Animal advocates gathered outside St. Joseph’s Hospital in London, Ont. to mark the one-year anniversary of the exposing of canine research. “We’ve had a huge success,” says Nives Ilic, the mobilization manager for Animal Justice. “The hospital closed their dog lab and not only that, but we actually had legislation passed that’s going to make what happened to the dogs inside this laboratory completely illegal across the province.” Since a rally last August, a series of key events has taken place. Canine medical research at St. Joseph’s hospital has ceased , Dr. Lisa Porter stepped down as vice-president of research and scientific director at Lawson Health Research Institute, Dogs were transitioned to new homes, A third party review of the investigation into the research took place, and the Ontario government passed a bill banning testing on dogs. “We’re also here to remember all of the lives that were lost, right?” says Kenzie Kirschner, who was rallying outside on Sat. Aug. 8, 2026. “There was a lot of dogs that died here at this hospital but there were some who were rescued, which is incredible. We know they were released but we still don’t know where they are, which makes it a little bit difficult to fully celebrate that because we do wonder, did they make it to the homes that they deserved? Lastly, we’re here to bring some more attention to the other animals that continue to be tested on here. We know that the hospital continues to test on pigs, rats and mice, and I just don’t think that’s OK.” CTV London reached out to St. Joseph’s Hospital for reaction to those rallying outside the grounds. The organization responded with this statement: “St. Joseph’s Health Care London (St. Joseph’s) remains committed to research that meets all ethical, legislative and regulatory standards. Research involving animals is an important element in discovering treatments and testing therapies that save and improve the quality of human lives. Whenever we can make scientific discoveries without involving animals - and wherever we can find alternatives - we do.” The hospital also reiterated it was cleared of any wrongdoing. “Earlier this year, St. Joseph’s received the findings and recommendations from an independent third-party review of animal-based research at Lawson Research Institute (Lawson) that found Lawson met all regulatory, ethical and professional standards in animal research. The report identified opportunities to strengthen transparency, communication and accountability and we are working with our partners to address those areas.” Jesse Bell tells CTV News he showed up at the rally because of a lack of transparency. “They say that they’ve (the dogs) been released, which is good, but we can really only go off of their single post online about what they said,” said Bell. “Public trust has been destroyed by their own actions. So, we need to be able to verify what they say is true.” At this point last year, many of these people did not consider themselves animal activists. Now, after seeing what has transpired, they believe in speaking up. “I realized that activism does work, and I think everyone should know that,” said Kirschner. “They shouldn’t be worried to voice their opinion because every action matters.” It’s something Animal Justice specializes in. “That is literally how laws are made,” said Ilic. “It’s when the community comes together, when people speak up and they don’t stop advocating until that change takes place. This legislation is such a win. It’s going to save so many dogs and cats.”
