In June 2024, Wisconsin state inspectors performed a routine inspection at Ridglan Farms, a beagle breeding and experimentation facility. And they found something disturbing inside. Dogs, including a mother pup, struggling to walk after living a lifetime on metal wire. She was just one of thousands of dogs who had never felt anything soft. But the company did not seem worried, even as they faced criminal complaints by reputable prosecutors. It was as if they saw themselves as above the law. When animals are being criminally abused, we have the right to rescue them. Whether in the court of law or on the frontlines of abuse, we’ll be making our case on April 19.
WAYNE HSIUNG: We are fighting back this week with a demand letter that challenges the authorities’ refusal to enforce the animal cruelty laws—even as 1000+ activists prepare to rescue the Ridglan dogs. Our ask in court will be simple: enforce the law, and protect the dogs.
But let’s back up and give you some context. In June 2024, months after we filed a criminal complaint on behalf of a federal prosecutor, Wisconsin state inspectors performed a routine inspection at Ridglan Farms, a beagle breeding and experimentation facility. And they found something disturbing inside.
Dogs, including the mother pup pictured above, were struggling to walk after living a lifetime on metal wire. The inspector noted this mama was “limping and keeping weight off her front right paw” and that she had a “ruptured interdigital cyst” on her paw. She was just one of thousands of dogs who had never felt anything soft…
But the company did not seem worried, even as they faced criminal complaints by reputable prosecutors. It was as if they saw themselves as above the law… And sadly, we have now learned why: the Dane County authorities endorsed the bizarre theory that Ridglan was exempt from the animal cruelty laws as a “teaching” facility.
The authorities’ position effectively gave Ridglan freedom to torture dogs and have complete immunity from prosecution. It was blatantly wrong and illegal. But they might have gotten away with it. Efforts to bring suits on behalf of the dogs failed because courts ruled that, as “things,” the dogs could not bring suit as victims of crimes.
Until now. This week, our lawyers at the University of Denver Animal Activist Defense Project submitted a legal demand and so-called “preservation letter” to Dane County regarding its failure to enforce animal cruelty laws… It is a way for us to leverage our own legal standing—as human beings with due process rights—to create legal standing and rights for the dogs.
In particular, if we are right that Ridglan has committed felony animal abuse—as every fact-finding body has concluded—then the authorities have violated our rights by targeting us and refusing to investigate Ridglan Farms. And because our claim is a civil claim, we do not have to wait for the government to act. We can bring this action ourselves.
This is an important new development in the fight to save the Ridglan dogs, and we have brilliant attorneys at the University of Denver behind us… Fueling all of these efforts is a simple idea. When animals are being criminally abused, we have the right to rescue them.
Whether in the court of law or on the frontlines of abuse, we’ll be making our case on April 19. The mother dog found limping by state inspectors in June 2024 might still be there, trapped in a cage. If you join us, we will get her out. SOURCE