Complaint Seeks USDA Review of Monkey Injury at Oregon Primate Center

PETA has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture to investigate an animal-care incident at Oregon Health & Science University’s Oregon National Primate Research Center. Its October 20 complaint concerns a young rhesus macaque whose hand injuries required multiple finger amputations.

The request relies on university reports and correspondence from the National Institutes of Health’s Office of Laboratory Animal Welfare, or OLAW, obtained through public-records procedures. Those documents confirm the injury and an institutional finding of noncompliance. They also show that OLAW accepted corrective measures and closed its review in September.

According to OHSU’s August 21 report, the macaque was found separated from her social group on July 2. Staff observed blood and initially continued monitoring after a clinical technician reported no apparent signs of pain. An assessment the following day revealed fractures affecting both hands.

The university’s investigation identified an enclosure slide that had been left unsecured after animals were moved between pens. The report describes the slide falling on the animal’s hands as a possible explanation, rather than an established reconstruction of precisely how the injuries occurred. The animal was not assigned to a research project at the time.

OHSU’s animal-care committee approved corrective measures August 18. They included reinforced enclosure-security checks, procedures governing access after daily checks, retraining and instructions to escalate signs of injury or abnormal separation promptly to veterinary and management staff.

In a September 9 letter, OLAW concluded that appropriate corrective measures had been implemented and found no cause for further action by that office.

PETA’s new complaint asks USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to determine whether the incident also violated Animal Welfare Act regulations concerning housing, injury prevention and veterinary care. That request is distinct from the completed OLAW review. The verified materials do not establish a new USDA finding, penalty or investigation announcement.

Why This Matters for Animals

The records concern practical protections: secure enclosures, reliable daily checks and timely assessment of possible injuries. Failures in those systems can seriously harm animals even outside an experiment.

The new development is a documented request for additional federal scrutiny. OHSU’s corrective actions and OLAW’s closure are equally important parts of the record; neither should disappear from reporting about the complaint.

Source: October 20 complaint to USDA concerning OHSU, with supporting records