• More than 4,000 beagles are being rescued from Virginia breeding facility.
• The dogs were bred at the facility before being sent to labs for drug testing.
• The facility was shut down due to animal rights abuses, and the dogs are being put up for adoption.

After what is believed to be one of the largest dog rescue attempts in US history, over 4,000 beagles are looking for new homes.

The canines were bred at a facility in Virginia before being supplied to labs for drug testing.

However, the firm has since been shut down due to animal rights abuses, and organisations are working hard to rehome the dogs.

“Four thousand is a big number,”  said Kitty Block, executive director of the Humane Society.

“And it’s going to take 60 days to get all of these animals out, and working with our shelter and rescue partners across the country, working with them to get these dogs eventually into ever-loving homes,” she told Reuters.

The US Department of Justice sued the Cumberland breeding facility, operated by Envigo RMS, in May, accusing it of various instances of animal cruelty.

Inspectors discovered that some dogs were being slaughtered rather than getting veterinary attention for problems that might easily be cured. They were also provided food contaminated with maggots, mould, and faeces, while other nursing women were refused sustenance.

In another case, 25 pups perished as a result of cold exposure.

Following the complaint, the corporation rejected the charges but said that it was shutting the facility and relocating the canines to the animal rights organisation Humane Society, according to CBS News.

The beagles are currently undergoing medical exams and immunizations before being placed up for adoption.

According to Virginia state Senator Bill Stanley, the rescue was the product of a years-long battle.

“I can attest to how great these dogs are because I have two of them,” he told Reuters. “I bought two of those Envigo beagles back in 2020 and 2021… Those beagles I bought because I did not want them to be experimented on. And now I know that their brothers and sisters are not going to be experimented on either.”

Some of the dogs have already been rehomed around the United States, including 200 in southern California.

According to rehoming organisations, many of the animals display indications of trauma, and some of the pups had never been touched and had no idea how to play.

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