The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the world’s largest funder of biomedical research, is facing mounting criticism from across the political spectrum for its ongoing and newly funded experiments involving dogs.
Despite pledges from new leadership to reduce animal testing, recent revelations highlight persistent funding for controversial labs, sparking outrage from conservative figures like investigative journalist Laura Loomer and liberal-leaning outlets like The Guardian.
This bipartisan backlash underscores a rare consensus: taxpayer dollars should not support cruel and unnecessary animal abuse.
“Information obtained by…White Coat Waste shows that the NIH has in fact funded millions of dollars’ worth of new animal experiments…NIH has approved nine new grants for dog research since their April announcement, costing the taxpayer over $12M”
NIH under fire for funding… pic.twitter.com/4Zt3gFzBXg
— White Coat Waste (@WhiteCoatWaste) July 16, 2025
The NIH’s use of animals in research has long been a contentious issue, particularly following exposés during the tenure of former director Dr. Anthony Fauci. In 2021, the nonprofit White Coat Waste Project (WCW) uncovered and The Gateway Pundit reported on NIH-funded experiments where beagles were infested with sandflies and had their vocal cords removed to prevent barking during painful procedures.
The Trump administration has prioritized ending the barbaric practice.
Trump’s Navy, Department of Veterans Affairs, and EPA have already eliminated such testing in direct response to WCW’s investigations. Holdovers from the Obama and Biden Administrations appear to be preventing this kind of progress at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
“Trump hates waste and animal experimentation is the poster child for wasteful spending. The best place to start would be to cut funding for animal labs which make up 40% of the NIH budget. It’s outdated, expensive, there’s little return for taxpayers and the American people don’t want pets tortured,” WCW Vice President Justin Goodman told The Guardian.
Hellbound and Down 