Dr. Mehmet Oz is facing allegations of animal abuse after a report claimed that his early 2000s "experiments killed over 300 dogs" and an "entire litter of puppies."
The report from Jezebel claims that Oz's scientific studies published from 1989 to 2010 saw tests conducted on 1,027 live animal subjects, including cows, pigs, rabbits, rodents, and man's best friend.
According to the review, 329 dogs died in 34 of the studies, all of which Oz served as the "principal investigator." However, it notes that Oz did not kill the animals himself.
The report has resulted in an outcry from Oz's opponents as he is currently running for the Senate in Pennsylvania as a member of the GOP. His opponent, Democratic hopeful John Fetterman, slammed him in a tweet, calling him a "puppy killer."
"I LOVE my dogs. Apparently some sick people like Dr. Oz get their jollies by harming animals..." Fetterman wrote in another tweet. "We have a close race here in PA and I could use your help to keep the #PuppyKiller out of the US Senate."
Oz has not responded to the tweets from Fetterman and has not responded to requests for comment from numerous news sources as of Wednesday.
Beyond that, Oz and his team have not commented on the report at all, refuting or verifying its validity in any manner.
The studies that are cited in the report took place at Columbia University. Of the other animals involved in the 75 studies, two saw the death of 31 pigs, and 38 killed 661 rabbits and rodents.
Scientific experiments on animals are both legal and common, but there are guidelines for how to treat animals laid out clearly in the Animal Welfare Act.
The act requires researchers to administer pain-relief drugs or euthanasia to animals during experimentation and prohibits the use of paralytics without any anesthesia. It also outlaws experimenting on the same animal multiple times.
According to the Independent, Catherin Dell'Orto, a researcher on Oz's team in the early 2000s, has alleged that the team's tests on canines resulted in excessive suffering of the animals, violating the AWA.
The dog that Oz was reportedly experimenting on was lethargic, having kidney failure, and vomiting while being paralyzed. Dell'Orto said the animal suffered for 48 hours before it was euthanized.
Dell'Orto has shared her allegations with the animal rights organization PETA while also sending letters to Columbia University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
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