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Activists plan beagle ‘rescue’ at Ridglan Farms

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On Monday, March 16, hundreds of animal rights activists plan to gather on a country road that runs past Ridglan Farms, a decades-old dog breeding and research facility in southwestern Dane County. They will come wearing white flowers, importuning the authorities, for the umpteenth time, to take action to shut Ridglan down. And at least some of the protesters, having received mandatory training in nonviolence, will attempt to rescue as many of Ridglan’s roughly 2,000 remaining beagles as they can.

“Our plan is simple,” says Wayne Hsiung in a recent Facebook post about the action. “Inspire 100 people to go right through industry security and even police lines to give aid to the pups.”

Hsiung, an attorney and nationally known animal rights activist, has spent much of the last 10 years seeking to shut down Ridglan Farms, which has in the recent past housed as many as 3,200 “purpose-bred” beagles. He has been joined in this cause by the local groups Dane4Dogs and the Alliance for Animals, as well as the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project at the University of Denver Sturm College of Law.

These efforts have led to the appointment of a special prosecutor who identified potential criminal and civil charges, which were used to leverage an agreement with Ridglan Farms to shut down the largest part of its operation. There has also been state regulatory action, including suspension of the facility’s chief veterinarian. But the activists are still seeking the release of Ridglan’s remaining dogs, most of whom are now being sold off for use in research.

In April 2017, Hsiung was one of three activists who entered Ridglan Farms at night, taking photos and video of row upon row of double-stacked wire cages, some spinning frantically in circles, and leaving with three dogs. The activists were charged with felony counts that carried a potential maximum sentence of 16 years in prison. But 10 days before their trial was set to begin in March 2024, the charges were dismissed by the Dane County District Attorney’s Office at the urging of Ridglan Farms, which said it had received death threats.

The dismissal prevented the activists from using the trial to call public attention to evidence of Ridglan Farms’ violations of state and federal laws governing the treatment of animals. They have been trying to do so through other means since.

On March 18, 2024, the day his criminal trial was supposed to have begun, Hsiung led a group of activists who delivered a prepared “criminal complaint” alleging violations of animal cruelty laws at the facility to the office of Dane County District Attorney Ismael Ozanne. “We’re asking the DA’s office to enforce the law,” Hsiung said.

Ozanne never did bring charges against Ridglan, so the activists did an end-around, petitioning the court to appoint a special prosecutor, as the law allows in cases where DAs fail to act. The case was assigned to Dane County Circuit Court Judge Rhonda Lanford, who held an all-day evidentiary hearing on Oct. 23, 2024. Witnesses besides Hsiung included former staff at Ridglan and others alleging the wholesale abuse of dogs at the breeding facility, including painful surgical procedures purportedly performed without anesthesia or post-operation pain relief.

In January 2025, Lanford found probable cause to believe that Ridglan “has committed multiple criminal violations” of state animal cruelty laws and agreed to appoint a special prosecutor. The task fell to La Crosse County District Attorney Tim Gruenke, who last October, after a more than eight-month investigation, struck a deal with Ridglan Farms. The state would not pursue possible criminal charges against Ridglan in exchange for its agreement to relinquish its dog breeding license and sell off its remaining research beagles by July 1. But the deal allowed Ridglan to keep beagles used for onsite research.

In its Oct. 28 statement on this settlement, Ridglan Farms said it was “entering a new chapter in our mission to improve the health of pets and humans alike. Despite the challenges of the past few months, we are tremendously proud of the outstanding care we provide to our animals, which play a pivotal role in ensuring the safety and effectiveness of cutting-edge veterinary and medical treatments.”

But Rebekah Robinson, the founder and president of Dane4Dogs, told Isthmus that she and other activists were disappointed that the settlement agreement allows Ridglan Farms to sell off its remaining dogs and continue its onsite research, urging that the dogs instead be put up for adoption.

There is even a legislative effort to deliver this result, in the form of a bipartisan bill, AB 436 and SB 414, which would require animal testing facilities and breeders to put certain dogs and cats up for adoption at least three weeks prior to their being euthanized. Though some animal rights activists say the bill’s purpose was undercut by amendments, it passed the state Assembly and could yet be voted on by the state Senate, in its final scheduled floor period, March 17-19.

On other fronts, the activists have scored some victories. On Jan. 20 of this year, Dane County Judge Jacob B. Frost dismissed a lawsuit brought by Ridglan against Dane4Dogs and others, alleging that their campaign to persuade dog buyers to stop doing business with the supplier amounted to “extortion.” Frost ruled that these communications were clearly protected by the First Amendment.

And, last September, the state Veterinary Examining Board suspended the license of Ridglan Farm’s chief veterinarian, Richard Van Domelen, alleging multiple ongoing violations. An administrative law judge later upheld the suspension. While Van Domelen has been barred from practicing veterinary medicine, he continues to work at Ridglan as its facility manager.

