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1h ago

Ridglan Farms to Wind Down as Rescuers Move Remaining 475 Beagles

Planned transfers would end one of the nation's largest suppliers of lab beagles and signal growing pressure to reduce dog‑based testing.

FILE - Beagles that were purchased from a Dane County animal research facility play outside May 12, 2026, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Scott Bauer, File)
A new busload of beagles arrived at Big Dog Ranch Rescue on Wednesday night, pushing its total to almost 400 canines freed from a Wisconsin lab and prompting a Mother’s Day Adoption Special event to open up space at the now-full shelter. (WPEC)
Ridglan Farms beagles in packed cages. (WPEC)
Beagles Rescue BDRR_1 - frame at 1m28s.jpg

Overview

  • Big Dog Ranch Rescue and partners arranged to move 325 of about 475 beagles from Ridglan Farms on June 15–16 under a coordinated transfer plan.
  • The plan calls for the final roughly 150 dogs to be released after a testing protocol and expected to arrive with rescues by early August 2026.
  • More than 1,600 beagles were removed from the Wisconsin facility during May and June after purchases and transfer agreements led by the Center for a Humane Economy and rescue groups.
  • Rescue groups are conducting medical triage, spay and neuter surgery, vaccinations, microchipping and behavior work at Big Dog Ranch Rescue’s Florida and Alabama campuses before nationwide adoptions.
  • Years of inspections, legal actions, protests and negotiations helped prompt the shutdown and the transfers, a development that could shrink the supply of dogs for laboratory testing and increase calls for alternative research methods.