Tasgola Bruner 202-483-7382 Washington – PETA has obtained never-before-seen photographs and video footage taken by U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspectors revealing deplorable conditions at facilities that operate out of public view and supply animals for use in the experimentation industry. The images show maggots crawling through animals’ food, green algae growing in water bowls, and animals left to suffer with open wounds. At Ruby Fur Farm in New Sharon, Iowa, ferrets, raccoons, foxes, and skunks were held in dilapidated cages with broken wires and forced to drink out of water containers teeming with algae and insects. Temperatures reached as high as 122 degrees, and raccoons were found to be “in serious heat distress,” panting while “lying on their sides, backs, and abdomens with their legs splayed.” Numerous animals were denied veterinary care, including a ferret covered with ticks and skunks with extensive hair loss.