The Shadow
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, adopted Momma Mia, a 7-year-old beagle and mother of eight puppies, from the Beagle Freedom Project on Aug. 11.
Envigo, a company in Cumberland, Va. which breeds dogs for biomedical research, was forced by authorities to free 4,000 beagles because of underfeeding them and not providing veterinarian care to injured beagles that were euthanized rather than treated.
Inotive, the parent company of Envigo, assisted in the transfer of the beagles to various adoption agencies such as Beagle Freedom Project and other animal sheltering organizations across the country.
Momma Mia was transferred to an animal shelter in the San Fernando Valley in Calf. After Markle visited the adoption agency there and encountered Momma Mia, she reportedly played with the beagle in the backyard at the shelter and decided to adopt Momma Mia.
The adoption was the second time that Markle has decided to adopt a canine as a pet. She adopted Guy from A Dog’s Dream Rescue in 2015.
Inotiv, Inc. of Indianapolis, Ind., settled a lawsuit in July that had been filed by the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Agriculture for infractions of animal welfare laws, and Inotiv has closed Envigo, the company Inotiv had purchased for $545 million via a cash and stock deal nearly a year earlier, citing a restructuring process for its action.
Inotiv, Inc. is the second largest animal breeding company in the U.S., and the animals the company breeds and sells are for medical research.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires rigorous testing of new drugs and chemical additives for food to be completed on animals before approval can be achieved by companies developing such drugs and chemical additives. Consequently, beagles are often used for such testing.
