Dog dish. PC: Fox 11 Online
BLUE MOUNDS, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) — A beagle breeding and research facility in Dane County has reached an agreement to release a majority of its dogs to animal protection groups.
Some of the dogs will be up for adoption in Green Bay.
The Center for a Humane Economy and Big Dog Ranch Rescue announced Thursday, an agreement with Ridglan Farms to acquire 1,500 beagles and then work with partner organizations to treat and socialize the dogs before adopting them out to families in Wisconsin and throughout the nation.
The transfer of beagles will begin Friday and continue for about a week and a half.
Ridglan Farms will continue to house about 500 remaining dogs. The two animal welfare organizations say they are committed to continuing to work in good faith with Ridglan Farms and look forward to finding a pathway to secure ownership of those animals at a time that is appropriate for the company.
Due to the terms of the agreement, Lauree Simmons, president and founder of Big Dog Ranch Rescue, says she cannot disclose the amount that was paid but could say it was “well under $1 million.”
“Money was the only way we could guarantee the safe future of these dogs. We did not want them to be sold off into other testing labs so lots of donors came forward, supporters and organizations that donated to both of our organizations to get these dogs released,” Simmons said.
The plan represents one of the largest coordinated rescues of dogs from the research supply system in the country.
“This is a moment to celebrate that 1,500 dogs will soon know only the kindness of the most caring people and will be treated for the rest of their lives like little kings and queens,” said Wayne Pacelle, president of the Center for a Humane Economy. “This life-saving project comes as we also charge ahead with our work to wind down the archaic, and inhumane era of animal testing and embrace innovative 21st-century strategies that do no harm and deliver more palliatives and cures to people.”
“It’s a very big win and I am ecstatic to have these dogs out and get them into loving homes,” Simmons told The Associated Press. She said the dogs will receive medical exams, microchips and vaccinations before they are put up for adoption.
“These dogs need to learn to walk on a leash,” Simmons told The Associated Press. “They need to learn to live in a home environment, be housebroken, spayed and neutered.”
About 500 of the dogs will be staying in the Midwest. Wisconsin Humane Society says the dogs will be cared for by multiple of its locations throughout the state, including its Green Bay campus. Anyone interested in adopting one of the rescued beagles should keep an eye on their website and social media pages. They expect about 50 of them to be ready for adoption in the coming weeks. The shelter is also seeking donations from the public to help them care for the dogs coming in.
Another 300 dogs are going to Big Dog Ranch Rescue locations in Florida and Alabama. The remaining rescued dogs will go to about 50 other animal organizations across the country.
Earlier this month, approximately 1,000 people from around the country descended on rural Blue Mounds in an attempt to break into Ridglan Farms and free the beagles kept there. A violent clash transpired, with law enforcement using tear gas and pepper spray to repel the animal welfare activists. The Dane County Sheriff’s Office said 29 people were arrested.
Following that incident, activists converged outside of Gov. Tony Evers’ Capitol office, demanding he and Attorney General Josh Kaul do what they can to shut down the facility.
Ridglan Farms has repeatedly denied mistreating any animals. However, last October, it agreed to give up its state breeding license, effective July 1, as part of a deal to avoid prosecution on animal mistreatment charges after a special prosecutor determined the facility was performing eye procedures on its beagles that violated state veterinary standards.
Ridglan said it has served as a biomedical research facility “that supports health studies benefitting both humans and animals” for more than six decades. Its website claims almost all of its current research is aimed at improving veterinary medicine.
While animal protection groups agree this is a win, more needs to be done on the legislative side.
The passage of the FDA Modernization Act 2.0 in 2022, led by the Center for a Humane Economy, removed the longstanding requirement that new drugs be tested in animals prior to human trials, opening the door to advanced methods such as organ-on-chip systems, computational modeling, and human cell–based assays.
Building on that progress, lawmakers are now advancing FDA Modernization Act 3.0 to further accelerate the transition toward non-animal testing approaches and ensure federal agencies fully implement these reforms. The Senate passed this bill in December, but U.S. House leaders did not put it on the floor for final passage.
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