{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://titus.house.gov/press-releases/veterans-groups-join-titus-effort-to-limit-va-dog-testing", "Veterans Groups Join Titus Effort to Limit VA Dog Testing", "2017-11-08", "2017", "2017-11", "Democrat", "House", "NV", "Dina Titus", "T000468", "titus.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "November 11, 2017\nWashington, D.C. -- Prominent veterans\u2019 advocacy organizations are backing Rep. Dina Titus (NV-1) and her bipartisan effort to curtail the Department of Veterans Affairs\u2019 unnecessary and inhumane medical experiments on dogs. The supportive Veterans Service Organizations include\u00a0VetsFirst, The Retired Enlisted Association (TREA), Military-Veterans Advocacy (MVA), and the\u00a0American Military Retirees Association (AMRA).\u00a0\n\u201cOur nation\u2019s veterans deserve better than having the VA spend taxpayers\u2019 money on cruel and ineffective experiments on dogs when there are other proven treatment methods available,\u201d said Rep. Titus. \u201cI\u2019m honored that the American Military Retirees Association, The Retired Enlisted Association, Military-Veterans Advocacy, and VetsFirst have joined the many other veterans supporting my bipartisan work to stop needless dog testing at the VA.\u201d\n\u201cWe are concerned by the apparent lack of evidence that the VA\u2019s past and ongoing canine research\u2014particularly projects involving causing dogs pain and distress, some of which is not relieved\u2014has led to effective and accessible treatments or cures for veteran-specific illnesses,\u201d wrote\u00a0VetsFirst in a letter endorsed by the American Military Retirees Association and The Retired Enlisted Association. \u201cAs such, we support your efforts to eliminate unnecessary VA canine research that is not serving the specific needs of all veterans so that these resources can be more appropriately allocated.\u201d\n\u201cWe are writing to express our support for your work to curtail wasteful and unnecessary dog experimentation at the Department of Veterans Affairs,\u201d wrote\u00a0Military-Veterans Advocacy\u00a0in a letter to Rep. Titus. \u201c[T]he VA is expending significant time, money, staff, research space, and other resources to conduct and defend questionable dog experimentation that is opposed by most veterans, ineffective and has little to do with service-related disabilities. VA\u2019s dog experimentation does not align with current veterans\u2019 health priorities or VA\u2019s legislative mandate to focus its research on service-related illnesses and injuries.\u201d\nCongresswoman Titus and Congressman Dave Brat (R-VA) have introduced the bipartisan\u00a0PUPPERS Act (HR 3197)\u2014which is cosponsored by numerous veterans in Congress\u2014that aims to end the two most painful categories of dog experiments at the VA, including experiments in which pain relief is withheld for dogs. The bill allows non-painful canine research and any research related to service and working dogs. In July, the House\u00a0unanimously passed\u00a0a bipartisan amendment cosponsored by Congresswoman Titus to cut funding for the VA\u2019s painful dog experiments in FY18.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://titus.house.gov/press-releases/veterans-groups-join-titus-effort-to-limit-va-dog-testing"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.2450049873441458, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}