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These 64 Beagles Leaving A Lab For Loving Homes Will Melt Your Heart

These 64 Beagles Leaving A Lab For Loving Homes Will Melt Your Heart
Vimeo/ Blackpepper

Last month, 64 beautiful beagles adopted human families as they were set free from a Bengaluru laboratory after the state government declined the lab’s request to use them for certain experiments.

Blackpepper Studio documented the emotional adoption day organised by the NGO CUPA (Compassion Unlimited Plus Action) where the ‘freagles’ (as they termed the dogs) went from the labs to loving homes.

The first beagle to get adopted at the adoption drive

Having spent time at the testing facility since birth, these dogs require special care and attention. A volunteer from the adoption camp said that unlike regular dogs, they didn’t respond to doggie treats or a ball thrown for them, simply because they have never experienced these basic pleasures.

“The traffic, the ring of a bell, the noise of a dropped spoon, among others, are all completely new sounds for these dogs,” said Sanjana Madappa.

A Hindustan Times report disclosed that 70 beagles had been rescued in 2012, and 102 from different laboratories the following year.

An owner names her dog, who was previously referred to as Number 1643, Debbie

Everyone present was moved when the dogs were quick to respond to their new names instead of the numbers that was their identity in the labs. People from Mysore, Coorg, Pune and Chennai had signed up to become proud beagle owners.

The "Furry Godmother" from CUPA, Chintana Gopinath, spoke passionately about not entertaining adopters who were only in it for the social media attention.

“After two days, it is going to be you, your dog, his fears and anxieties. His pee and poop all over your house. It’s going to be hard work,” she said, adding that adopting a dog changes a person’s life much more than the dog's.

A proud owner of two beagles.

Gopinath said that beagles made for popular lab rats due to their docile nature, in an interview with Scroll. “Even when they are kept in a cage and hands are constantly going in and pulling them out for injections or dissections, even then they are not given to aggression.”

She also said that most laboratories shockingly euthanised these poor canines once they were finished with experiments.

Here’s the heartwarming video.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.