Helen Woodward Animal Center
Several of the former research beagles pulled from a breeding facility in Cumberland, Virginia, took part in the celebration of DOGust — the unofficial birthday for shelter dogs with no known birthdate — on Monday.
Earlier this month, the Helen Woodward Animal Center in Rancho Santa Fe, California, took in 43 of the over 4,000 beagles that the Humane Society of the United States is currently moving out of Envigo RMS LLC’s facility in Virginia, according to a press release from the Helen Woodward Animal Center.
Three of the California rescue’s new beagles, Sheffield, Cambridge, and Wales, took part in Helen Woodward Animal Center’s DOGgust birthday celebration on August 1. The festivities included pup cakes, presents, toys, decorations, and, of course, special attention from staff members, the organization shared.
Helen Woodward Animal Center
RELATED: Hundreds of Beagles Bred for Research Will Get Forever Homes Thanks to Virginia Animal Rescue
“These beagles have lived years inside of a kennel,” Helen Woodward Animal Center’s animal care supervisor, Jenny Bueche, said in a statement. “No one has ever celebrated them or the beauty of their existence.”
She continued, “We have had to guesstimate their ages based on exams. In many ways, these beagles represent exactly the type of forgotten canines that DOGust was created to honor.”
The beagle trio — available for adoption — was joined by Dante, a 2-year-old shepherd-husky blend, and a puppy named Mississippi for the celebration.
Helen Woodward Animal Center
RELATED: 4,000 Former Research Beagles Moving from Virginia Facility to Shelters to Find Forever Homes
Before the beagles’ arrival at the Helen Woodward Animal Center, the Humane Society of the United States — in partnership with several shelter and rescue organizations — facilitated their removal from the Virginia facility, where the dogs were bred for research and lab use.
According to USA Today, the plan to move the beagles from the Virginia facility was created after the federal government filed a civil enforcement case in May against Envigo RMS — the company that owns and operates the facility for medical research. After the case was filed, U.S. District Court Judge Norman Moon issued a restraining order imposing restrictions on the facility, the outlet reported.
Helen Woodward Animal Center
RELATED: Rehabilitation Begins for Former Research Beagles in Hopes of Finding Their Forever Homes
Since 2021, investigations into the Envigo breeding center have turned up reports of underfed, ill, and injured dogs, and dogs that were euthanized instead of given medical care, per The New York Times.
Additionally, 300 puppy deaths at the facility were attributed to “unknown causes” between January and July 2021, according to an inspection report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, USA Today reported.
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Inotiv, Inc., Envigo’s parent company, released a statement in June announcing it would close the Cumberland facility and work with the Department of Justice to safely move the beagles in the facility to shelters and rescues for adoption.
“Envigo has worked cooperatively with the Department of Justice to facilitate the orderly transfer of canines from our Cumberland, Virginia, facility to various adoption and sheltering agencies through a third-party organization. We anticipate that this orderly process will be completed within approximately 60 days. Our mission at Envigo is to help our customers realize the full potential of their scientific and medical research, which ultimately contributes to significant improvements in the lives of people and animals. The welfare of animals is, and has always been, our number one priority,” an Inotiv company representative shared in a statement obtained by PEOPLE.
