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After a difficult life of abuse at a Virginia breeding facility, a senior Beagle is now living happily ever after.
Mamma Mia, a 7-year-old Beagle rescue, was one of nearly 4,000 dogs who were rescued from the Envigo facility in July.
The Cumberland, Virginia, facility — where the dogs were found to be injured, undernourished and sick — was charged with multiple ethics violations from federal agencies. Animal rights activists say the dogs were abused under the guise of medical research.
“While eating [Mama Mia] Shannon Keith, founder of the Beagle Freedom Project, told KTTV that she was breastfeeding and put it right outside her cage so she could see and smell it but she couldn’t get it.
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Homeward Trails, a Virginia-based animal shelter, rescued a beagle from an Envigo breeding facility.
(Sue Bell/Homeward Trails)
“They did this to starve him and his puppies to see the effects of mastitis,” Keith said. “Her puppies died as a result. They tortured her and they tortured her puppies.”
But Mamma Mia’s fortunes changed when she met Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, who had arrived for the Beagle Rescue Project to adopt an elderly dog.
“Mama Mia ran up to him and we’ve never seen him do this to anyone before,” Keith said. “She just knew it was her people.”
“Prince Harry sat down on the couch, and she ran up to him and put her paws on his knees. Her tail was running a million miles a minute,” she said.
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The beggar allegedly ran up to Prince Harry and put his paws on his knees during the journey.
Keith told KTTV that initially, she didn’t realize she was talking to the Duchess of Sussex during the initial phone call.
“I didn’t know who it was. She was saying she had been supporting the Beagle Freedom Project for years and now that her family has settled here in Montecito they were up for adoption.”
The Humane Society of the United States worked with the Department of Justice and animal welfare partners, including Homeward Trails, to find new homes for rescued Beagles.
(Sue Bell/Homeward Trails)
Beagles are considered desirable to researchers because they are a loyal and docile breed.
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“They actually told me on my first defense, they said we pick them because they are forgiving,” Keith explained.
“When we test them on them, they trust us and they let us do it again,” Keith said of the inhumane testing on dogs.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex stepped down from royal duties in 2020 in what they described as intrusive British media and racist attitudes towards the former “Suits” star.
They now live in Montecito, California, with two children, Archie and Lillibet.
(This story has not been edited by seemayo staff and is published from a rss feed)