Animal Research and Testing
Is Violence in Our World on the Rise or Decline?

In his magisterial work “The Better Angels of Our Nature,” Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker argued that our time is the most peaceful era in human history. Average life expectancy, at least for people in western nations, has broken the 80-year mark. With better nutrition and . . .
We’re There: The HSUS 2012 Annual Report

View our interactive 2012 Annual Report. Today we’re officially releasing The HSUS’ 2012 Annual Report, which pulls together the many strands of work of the world’s largest animal protection organization and bundles them together in a single place. We’re committed to transparency in the communication . . .
Honoring Leaders in Building a Humane Economy

The animal protection movement is blessed to have so many talented people determined to make this world better for animals, and committed to taking intentional actions to make it a reality. But in any major social movement there will also be a few truly matchless . . .
Obama Budget Seeks to Give Animals a Helping Hand

Yesterday, President Obama released his 2014 budget, the latest proposal in the back-and-forth between Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill on federal spending. Amid all of the items in the $3 trillion-plus budget there were more than a few kernels of good news for animal . . .
Join Us For The 2013 Genesis Awards Benefit Gala

As I’ve mentioned before on A Humane Nation, our greatest charge at The HSUS must be to prevent cruelty before it occurs. While animal rescue is vital, it is not enough. We cannot rescue our way out of the many problems animals face. Indeed, the very . . .
HSUS Demands Action on Wide Range of Animal Issues

Condor 303 who died from lead poisoning. Photo by Ventana Wildlife Society The HSUS and the animal issues we work on are in the news every day, but there are times when I am especially reminded of the relevance of our animal welfare work to . . .
Lab Chimps Taste Freedom

Chad Sisneros/The HSUS We’ve made remarkable strides in recent months toward our goal of ending invasive chimpanzee research and retiring chimps to appropriate sanctuaries. In January, a National Institutes of Health working group tasked with examining the use of chimpanzees in NIH-funded research made sweeping . . .
Our Predatory Human Ways

iStock In today’s Sacramento Bee, my colleague Jennifer Fearing wrote a column questioning the outdated policies governing predator management that have dominated for too long. The public is fed up with unsporting and inhumane practices, as evidenced by the ban on hound hunting that passed . . .
DOD and Combat Training — Limiting the Casualties

For years, the U.S. Department of Defense has intentionally hurt animals, including dogs, in order to simulate “battlefield wounds,” for the purpose of medical combat training for treatment of injured soldiers. Upon learning of these in-field “experiments” with animals, the public demanded change and better . . .
A Scientific Indictment of Animal Research and Testing

“What are the alternatives to using animals in medical research?” This is a legitimate question I am often asked, and now, due to scientific innovation and increasing evidence of the shortcomings of animal research, it is becoming easier to answer. A newly published scientific paper . . .
A Super Bowl Without Chimps: It’s About Time

Last week I shared tremendously exciting news that a National Institutes of Health working group made sweeping recommendations to phase out all current biomedical research grants involving chimpanzees in laboratories, to end chimpanzee breeding, and to retire the vast majority of government-owned chimpanzees to sanctuaries. . . .
NIH Panel Says Lab Chimps Should Go to Sanctuaries

While a handful of members of Congress delayed action on a recent bill to phase out the use of chimps in invasive experiments during the lame-duck session, yesterday a National Institutes of Health Working Group tasked with examining the NIH’s future role in chimpanzee research . . .