Feds Cite Military Contractor for Goat Abuse

We have two hot developments to report in PETA’s campaign to
expose and end the abuse of animals in cruel and archaic U.S. military medical
training drills: Following complaints filed by PETA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has cited Tier 1 Group, a
military trauma training contractor, over abuse to goats seen in an undercover video released by PETA earlier this year, and the Virginia Beach Zoning Administration (VBZA) has warned the owner of the
property where the training allegedly took place that these exercises are not
permitted there.

Teaching
Heartlessness

In April, PETA released the video footage taken by a
whistleblower during a trauma
training session for members of the U.S. Coast Guard. The video showed course
instructors with Tier 1 Group repeatedly cutting off the limbs of live goats
with tree trimmers, stabbing the animals with scalpels, and cutting into their
abdomens to pull out their organs as they twitched,
moaned, and kicked. Veterinarians
who viewed the video confirmed that these are signs that the goats were not
adequately anesthetized and were likely feeling pain.

The video also showed a course instructor from Tier 1 Group
who cheerfully whistled as he cut the legs off goats as well as Coast Guard
participants who joked about writing a song about mutilating the animals.

Intolerable Cruelty

At the time the video was released, PETA filed a number of
complaints with authorities, and two of these agencies have now taken
disciplinary action against parties responsible for the training. (A U.S. Coast
Guard investigation into PETA’s complaint is ongoing.)

The USDA citation for violating
the federal Animal Welfare Act was issued because of Tier 1 Group’s failure to give
adequate anesthesia to the goats who were stabbed and cut into. This is a
repeat violation, as Tier 1 Group was
cited by the USDA for a similar violation last year.

The USDA’s citation of Tier 1 Group for failing to anesthetize
animals properly during invasive procedures is made even more alarming by the
fact that just days after the USDA citation, the U.S. Navy awarded Tier 1 Group
a contract worth nearly $2 million to conduct 24 trauma training exercises on
live pigs. A company that has violated federal animal welfare law should not be
rewarded with millions of tax dollars.

The VBZA letter not only warned that such exercises aren’t
permitted but also notified the property owner that legal action may be pursued
against him if such unauthorized activities are conducted on the land in the
future. These unlawful training exercises have taken place there for years, but
officials have now made it clear that they must not occur there ever again.

What You Can Do

Please join PETA and its dedicated supporters—including
military veterans Oliver
Stone and Bob Barker—in urging the military to replace these cruel animal laboratories with humane and
advanced human-patient
simulators.

Read more at The PETA Files