Your Calgary Herald

Dogs flown to France for use in medical experiments
Max Harrold, CanWest News Service
Published: Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Passengers on an Air Canada plane bound for Paris May 21 were reportedly disturbed by the sounds from the cargo hold -- dozens of dogs yelping.

An estimated 70 to 100 beagles were just one of many regular -- and perfectly legal -- trans-Atlantic shipments by Air Canada of dogs destined for medical experimentation.

Passengers said the sound of the dogs was very distressing.

"All we could hear during the boarding and before the take-off was barking, crying and whimpering," said one passenger in business class on Flight 870 who asked not to be named.

After landing in Paris, passengers saw three pallets with cages of two dogs each being unloaded from the Airbus 330 aircraft.

"Their tails were wagging through the cages," said one passenger, who also asked not to be identified.

Quebec's vague animal protection law and weak enforcement provide a steady source of dogs for labs both here and abroad, animal rights activists charge.

"Fifty per cent of all dogs used for medical research in Canada are used in Quebec," said Liz White, a director of the Animal Alliance of Canada.

© The Calgary Herald 2007