Law enforcement officers used rubber bullets and pepper spray to disperse about 1,000 animal rights activists attempting to breach a beagle breeding and biomedical research facility in Wisconsin on Saturday. The protesters sought to remove dogs from Ridglan Farms in Blue Mounds, approximately 25 miles south-west of Madison.
The demonstration marked the latest effort by activists to take beagles from the facility, following a March raid in which 13 dogs were removed. The Dane County Sheriff's Office has since referred charges including burglary and trespassing against 62 individuals linked to that incident. Activists have framed their actions as rescues, alleging mistreatment of the dogs—claims that Ridglan Farms has denied, stating on its website that no credible evidence of abuse or neglect has ever been presented.
According to the sheriff's department, a person who drove a pickup truck through the front gate of the property was arrested, preventing what was described as a potentially deadly outcome. Sheriff Kalvin Barrett said in a video statement that 300 to 400 protesters were violently trying to break into the property and assault officers, ignoring designated areas for peaceful protest and blocking roads to prevent emergency vehicles from entering.
Protesters attempted to overcome barricades including a manure-filled trench, hay bales and a barbed-wire fence. While some managed to get through the fence, they were unable to enter the facility housing an estimated 2,000 beagles, as reported by the Wisconsin State Journal. Activist Julie Vrzeski expressed feelings of defeat after three hours without successfully seizing any dogs.
The group's leader, Wayne Hsiung, was arrested at the scene, according to a post on the group's X account. In a Substack post, Hsiung wrote that he felt a mix of shock from the sudden escalation of violence and guilt for failing to protect those he loved, but emphasised that they could not give up on the dogs. He predicted that the repression would backfire as the public would see armed men attacking grandmothers trying to save dogs.
The sheriff's department said a significant number of people were arrested but did not provide an exact total as they were still being processed. Later on Saturday, activists moved from the facility to protest outside the jail in downtown Madison.
