On 15th June 2026, animal protection campaigners celebrated a major victory as it was announced that Ridglan Farms, a US dog factory farm, would release all remaining imprisoned beagles and permanently shut down both its breeding and testing operations. Now in late August, it appears that there are no longer beagles kept at the former vivisection facility.
The Center for a Humane Economy reported in June 2026 that “More than 2,100 beagles once destined for laboratories have been removed from Ridglan Farms and placed on a path toward rehabilitation, foster care, and adoption. With agreements now in place for the transfer of every remaining dog, Ridglan Farms is shutting down.”
In April, 1,500 beagles imprisoned at the massive Wisconsin facility were spared from being sold to animal testing laboratories after Big Dog Ranch Rescue and the Center for a Humane Economy negotiated an agreement to secure custody of the dogs. The full closure of the site follows years of relentless pressure from PETA, Alliance for Animals, the Animal Activist Legal Defense Project, Dane4Dogs, Direct Action Everywhere, The Marty Project, and The Simple Heart. These groups continuously challenged a system that breeds dogs and other Nonhuman Animals only to be confined, mutilated, poisoned, and killed in laboratories.
To avoid criminal charges of cruelty to animals after a special prosecutor was appointed, Ridglan Farms agreed to surrender its state breeding license. Advocates had documented abysmal conditions at the site, where dogs were kept in windowless sheds inside tiny metal cages, standing on wire floors in filth with untreated wounds. In 2024, a former employee testified that staff routinely cut off dogs’ swollen eyelid glands using scissors, without veterinary licenses or pain relief.
Following the announcement of the shutdown, PETA said, “We’re grateful to those groups and all the activists, organizations, donors, and whistleblowers who helped make this day possible. PETA will build on this momentum by continuing to work to end the use of dogs, primates, and other animals in experiments altogether and replace these cruel, scientifically flawed practices with cutting-edge, superior methods that offer real promise for treatments and cures.”
On 25th August 2026, Amy Van Aartsen, Executive Director of The Marty Project, said to Vegan FTA about the beagles at Ridgland Farms, “They have all been freed and Ridglan is officially closed. Cheers all around!”
With Ridglan Farms finally closing its operations, Marshall Farms remains the last major US breeder supplying dogs to laboratories. Animal protection activists are now shifting their full focus to demand that the US Department of Agriculture revokes Marshall Farms’ license, ending the laboratory supply pipeline once and for all.
