(CBS News) The United States Department of Agriculture is ending a controversial food-safety testing practice that has been responsible for the deaths of thousands of cats since 1982. USDA officials announced on Tuesday that toxoplasmosis research will no longer use cats to study the effects of the parasite.
For decades, Agricultural Research Service (ARS) laboratories have been using kittens to study the
Cats are the only known host species where T. gondii, the parasite which causes toxoplasmosis, can complete its life cycle and lay eggs, which allows researchers to more completely study the disease and its effects. Kittens and cats can pass the parasite through feces when they shed millions of eggs for as long as three weeks after initial infection. This can infect humans in a domesticated setting by having the parasite form in a litter box, or when animals that humans eat digest cat feces.
According to the USDA and Center for Disease Control, the taxoplasmosis disease is the leading cause of death of food-borne illness in the United States, though its rates have been cut in half since the ARS began its research into the disease.
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Hooray for the White Coat Waste Project. It must be so wonderful to make such a difference. I will put them on my charities list.
Our President has so many things to catch up on. If the President wanted more votes and backing for his 2020 he would pass more laws for animals. So many pet lovers.
Thank you for a start.
This experiment like so many others that WE (taxpayers)expected to pay for! We are discovering, how wasteful, disgusting and inexcusable our government is with billions of dollars that are being used to torture animals. Just remember these animals are not Volunteering to sacrifice themselves to save mankind and for science Mankind and science is betraying the trust they have in us and torturing them and calling it science!
Hmmmmm……..well I guess it’s more than obvious that this is good news for cats, and I’m sure the A.S.P.C.A, PETA, pet lovers and tax payers everywhere love this kind of news.
Over $7,300 per cat for research. Trump is a businessman. While many say he doesn’t care about anyone or anything, it appears he thinks that’s a mighty expensive cat at $7300 and believes there’s gotta be a better way.
I hope there is. I certainly don’t want a serious outbreak of toxoplasmosis to strike the land as proof that we actually need this research. I have no idea. I’m just pointing that out. If anyone knows, please respond. Has the USDA found another effective way to protect us w/o this method of testing ? What has this testing been replaced with ?
As far as PETA and the A.S.P.C.A. goes, I seriously doubt they will publicly support Trump. Too many of their own supporters are blind to the quality of Trump’s leadership.
Things like the way he is leaning on big pharmacology. He questioned early on as to why pain meds are so addictive. Do they really need to be ? Is there a non-addictive alternative ? I haven’t forgotten how Sir Walter Reilly told us cigs weren’t addictive, and then that they aren’t dangerous, and then we found out they were deliberately making them more dangerous and more addictive. Pharma Companies wouldn’t do that to create a better bottom line now would they ?
Trump’s First Step Act and Office of American Innovation and the way they are working with the D.O.J to assist prison population start over when they get out. I could go on and on. This President is pro family and pro everyone. He is trying very hard to help the impoverished in this land.