Ridglan Farms, located in the town of Blue Mounds near Mount Horeb, has been in business since 1966. It is the nation’s second-largest breeder of beagles for use in research. As of the end of January, according to the most recent USDA inspection reports, Ridglan Farms had 1,945 beagles in its breeding operation that are now being sold off, and 156 beagles in the category used for onsite research. The reports faulted Ridglan for its alleged failure to keep records of treatment procedures, as well as its failure to state a reason for the proposed number of animals used.

“These federal reports show that dogs still suffer every second it stays open,” said People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in a statement. “Ridglan should not be allowed to operate another single minute — it must be shut down now.”

Ridglan, through public relations consultant Jim Newman, had previously touted the USDA’s failure to flag any violations in recent inspection as proof that the facility was “in full compliance” with applicable rules. State inspections, conducted by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, have in recent years often led to the identification of multiple deficiencies, including the facility’s failure to provide dogs with adequate human contact and socialization, and problems with ventilation and accumulated animal waste.

On Jan. 30 of this year, a coalition of activist groups filed a writ of habeas corpus on behalf of the remaining dogs at Ridglan, seeking to force their release to animal rescue operations. A press release from the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project said the lawsuit “breaks new ground in the field of animal law.”

On Feb. 6, Dane County Judge Stephen Ehlke threw the case out, reportedly after expressing support for the dogs’plight. This caused the activists to turn their attention back to plans, already underway, for a mass dog rescue on March 16.

Ridglan Farms, notably, has been aware of these plans at least since mid-January, when Newman, of the Houston-based firm K Harvey Brand Partners, issued a press release urging state and federal law enforcement to “Step-In, Prevent Potential Mass Animal Thefts Announced by Previously Convicted Activist” — meaning Hsiung, who has been convicted in prior animal rescue operations.

The release quoted Ridglan’s attorney, Eric McLeod, as saying: “Groups opposed to necessary, life-changing and life-saving animal research have repeatedly stated their intent to close our facility and others like it and have all research animals removed. It’s deeply disturbing that their response to a legal outcome they do not agree with is to plan actions that, if carried out, could result in serious criminal charges and extensive legal fees for countless defendants, not to mention the safety risks for all involved.”

An emailed request for comment from Ridglan Farms was fielded by spokesperson Newman, who urged Isthmus to not write about the planned protest in advance, even though he has himself put out press releases about it.

As Newman put it, “They are clearly planning to do something that’s illegal, where people may get hurt, where people may get arrested, where people may face felony charges. And I guess my concern is, as a former journalist myself, is [whether it’s] okay to be writing about and promoting something that could land people in a lot of trouble or get people injured?” He notes that Ridglan Farms has razor-wire fencing and locked doors. “So if these individuals decide they want to go in and take animals, they’re gonna have to do it by force, which, of course, would likely be a very dangerous thing.”

Newman adds that he’s “very, very fearful about everybody’s safety in this case,” including that of neighbors who might clash with protesters who arrive en masse. He says Ridglan has “reached out to every level of government and every level of law enforcement and asked for assistance. And they appear to be taking it seriously.”

In a follow-up email that he asked be attributed to “Ridglan Farms instead of me personally,” Newman elaborated on this concern, saying in part: “We urge planners to call off this dangerous and clearly illegal action and respect the rule of law and the legal systems in place in our country to ensure fairness and safety.”

Hsiung, in an event post on Facebook, asks and answers a series of questions about the planned action. In response to the question “Is this action legal?,” he says it is “consistent with the law,” which includes the right to rescue animals in distress. But he promptly acknowledges that activists who break the law with this goal in mind will be subject to arrest. He says in a January blog post, “If the prosecutors dare to charge us, we will all demand speedy trial and defend the right to rescue in court.”

Hsiung, despite repeated requests, did not provide additional information about the planned action. It is not entirely clear why Hsiung and his fellow activists believe they will actually be able to remove dogs from a facility protected by law enforcement.

In 2022, a beagle breeding operation in Virginia was shut down due to violations of the 1966 federal animal welfare act, and its 4,000 dogs were made available for adoption. Hsiung and others are hoping to leverage that sort of outcome here.

One possible way to accomplish this would be for Ridglan Farms to sell its remaining dogs to animal rescue groups, possibly for a higher price than they are getting by selling them to companies for research (about $1,500 per dog). Newman says it’s difficult to speak to this, since “there’s been no suggestion like that” from the activists. “The only things we have heard is either shut them down or we're going to take your animals.”

Asked about whether the facility’s opponents should just try buying its dogs, Hsiung, in a mid-February email, demurs: “I think folks are exploring every possible option, but the one I think is most likely to work is just getting out there and rescuing the dogs ourselves.”

Hsiung, in his blog post, went on to say that the coalition being created for this action is just part of a “long-term vision to build a fast-acting, cooperative, and whip-smart network of rescuers, embedded in universities and faith-based spaces, who can be quickly deployed wherever the movement needs us.”

“First, we’ll save the animals at Ridglan,” Hsiung wrote. “Then, we’ll save them all.”

Editor’s note: This story has been corrected to reflect that the bill to require that dogs and cats slated for euthanasia must be made available for adoption has passed the state Assembly and awaits state Senate action.

Isthmus reporting on Ridglan Farms