
Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection
A dog at Ridglan Farms with an injury on its paw.
State inspectors shot this photo of a dog at Ridglan Farms with a visible injury to his paw.
Ridglan Farms, a dog breeding and research facility in southwest Dane County, is being investigated by the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) for recurring violations of state animal welfare standards, Isthmus has learned. This follows the news last week that a Dane County judge has ordered the appointment of a special prosecutor to look into possible criminal charges against the facility for alleged violations of the state’s animal cruelty laws.
DATCP’s “Initial Notice of Non-Compliance” was issued on Nov. 8, following a routine inspection in June and follow-up inspection in September, according to records obtained by Isthmus through an open-records request. The notice flagged multiple recurring problems at Ridglan Farms, home to more than 3,000 “purpose-bred” beagles sold or used for research, and ordered immediate corrective steps.
Among the problems cited: Dogs at the facility “are not receiving daily human positive contact and socialization.” The agency also noted that, during both inspections, “injuries apparent to DATCP staff were unidentified and untreated.” This included dogs who were visibly limping due to injuries to their feet.
The notice ordered Ridglan Farms to take immediate corrective steps, including more frequent veterinary attention and enhanced efforts to provide “contact, activity, or enrichment” to the dogs, which are constantly kept in tiny cages, often stacked two high. Additionally, the notice directed improvements in ventilation, drainage and feces removal.
On Nov. 18, DATCP followed this with a “Notice of Administrative Conference” regarding the findings from the two inspections. It detailed nine alleged violations of concern, including “Failure to provide daily positive contact,” “Depriving dogs of contact for extended periods of time,” “Failure to adequately remove excrement and waste water,” and “Failure to provide daily body, mobility, and behavior checks on dogs.”
This second notice asked Ridglan Farms to attend an administrative conference at DATCP on Dec. 18 “to discuss potential penalties if future violations are found. Please be prepared to provide your operational plan moving forward to show how you/your business plans to come into compliance with the state statutes and administrative code rules.”
The notice added: “Failure to attend this conference may result in action against you up to and including being placed on a conditional license, license void, suspension, or revocation, termination of your ability to conduct business in Wisconsin, referral of civil forfeiture(s), or the referral of criminal charges.”
DATCP has statutory authority to suspend the license of a facility when there is “evidence that an act of animal cruelty” has occurred.
The two notices regarding DATCP’s investigation were obtained this week by Isthmus in response to a records request made on Dec. 16. Jacob D. Baer, a records and forms management specialist with DATCP’s Office of Legal Counsel, also provided the two inspection reports at the heart of the matter, from June 6 and Sept. 16, which were the subject of a previous Isthmus article. An email from Baer stated that “the Department is unable to produce additional records responsive to your request” because these records “relate to ongoing investigation and enforcement action which would be compromised by the disclosure of the records.”
Neither Baer nor DATCP spokesperson Sam Go promptly responded to a question about what if anything happened at the Dec. 18 conference.
Dane County Circuit Court Judge Rhonda Lanford on Jan. 9 issued a 23-page written decision and order calling for the appointment of a special prosecutor of Ridglan Farms, as animal rights advocates had requested. On Jan. 13, Lanford sent letters to Attorney General Josh Kaul and all Wisconsin district attorneys seeking “your assistance in prosecuting Ridglan Farms…for violation of various sections of Wisconsin Statute 951, Crimes Against Animals.”
In these letters, Lanford describes how she found probable cause that Ridglan Farms broke the law, “including but not limited to the mutilation of dogs’ vocal cords and eyes, and the conditions the dogs are housed in,” which the letter describes in gruesome detail. She included a copy of her decision and order.
Lanford asked for a response to her letters by Jan. 27. As of this afternoon, the court’s online database shows no record of any response. Lanford stated in her ruling that if a prosecutor cannot be found from within the Justice Department or county prosecutors’ offices, she will “appoint a private attorney.”
Lanford’s order prompted a Jan. 13 press release from state Sen. Jodi Habush Sinykin (D-Whitefish Bay), who stated that she knows “for a fact that the humane treatment of dogs is an issue close to the hearts of the people of Wisconsin and an issue that transcends party politics.” She said she “will personally be working on legislation with colleagues both within my own caucus and across the aisle to put an end to the ongoing abuses at Ridglan Farms. The humane and ethical treatment of companion animals is an issue that both parties care about and we can come together, as we have done before, to enact meaningful change in Wisconsin.”
Ridglan Farms has consistently declined requests for comment. Rebekah Robinson of Dane4Dogs, one of the petitioners who successfully sought the appointment of a special prosecutor, is heartened by these recent developments.
“We’re hopeful that Ridglan Farms will finally be held accountable for the cruelty they’ve inflicted on animals over the last 60 years,” she told Isthmus. She added that the facility “has had plenty of opportunities to come into compliance after years of violations. It’s time to enforce Wisconsin statutes and revoke their license.”