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4,000 Beagles Rescued From A Virginia Breeding Facility

July 13, 2022

Homeward Trails Animal Rescue, a non-profit organization that provides pet adoption in Virginia, Washington, D.C. and Maryland, has rescued 4,000 mistreated beagles from a breeding facility in Cumberland, Virginia.

Credit: Homeward Trails

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) announced that the beagles will be removed from Envigo, a medical contract breeding facility that has been accused of having unfit conditions.

Envigo is contracted to breed dogs for the purpose of research and scientific experiments. Federal investigators claim the facility performed unnecessarily painful medical experiments on dogs and puppies.

U.S. District Court Judge Norman K. Moon requested in early July that 4,000 beagles be removed from Envigo and put up for adoption. According to court documents, Moon required Envigo to pay $100 per dog, and $150 per dog nursing a litter younger than 8 weeks, to help defray the costs to the shelters preparing the dogs for adoption.

"This is one of the largest dog rescue efforts ever coordinated and has truly been a group effort," Sue Bell, executive director of Homeward Trails, said. "To know that these dogs will get to have the lives they deserve and not languish in cages for the rest of their lives is just so rewarding."

Homeward Trails partnered with HSUS to remove the Beagles and secure foster and adoptive homes for them in the next sixty days.

"For months now, we have witnessed first-hand the joy these dogs experience when their feet touch grass for the first time, they get a bone to chew on, and they experience love from a human being," Bell said.