Deal struck for Ridglan Farms shutdown, transfer of remaining dogs

The beagle breeding and research facility Ridglan Farms is set to shut down this summer after an animal welfare group takes custody of the facility’s remaining dogs. Big Dog Ranch Rescue announced Monday that it had purchased hundreds more dogs from Ridglan Farms, a facility based in Blue Mounds, southwest of Madison. “This marks a historic victory for the dogs of Ridglan Farms,” Big Dog Ranch Rescue CEO Lauree Simmons said at a news conference. “No more breeding, no more selling, no more testing, and full closure. Not one dog will remain.” Understanding Wisconsin, Together. WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” newsletter keeps you connected to the state you love without feeling overwhelmed. No paywall. No agenda. No corporate filter. As part of a “binding legal agreement” with Big Dog Ranch Rescue, Ridglan Farms has agreed to completely cease its operations in the coming months, Simmons said. Simmons said a total of 325 dogs are being transferred out of Ridglan Farms on Monday and Tuesday. The final 150 dogs, all of which are puppies, will be transferred out in mid-August, after they complete a testing contract at Ridglan Farms. “We’ve been assured that every one of them will be kept safe and unharmed throughout this process,” Simmons said. “We’re told (this) only requires monitoring their temperature for the next six weeks.” Ridglan Farms has long faced allegations of animal abuse — allegations that the facility has denied — and activists have staged multiple raids on the facility. In March, some of those activists broke into the complex and took out 22 beagles. In April, animal rights advocates attempted another raid, but weren’t able to get dogs out of the facility. Those activists were met with tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets from law enforcement, after the Dane County sheriff said some of the protestors acted violently. Several activists are now facing criminal charges, including felony burglary in connection with their actions at Ridglan Farms. “Now that transfer plans have been finalized for the rest of Ridglan Farms’ dogs, we ask that the years-long harassment campaign targeting the research facility’s owners, staff and neighbors comes to an end,” Ridglan Farms said in a statement on Monday. “We also hope Wisconsin’s legal system will hold accountable the individuals who organized and carried out the repeated violent assaults and thefts that have recently taken place at our facility.” During Monday’s news conference, Simmons took a different tone when referring to those activists. “We are praying that the courts have a leniency on them, and see what they were doing was out of love for the animals,” she said. This spring, several of those protestors sued the sheriff’s office, Dane County and Ridglan Farms. The lawsuit accused sheriff’s deputies of excessive force, and alleged that law enforcement officials had conspired with Ridglan Farms to violate the civil rights of protestors during that April demonstration. On Monday, the people suing agreed to voluntarily dismiss their lawsuit. “Plaintiffs take this step to avoid interfering with criminal proceedings filed after this action and now scheduled for trial in September 2026,” plaintiffs wrote in a Monday afternoon filing, referring to criminal cases against animal rights leader Wayne Hsiung and other activists. “After more than 100 hours of investigation, legal research, witness interviews, and communications with state and federal authorities, counsel determined that the substantial overlap in witnesses, evidence, and issues presents Fifth Amendment concerns while the criminal action proceeds. Plaintiffs also respect the requests of certain criminal defendants who cannot safely or reasonably participate in civil litigation while those charges remain pending,” the filing continued. Ridglan Farms said that the final 150 dogs were donated to Big Dog Ranch Rescue. During a news conference Monday, Simmons confirmed that some of the dogs had been donated by Ridglan Farms, and the rest were purchased. In 2025, a Dane County judge appointed a special prosecutor to look into whether Ridglan Farms had violated Wisconsin’s animal cruelty laws. That investigation ended with a settlement in which Ridglan Farms was able to avoid prosecution in exchange for giving up its state-level breeding license by July 1, 2026. Activists were concerned, however, that testing would continue to take place using the animals. They also sought to avoid having the dogs sold to similar facilities. Earlier this year, Big Dog Ranch Rescue and another nonprofit, the Center for a Humane Economy, joined forces to buy 1,500 dogs from Ridglan for an undisclosed amount of money. The groups later announced another joint purchase of 135 dogs. Simmons told reporters Monday that, under the terms of its agreement, Big Dog Ranch Rescue, could not disclose how much it paid for the beagles. “We paid a nominal fee for these dogs,” she said. “Nobody got rich on this effort.” On Monday, dozens of beagles were trucked out of Ridglan Farms to a farm in Marshall. There, the dogs ran around in an enclosure while they awaited health exams, including rabies vaccinations and microchips for identification. Multiple animal welfare organizations are in the process of adopting out beagles to homes across the country. Demand has been overwhelming. At Big Dog Ranch Rescue alone, officials are sorting through more than 7,000 applications to adopt hundreds of dogs. 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