LOS ANGELES, Sept. 2, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Last Chance for Animals (LCA) today applauded the Jane Goodall Institute (JGI) for calling on York University to immediately retire nine rhesus macaques subjected to neuroscience research and transfer them to an appropriate sanctuary following LCA’s undercover investigation into the university’s primate research program.
In a statement issued on September 2, JGI said it was “deeply troubled” by the conditions and treatment of the nine macaques documented in LCA’s investigation and said its commitment to animal welfare requires JGI “to speak out when animals may be experiencing unnecessary suffering.”
Read the full statement from the Jane Goodall Institute.
JGI also reaffirmed Dr. Jane Goodall’s lifelong opposition to invasive experimentation involving primates and her support for the development and use of alternatives to animal research. The organization called for a decisive move away from invasive animal experimentation and toward non-animal methods that can ultimately end the use of animals in research.
In 2024, York University awarded Dr. Goodall an honorary Doctor of Science degree in recognition of her work in primatology, conservation and environmental advocacy.
“Jane Goodall spent her life teaching the world that animals deserve compassion, respect and protection, and she never stopped speaking up when animals were suffering,” said Chris DeRose, President and Founder of Last Chance for Animals. “It is deeply meaningful to see the Jane Goodall Institute carry that message forward in response to what our investigation uncovered. Their voice for animals is more important than ever, and Jane’s legacy lives on through their work.”
LCA released its undercover investigation in April 2026 after an LCA investigator spent nine months working inside York University’s Behavioral Sciences Building as a Laboratory Animal Attendant, caring for the nine macaques and documenting their conditions. The investigation was the first undercover investigation by an animal rights organization into animal research at a Canadian university.
The nine macaques named Hannah, Liesl, Mini-Sass, Olivia, Virginia, Do, Kenny, Bento and Magneto, collectively known as the “York 9,” were being used in neuroscience research. Most of the animals had spent more than 17 years inside the laboratory.
LCA’s investigation documented:
- Macaques living in small, barren laboratory cages and experiencing prolonged social isolation.
- Invasive cranial and brain implants, including head posts and implanted chambers used during neuroscience experiments.
- Permanent restraint collars used to control and move the animals.
- Repeated surgeries, including multiple eye-coil procedures involving the female macaques.
- Animals exhibiting abnormal and repetitive behaviors, including pacing and swaying.
- Evidence of water deprivation and animals struggling to swallow while restrained.
- Injuries and apparent complications associated with implants, including footage of Kenny with a bleeding implant injury.
LCA subsequently filed a formal complaint with the Canadian Council on Animal Care (CCAC) concerning the investigation’s findings.
LCA is also raising concerns about York University’s planned expansion of its neuroscience research infrastructure. York has invested more than $40 million in a new Neuroscience Laboratory and Research Building, and university materials have described plans for a new vivarium and multiple nonhuman-primate laboratories. LCA is urging York not to expand its use of primates and instead move toward research methods that do not involve animals.
Since LCA released its investigation, there have been monthly protests at York University, drawing public attention to the treatment of the York 9 and the university’s use of primates in research.
LCA will hold another protest and rally at York University in September, as public pressure on the university continues to build.
“JGI’s statement sends an important message to York University: concern for animals must extend to the animals inside these laboratories,” said DeRose. “These nine macaques have suffered enough. York University should immediately release them and end its use of primates in research and experimentation.”
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SOURCE Last Chance For Animals
