Ellen DeGeneres to Taiwan: Don’t Use Beagle Puppies for Rabies Experimentation!

Talk show host is a longtime animal rights activist

Ellen DeGeneres has a case of puppy love.

The talk show host has joined the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine’s fight to stop the Taiwanese government from using Beagle puppies in science experimentation.

“As a long-time advocate for the welfare of animals, I would like to join the many physicians, scientists, and veterinarians who have encouraged the Taiwanese government to avoid experimenting on live animals in its efforts to combat the rabies virus in Taiwan,” DeGeneres writes in a letter to officials that is set to be delivered to Taiwanese officials tomorrow.

According to the Physicians Committee, the Taiwanese Council of Agriculture is planning on conducting rabies experimentation on beagle puppies and other animals after the country experienced its first case of rabies in more than 50 years last summer.

“I understand that the proposed experiments, which would involve infecting beagles, mice and ferret-badgers with the deadly rabies virus, are neither humane nor scientifically necessary,” DeGeneres also writes.

“No one would want to think of forcing live animals to go through experiments in which they develop rabies and ultimately die from it.

Experts from the international scientific and veterinary communities agree that the infectivity of rabies viruses and the resulting course of infection in animals have been well established.”

DeGeneres adds that using the animals in experiments “is not necessary for protecting public health.”

A longtime animal rights activist, DeGeneres was named PETA’s Woman of the Year in 2009

Her famous Oscar selfie with celebs like Bradley Cooper, Brad Pitt, Meryl Streep, Angelina Jolie, Julia Roberts and Kevin Spacey in March helped raise $1.5 million for the Humane Society of the United States after Samsung decided to give a dollar to her designated charities for every re-tweet the photo received.

The Humane Society divided the donation among three of its programs: Pets for Life, the Shelter Pet Project and the Animal Rescue Team.