable pain and suffering. Cats, one of America’s most beloved companion animals, are not exempt from this cruelty. The USDA’s lab, where Delilah was held, was responsible for toxoplasmosis experiments that involved feeding infected, rotten meat to kittens, only to kill and incinerate them once the tests were completed. This grotesque cycle continued for nearly five decades, funded by over $22.5 million in taxpayer money.

You can watch an earlier interview UnchainedTV did with Anthony Bellotti, and his colleague Justin Goodman, about how they shut down the cat lab at the Department of Veterans Affairs:

Saving Animals from Vivisection

Cat at the USDA lab
Cat at the USDA lab

The fight against taxpayer-funded animal testing has gained significant momentum, thanks to WCW’s efforts. The organization’s approach is simple yet powerful: stop the money, stop the madness. By rallying bipartisan support, WCW has been able to close labs where thousands of animals, including many cats, dogs, and other animals, were slated for experimentation.

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In early 2024, WCW uncovered a $419,000 NIH grant to restart lethal toxoplasmosis tests at the Univ. of California, Davis. They planned to force-feed ten tiny kittens scrambled mouse brains and then kill the healthy cats after collecting their feces — a replay of the USDA’s “Kitten Slaughterhouse.” A WCW investigation blew the lid off this plan, sparing the lives of those kittens and closing this lab. UC-Davis is now adopting out survivors.

How You Can Help

White Coat Waste Project website
White Coat Waste Project website

Delilah’s story serves as a poignant reminder of the lives that hang in the balance in both private and public labs in the U.S. and other countries. Each victory in this fight represents a step closer to ending the systemic abuse of animals in vivisection labs.

While WCW has made remarkable progress, the fight is far from over. Approximately 14,000 cats and kittens remain trapped in laboratories across the country. WCW continues to push for legislative changes and public awareness to end these practices once and for all. Bellotti urges everyone to get involved by visiting White Coat Waste’s website and supporting their campaigns.

“You can’t talk about animal testing unless you talk about wasteful spending.” —  Anthony Bellotti, WCW Project

Check out this show and more at UnchainedTV.

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