Wisconsin beagle breeding farm closes, 475 dogs headed to rescue
The last 475 beagles at Ridglan Farms are moving to rescue, after protests, lawsuits and a deal that forces the Wisconsin breeder to shut down.
The final chapter at Ridglan Farms is not a legal filing or a protest line but a transport plan: 475 beagles are leaving the Blue Mounds facility, with the first 325 sent to rescue campuses in Florida and Alabama for medical care, spay-neuter procedures and eventual adoption. Big Dog Ranch Rescue says the agreement permanently closes the Dane County operation, turning one of the country’s most controversial research-breeding sites into a test of whether rescue transfers can do more than shut one gate.
Ridglan Farms sits about 30 miles west of Madison and has supplied dogs to research laboratories for nearly 60 years. Owned by veterinarians James Burns, Jeffrey Ballmer and David Williams, the farm was described in earlier reporting as the second-largest beagle breeding facility in the country. Its shutdown lands after years of pressure over conditions at the site and allegations of mistreatment and abuse, placing the afterlife of the dogs at the center of the story.
The rescue deal follows a turbulent spring. On April 18, activists tried to enter the facility and remove dogs in a failed raid that ended with tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets. About 25 people were arrested. A federal lawsuit later accused Dane County deputies of excessive force and alleged that county officials conspired with Ridglan Farms to violate protesters’ civil rights, widening the dispute beyond animal welfare and into questions about law enforcement and government accountability.
The legal pressure did not begin there. On January 30, the Nonhuman Rights Project and the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project filed a lawsuit seeking the release of roughly 2,000 beagles and puppies from the facility. Animal welfare groups, including the Center for a Humane Economy, later said a separate deal would buy 1,500 beagles for transfer, rehabilitation and adoption. Updates then said the number removed from Ridglan Farms climbed to 1,635 as more dogs were moved to rescue.
The closure also follows a 2025 settlement tied to cruelty allegations that required Ridglan Farms to stop breeding dogs by July 1, although the operation had still been allowed to continue some research work until the new agreement. For advocates, the transfer of the remaining dogs is being framed as a breakthrough. For the broader debate over research breeding, oversight and humane standards, it may also be a reminder that shutting one facility does not settle the national fight over how laboratory dogs are bred, housed and, eventually, released.
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