US veterinary student sues St Kitts-based school for cruelty to animals
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| Published on Thursday, September 18, 2008 |
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By Tricia N. Henry
Caribbean Net News Staff Reporter
Email: tricia@caribbeannetnews.com
DENVER, USA: St Kitts-based veterinary school, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, has once again made headlines for the alleged ill-treatment of its animals, and is now being sued by one of its students.
Denver resident, Jamie Scott, has filed a complaint against the school alleging that deadly surgeries are practiced on the animals at the institution. Scott also claimed that before she enrolled at Ross, she was told that such surgeries were “optional”. However, following her enrollment, Scott claimed that she was told that she would fail unless she performed the harmful procedures.
The student is now demanding that – like other veterinary schools – Ross offer a “humane alternative to surgically mutilating and killing healthy animals”.
The complaint was due to be heard Wednesday at the Federal Courthouse in Denver.
In March of this year, Caribbean Net News reported that Ross, which is owned by Chicago-area-based DeVry Inc. (also named in the suit), was suspected of practicing cruel teaching procedures which were being performed on animals at the school.
As a consequence, Caribbean Net News reported that the US-based organisation, People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) had sent an urgent letter to Dr Elizabeth Sabin of the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) Center for Veterinary Education Accreditation, urging her to suspend the accreditation process for the University, which was underway at the time, in the wake of allegations.
Ross students, including some from the US, had contacted PETA about the cruel procedures in which students were often required to operate repeatedly on healthy animals. Students also produced photographs that showed sheep with infected surgical wounds.
In response to PETA's campaign to persuade Ross to switch to more humane teaching methods, Ross announced earlier this year that it would end invasive and deadly surgeries on dogs, but the school has allegedly continued to kill healthy goats, donkeys, and sheep.
PETA members decided to converge on the Federal Courthouse in Denver Wednesday, armed with placards and accompanied by an activist wearing a sheep costume, in support of Scott’s suit and to bring more attention to the matter.
"Jamie Scott decided to become a veterinarian because she wants to alleviate animal suffering, but Ross is trying to force her to cause suffering," said PETA Director of Laboratory Investigations, Kathy Guillermo . "Ross lags far behind more progressive veterinary schools that perform surgery only on animals who will be helped by it." | | | | Reads : 2888 | | | |
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