Although the subject matter is not ideal as most of us consider rabbits to be utterly cute and cuddly, they are one of the most popular animals used in laboratory experiments. Most likely because of their calm demeanors. You don’t have to be an animal rights activist, vegetarian, or vegan to understand that rabbits suffer during painful tests as they are fully restrained. As of 2018, there are an estimated 150,000 rabbits used in United States laboratories.

The list below includes institutions in the United States currently using rabbits in laboratories where experiments, teaching research or surgeries were conducted accompanying pain or distress because no anesthetic, analgesic, or tranquilizing drugs were used.

Colleges & Universities

Colorado State University: 16 rabbits on site
Fort Collins, Colorado

Emory University: 5 rabbits on site
Atlanta, Georgia

Marshall University: 12 rabbits on site
Huntington, West Virginia

Massachusetts Eye And Ear Infirmary: 21 rabbits on site


Boston, Massachusetts

Oklahoma State University: 391 rabbits on site
Stillwater, Oklahoma

Texas A & M University (Lab Animal Resources & Research): 4 rabbits on site
College Station, Texas

Tufts University-Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine: 2 rabbits on site
North Grafton, Massachusetts

Tufts University - Tufts Medical Center: 71 rabbits on site
Boston, Massachusetts

University of California: 878 rabbits on site
San Francisco, California

University Of Maryland: 75 rabbits on site


College Park, Maryland

University of Michigan: 41 rabbits on site
Ann Arbor, Michigan

University Of Pittsburgh: 29 rabbits on site
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

University Of South Florida: 2 rabbits on site
Tampa, Florida

University Of Texas – Dallas: 23 rabbits on site
Dallas, Texas

Weill Cornell Medical College: 10 rabbits on site
New York, New York

Medical Facilities

Battelle Memorial Institute: 52 rabbits on site
Columbus, Ohio

Battelle National Biodefense Institute: 184 rabbits on site


Fort Detrick, Maryland

Biomedical Research Models Inc.: 11 rabbits on site
Worcester, Massachusetts

Calvert Laboratories Inc.: 2 rabbits on site
Scott, Pennsylvania

Cleveland Clinic Foundation (Research Institute): 4 rabbits on site
Cleveland, Ohio

Elanco Animal Health: 293 rabbits on site


Greenfield, Indiana

Intervet, Inc. (Merck Animal Health): 465 rabbits on site
Summit, New Jersey

Janssen Research And Development: 21 rabbits on site
Spring House, Pennsylvania

Mayo Clinic: 6 rabbits on site
Rochester, Minnesota

Millennium Bioresearch Inc.: 37 rabbits on site
Spinnerstown, Pennsylvania

Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp.: 2 rabbits on site
Kenilworth, New Jersey

M R I Global: 248 rabbits on site
Kansas City, Missouri

Pfizer Global Research & Development: 7 rabbits on site
Pearl River, New York

Roswell Park Cancer Institute: 1 rabbits on site
Buffalo, New York

Tox Monitor Laboratories: 100 rabbits on site


Oak Park, Illinois

US Army Edgewood Chemical Biological Center: 206 rabbits on site


Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland

US Army Medical Research Institute Of Infectious Disease: 4 rabbits on site
Fort Detrick, Maryland

William Beaumont Hospital Research Institute: 2 rabbits on site
Royal Oak, Michigan

Information (as of 2018) provided by the New England Anti-Vivisection Society (NEAVS)
Undercover laboratory video image: Cruelty Free International