A beagle breeding facility in Wisconsin is closing its doors and giving its dogs up for adoption.
The facility, Ridglan Farms in Blue Mounds, said in a statement that the dogs are “happy, healthy animals.”
“Ridglan Farms recently reached an agreement to sell 325 additional dogs to Big Dog Ranch. Those animals will be transferred this week. Additionally, Ridglan Farms agreed to donate all the remaining dogs it owns to Big Dog Ranch before the end of August,” the facility said. “These are all happy, healthy animals as demonstrated by extensive USDA inspection documentation and also the most recent DATCP inspection which occurred just a few weeks ago. DATCP officials identified no animal care issues whatsoever during their May 11th visit. We hope these dogs will continue to flourish in their new homes.”
“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,” the facility added. “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.”
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins celebrated the development. Kennedy wrote on X that the move was a “major win for animal welfare.”
“Ridglan Farms will transfer its remaining 475 beagles out of a research breeding facility and into the care of a no-kill rescue, where they can begin the path to adoption,” he wrote, adding that the agencies will “keep fighting for humane treatment of animals, better science, and accountability.”
The EPA has also announced that it is implementing alternative methods to replace animal tests.
