Cats and Dogs Released From Public Colleges: The Obligation To Allow Adoption After The Experiment Is Over
By Michelle Ball, California Education Attorney for Students since 1995 Did you know that cats and dogs are used as test subjects in colleges and universities? People often think of rats, mice and primates as animals used in research, but typical "pets" are sadly also used (see graphic article on cat experimentation in colleges ). What happens to the animals if they are still well AFTER a public college is through with them? Are they euthanized or do they have to be placed in new homes? It depends on their condition. Per California Education Code �66017.7 , animals which are "suitable for adoption" after the school is through with them, do not have to be put to death. Rather, they are to be placed up for adoption by the college or given to an adoption agency to place. This section states in part: "(a) A public postsecondary educational institution or independent institution of higher education, or employee or student thereof, that confines...