RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) -- Years after the well-known Envigo dog breeding facility shut down in Cumberland County, a new book is sharing one beagle's journey as a so-called "Lab Dog." Melanie Kaplan always knew her beagle, Hammy, came from a research lab in Virginia. But it took years of her own resea rch to learn he came from Envigo, the now-shuttered dog research facility that came under fire for extensive animal welfare violations. "Time after time, people were surprised that dogs were used in research," Kaplan said. "And they asked me if it was legal. And I said, well, it is legal, but I really didn't know anything else. Kaplan set out to learn more about Hammy and the dog testing industry. Now she shares her discoveries in her book, "Lab Dog," which dozens gathered at Richmond SPCA on Sunday to hear her speak about. Many brought their own so-called lab dogs, removed from Envigo in the years following an 8News investigation and federal raids. "There were bugs in the food, there were euthanizations happening without anesthesia," Kaplan said. "Dogs would get in fights. Sometimes their ears would get pulled through a kennel opening, or their paws would be injured. And instead of giving them medical care, they'd be euthanized." Ninety of the beagles were adopted out of the Richmond SPCA. In total, around four thousand were removed and sent all over the country. Today, those beagles may seem like any other dog. But if you know what to look for, like the blue tattoos on their ears that served as identification at Envigo, you get hints of their histories. "It just made me feel very happy to be able to show [Hammy] the rest of the world, and let him run on beaches and sniff through fields and all the things that beagles love doing," Kaplan said. Kaplan said she hopes her book opens readers' eyes to the animal welfare issues that continue today. "Some people think when Envigo closed, that dog testing ended. And that of is of course, not true. There's still more than 40 thousand dogs used every year in testing," Kaplan said. "My goal was to help people be aware of this and hopefully start a conversation around this topic, which has been pretty hidden for a long time." You can learn where to purchase a copy of "Lab Dog" on Kaplan's website. ...read more read less