Research dog-breeding facility run by Indianapolis firm to be sold – Indianapolis Business Journal

West Lafayette-based Inotiv Inc. mentioned it should shut two animal-breeding amenities in Virginia operated by its Indianapolis-based subsidiary, Envigo RMS.

One of many amenities is a dog-breeding facility in Cumberland County that’s the topic of a lawsuit alleging animal welfare regulation violations. A federal choose issued an emergency order late final month imposing a sequence of restrictions on the power after regulators mentioned the positioning was chargeable for the deaths of a whole lot of beagle puppies.

Envigo breeds beagles for medical analysis on the Cumberland facility. It has housed as much as 5,000 beagles within the final 12 months.

Inotiv mentioned the closure of the Cumberland facility, in addition to a rodent-breeding facility in Dublin, Virginia, is a part of a restructuring following the corporate’s $545 million acquisition of Envigo final November.

In keeping with the lawsuit filed final month, a number of federal inspections resulted in dozens of violations, together with findings that canine had obtained insufficient medical care and inadequate meals, had been housed in filthy circumstances, and a few had been euthanized with out first receiving anesthesia.

The inspections additionally discovered a whole lot of canine lifeless on the facility. Officers additionally not too long ago seized 145 beagles in “acute misery” on the facility.

Inotiv CEO Robert Leasure mentioned in Monday’s announcement that the corporate acknowledged the necessity for enhancements and investments on the facility.

“Inotiv has been happy with the continued and important progress in enhancements on the Cumberland facility because the acquisition, as evidenced by current inspections by the USDA and different auditing organizations,” Leasure mentioned in written remarks. “The required investments to enhance the power and the lead time to realize these enhancements have not too long ago elevated. Because of this, we’ve got determined we won’t be investing additional on this facility, and it will likely be closed.”

Leasure mentioned the Cumberland facility accounts for lower than 1% of the corporate’s complete income and has not contributed to income because the Envigo acquisition.

Inotiv mentioned manufacturing on the Dublin facility will probably be relocated to different amenities which were not too long ago expanded or been refurbished.

The transitions are anticipated to be full by December. Inotiv didn’t specify if any jobs could be affected.

Envigo was based in 2015 by the merger of Indianapolis-based Harlan Laboratories Inc. and United Kingdom-based Huntingdon Life Sciences. Harlan, based in 1931, was one of many world’s largest suppliers of laboratory animals, with amenities all through the world.