Please spare a thought for the countless cats, dogs, mice, chicks, and rabbits languishing in Iams laboratories. These poor creatures are forced to undergo cruel, and often invasive, procedures–– none of which are required by any law .

Beneath the wholesome image of the dog- and cat-food manufacturer, a 10-month PETA undercover investigation into an Iams contract laboratory revealed a dark and sordid secret: routine neglect and misery.

•  Dogs dumped on cold concrete flooring after huge chunks of muscle were cut from their thighs—27 of the 60 dogs were killed, and two others were later found dead in their cages

•  Dogs and cats gone stir-crazy from confinement in windowless, dungeon-like buildings

•  A procedure in which tubes were stuck down dogs' throats to force them to ingest vegetable oil

•  Dogs with such severe tartar build-up on their teeth that it was painful for them to eat

•  Vet technicians with inadequate training and experience performing invasive procedures

Our investigator videotaped Iams representatives visiting the laboratory, witnessing the animals in these abusive conditions, and doing nothing. When PETA went public with the evidence, Iams officials lied and said that they had no idea what conditions were like inside the laboratory that their own staff regularly visited! Iams then cut ties with the lab.

Iams and its owner, Procter & Gamble, still contract with outside laboratories like the one in our investigation. Iams also conducts experiments on animals in its own laboratory in the U.S. Iams says that, by October 2006, it intends to move all testing to its own facility––away from prying eyes––and will more than double the number of dogs and cats in its cages.

At the March 2004 Pet Food Forum, Iams spokesperson Dan Carey stated that he believed that dogs and cats could spend their “entire lives” in cages for laboratory studies. Iams' current welfare program states that dogs and cats need only receive a paltry 30 minutes a day, five days a week, of cage-free time (with no such provision during the weekend). This means approximately 165 hours a week of unrelieved anxiety, fear, boredom, depression, lack of social contact, and inadequate exercise for these naturally gregarious and fun-loving animals.

Compassionate dog-and cat-food manufacturers have proved, time and again, that reliable tests can be done humanely in a home environment or veterinary clinic with dogs and cats volunteered by their human companions. Iams can do the same.

More and more consumers are deciding that they are sick of Iams' cruelty to animals and are boycotting the company's products.

Please send an e-mail and tell Iams that you won't buy its products until it stops conducting laboratory experiments on animals.