Surprising footage reveals ‘merciless’ experiments carried out on rodents at taxpayer-funded lab in Oregon

Shocking footage obtained exclusively by DailyMail.com reveals the conditions endured by animals at a taxpayer-funded Oregon lab.

Researchers at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) fed prairie voles alcohol equivalent to 15 bottles of wine a day and chained them in studies PETA experts called “harmless” and “cruelty for cruelty’s sake.” , to cages.

The studies, published in November 2017, aimed to determine whether men are more likely to cheat on their partners when drunk using rodent models. And these tests were funded by taxpayers with $3 million.

It saw the animals locked in shoebox-sized plastic cages, tied to cell walls and forced to fight each other before all 150 were killed, along with the fetuses of pregnant females.

PETA Vice President Dr. Alka Chanda told Dailymail.com: “The experiment did not help anyone or advance scientific knowledge.

“The $3 million used to fund testing could have gone directly to people suffering from alcoholism.”

The video shows rows of small plastic cages with two animals inside, which have access to two bottles – one with alcohol and the other with water

DailyMail.com contacted OHSU, which declined to comment but shared a statement it released in 2017.

OHSU responded to PETA’s question “why these bizarre, senseless, and deadly experiments were institutionally sanctioned.”

The statement said that animal testing is helping “to develop new ways to detect, prevent, treat or eradicate disease and improve human and animal health.”

“OHSU’s views on this topic reflect those of other academic health centers, universities, physicians and scientists around the world.”

Prairie voles are small mouse-like rodents found in central North America and were likely selected by OHSU for their monogamous bonds, in which they mate for life.

However, Chandna said the animal’s biology does not mimic that of humans.

PETA became aware of the research when a press release surfaced detailing OHSU’s mate preference tests, which detail how male and female voles were given free access to alcohol-spiked water.

The video shows rows of small plastic cages with two animals inside, which have access to two bottles – one with alcohol and the other with water.

Oregon Live reported that “some voles drank so much that they staggered and fell and had trouble getting back on their feet.”

The experiments, published in the journal Frontiers of Psychiatry, describe 150 voles that were mated together for a week to form bonds and mate.

The female was then chained to one side of the cage, while a female “stranger” was chained to the other side.

One problem that arises, according to Chandna, is that voles are prey for large animals like foxes and coyotes, so inhibiting their ability to move around the cage “elicits a fear response.”

“Voles are prey animals, so tying up females is cruel because it shows unimaginable fear in these animals,” she told DailyMail.com.

The female voles tied to the ends of the cages can be seen struggling to break out.

The female was chained to one side of the cage, while a female “stranger” was chained to the other

The drunk male vole was placed in the cage and allowed to roam freely so the researchers could see which female he was spending more time with

The drunk male vole was thrown into the cage and allowed to roam freely while investigators monitored how long he spent huddled with each female.

Chandna explained that the researchers didn’t want to check whether the male mated with one of the females, but how long the male was huddled with his mate and the stranger.

However, males and females were only together for a week.

“It wasn’t even real infidelity,” she said. “The partners were just random couples.”

“I just don’t think it’s insightful. If you want to conduct a scientific research project, you could design a questionnaire or bring together people who tell the truth about their behavior. It’s done!’

In another test, an “invader” male vole was placed in a cage occupied by a “resident” male to see if the two would fight for territory.

One vole climbs on top of the other and appears to be gnawing on its head. And both are looking for a way out of the cage.

A male vole is in a small cage and a researcher lowers another inside.

The pair immediately started attacking each other – with headbutts and jabs on the sides of the cage.

In another test, an “invader” male vole was placed in a cage occupied by a “resident” male to see if the two would fight for territory

One vole climbs on top of the other and appears to be gnawing on its head. And all the time both are looking for a way out of the cage. All 150 animals were sacrificed after the experiments

Their fur stands up and they pounce on each other with their mouths open.

“The theory surrounding the intruder test is that a male who is more attached to his ‘mate’ will be more aggressive in protecting his territory against ‘invaders,'” Chandna said.

“When the experimenters dropped an ‘intruder’ into a cage holding a male, they then counted the number of times the ‘resident’ male would attack, chase, attack, or bite the ‘intruder.’

These signs of aggression were also meant to indicate how attached the man was to his partner. ‘

After completing the experiments, the researchers euthanized the 150 voles to dissect their brains and fetuses, which were obtained from females, as stated in the study.

PETA told DailyMail.com that Andrey Ryabinin was the lead experimenter for the studies

The OHSU study concludes, “Our studies provide the first evidence that alcohol has effects on established couple bonding and that partner drinking status plays a large role in these effects.”

“There is human-relevant data on the neurobiology of human alcoholics, and analyzing that information gives us relevant data,” Chandna said.

PETA had contacted the researchers to get the videos, but was told there was no evidence.

However, Oregon is one of the many US states with public records laws — state-funded laboratories must make documents and media available to the public upon request — barring certain exceptions.

An email exchange between Chandna and Reba Kuske, the public records coordinator at OHSU, in February 2018 shows that the university there has been “verified.” [were] no photos and/or video recordings available.”

Another email dated October 22, 2018 shows that experimenter “Dr. Andrey Ryabinin confirmed that the videos of the Resident Intruder Test (as well as the Partner Preference Test) are not available because these experiments were conducted at the Veterans Administration Hospital.’

This statement would mean that OHSU does not own the videos and is under no obligation to turn them over to PETA.

DailyMail.com has reached out to Ryabinin for comment.

PETA filed suit in 2020 after OHSU refused to comply with the group’s request for public records.

PETA had contacted the researchers for the videos of the experiments on the prairie voles

The reply confirmed that no photos or video recordings were available

In July 2022, the Multnomah County Circuit Court found that OHSU caused an “undue delay” and unreasonably withheld the records, in violation of the Oregon Public Records Act.

OHSU was required to provide PETA with the footage as a result of the Freedom Information Act lawsuit,

“OHSU is a public entity that receives a lot of public dollars and does not comply with the Public Records Act,” Chandna said.

“We are fortunate to have lawyers who work on a voluntary basis. Ordinary people don’t have that privilege.

“If ordinary citizens want to know what is going on in local institutions and that institution blocks them, they would not have the means to fight back. But this institution is also happy to take your money.”

A separate email chain from October 2018 states that experiments were not conducted within the university, meaning OHSU did not own the footage and PETA could not have given it

PETA previously accused OSHU of mistreating monkeys used in experiments.

In 2012, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) fined OSHU $12,000 following a PETA-sponsored investigation. Since then, the USDA has issued two separate accounts warning the hospital of laboratory animal abuse.

Most recently, in 2022, the USDA charged the university with violating federal animal welfare laws.

According to the complaint, a Mongolian gerbil starved to death during an experiment in which a group of gerbils were food rationed.

OHSU is followed by a string of other violations that have seen two lab monkeys scalded to death after being accidentally put in a high-temperature cage washer.

Another primate was injured after becoming entangled in a sewer cover and two others were euthanized due to delayed treatment after they developed brain infections in experiments.