PETA Says UH-Clear Lake Is Psychologically Abusing Rats

Animal welfare group PETA says psychology students at UH-Clear Lake are mistreating rats, and the group wants them to knock it off.

In an email to UH-Clear Lake President William Staples sent last week, a PETA investigator claims that rats used in a course called Learning Principles "are deprived of food for extended periods of time so that they will be driven by hunger to 'cooperate.'"

A student whistleblower approached PETA with information about the course, according to the email, which also claims:

The whistleblower told PETA that her rat "sat motionless in the corner of her chamber for 15 minutes, paralyzed with fear," the email claims. The email also alleges that students are given the opportunity to adopt the rats after the course, but if they don't, many rats wind up being killed.

PETA is asking Staples to switch from live rats to computer programs, like those used in the same course at UH-Pearland, according to the email. The class also incorporates "clicker training with adoptable animals at a local animal shelter to teach students about animal behavior." (PETA was even helpful enough to recommend computer programs called Sniffy the Virtual Rat or CyberRat, which sound alternatively like Disney titles or terrible, terrible horror franchises.)

"Numerous comparative studies have found that students taught with these and other non-animal methods learn as well as or better than their peers who were forced to use animals," PETA's email claims.

"Each week for the duration of the course, frightened, hungry rats are taken to the classroom laboratory and placed in operant-conditioning chambers, where they are taught to recognize that they will receive food if they press a lever when a light is turned on." The whistleblower told PETA that her rat "sat motionless in the corner of her chamber for 15 minutes, paralyzed with fear," the email claims. The email also alleges that students are given the opportunity to adopt the rats after the course, but if they don't, many rats wind up being killed.

Sounds like liberal administrator training.

I've reached the end of my patience with self appointed self annointed animal welfare fanatics. A few weeks ago I took a trip to the store for a quick errand after I had been out walking with my dog. I left the dog in my vehicle it was 45 degrees outside so I didn't open the windows.

The dog was panting because she has mild riding anxiety but still likes to go with me. I saw a car going up and down the parking lot lanes slowly. He sees me walking toward the entrance and pulls up to me and said y"you need to crack the window open for your dog". I said it's 45 degrees she's not hot she has anxiety now leave me and her alone because she's fine. He then said you need to open the window. I said listen up I've had my fill of KOOKS telling me what to do concerning my dog. Get out of my face and leave us alone. He then said "I'm an off duty deputy I said roll down the window or I'll run your ass in".

I knew then at that point it wasn't safe for me to leave my dog there and left. I had a reason for leaving I can't post about. Otherwise I would have challenged him more. I did call the local sheriffs office and told them a man was impersonating a deputy at Walmart parking lot. Later I went back and talked to security and showed him what time to look on his tapes and to watch out for the nutjob.

These type watch way too many Animal Cop shows and consider themselves animal cops. This wasn't my first run in with these types of whackos. The dog is treated like a queen. She was my wife's dog and I promised her I would care for her. In 45 degrees there is no way possible the vehicle could have gotten up to even 70 degrees inside.

Anybody wanna have some fun? Go to a Thrift Store and buy the most realistic looking animal you can. Next make a CD recording of a dog barking. Put stuffed dog in vehicle where it is partially visible but not its face. Put the CD in playing loud enough to hear. Get out of car and walk inside. Have a camera to film the animal welfare activist Kook pecking on windows to make the dog bark and pant more before they call Animal Control about hot dog inside car. Film Kook as Animal Control pulls up. Then you walk out and hug the stuffed dog. Post Video of animal cop wannabe on Facebook :>}

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