Associated Press
NORFOLK, Va. 鈥� U.S. Coast Guard medics have stopped using military contractors who intentionally injure sedated animals so that medics can practice treating combat wounds.
Spokeswoman Lisa Novak said in a phone interview Thursday that the practice was suspended in January. A working group will decide if the training will continue.
The so-called 鈥渓ive tissue training鈥� involved anesthetized goats.
Novak said she didn鈥檛 know what led to the suspension. In 2012, activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, or PETA, released a video of a goat鈥檚 legs being removed with tree trimmers during what it said was Coast Guard training.
Rep. Lucille Roybal-Allard, a California Democrat, wrote in The Hill newspaper on Thursday that she had raised concerns with the Coast Guard. She said most Americans are against the practice.