A Wisconsin beagle breeding and research facility that’s been the site of recent violent protests is closing, and its remaining dogs are being taken in by a Florida rescue group.
Big Dog Ranch Rescue announced Monday that it has reached an agreement for the permanent closure of Ridglan Farms and the transfer of its 475 remaining beagles starting this week.
“Not one dog will remain,” Lauree Simmons, the group’s founder, said in a news conference at a farm in Wisconsin. “No more breeding, no more testing, no more anything.”
Yearslong opposition to the facility came to head in April when a large group of animal welfare activists stormed the property in an attempt to take away beagles, prompting police to use tear gas and pepper spray as they made dozens of arrests.
Some protesters were also arrested in March after they broke in and took 30 dogs from the facility, which is located in Blue Mounds, a small town about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southwest of the capital, Madison.
Big Dog Ranch Rescue said some of the beagles will go to rescue groups while others will be sent to its Florida and Alabama campuses where they will be spayed, neutered, and prepared for adoption.
The group bought roughly 1,500 of the facility’s more than 2,000 beagles in April for an undisclosed price.
About 200 dogs were being transferred Monday, according to Simmons. Another 125 will be moved Tuesday. The transfer of the remaining beagles will happen in August, as they are still puppies.
Simmons called on protesters to refrain from further demonstrations as it says Ridglan Farms has committed to permanently closing its dog breeding, sales, research and testing operations.
“Our focus now should be on supporting these dogs as they transition into their new lives,” Simmons said. “These dogs will get to experience safety and a normal life for the first time.”
Simmons said her group is also “working closely” with the Trump administration to stop funding studies that subject dogs to “invasive and painful experimentation.”
Trump’s Health and Human Services secretary, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., called Monday’s deal a “major win for animal welfare” in a post on X.
Ridglan Farms, in a statement, said all the dogs being transferred are “happy, healthy animals” with “extensive” state and federal inspection documentation.
“We hope these dogs will continue to flourish in their new homes,” the company said, adding that it hopes that the “years-long harassment campaign targeting the research facility’s owners, staff and neighbors comes to an end.”
Animal activists for years had sought to have dogs at the facility adopted, not sold to other research facilities.
Beagles are the most common breed of dog used for animal testing, primarily because of their smaller size and gentle temperament, according to Big Dog Ranch Rescue.
Ridglan Farms agreed in October to give up its state breeding license as of July 1 as part of a deal to avoid prosecution on felony animal mistreatment charges.
The firm has denied mistreating animals, but a special prosecutor determined that Ridglan Farms was performing eye procedures that violated state veterinary standards.
FILE - Beagles that were purchased from a Dane County animal research facility play outside May 12, 2026, in Madison, Wis. (AP Photo/Scott Bauer, File)
Several of the skydivers killed when their plane crashed moments after taking off from a Missouri airfield were experienced jumpers who belonged to a community with a unique bond.
Federal investigators were at the crash site Monday, a day after the plane carrying a pilot and 11 passengers slammed into a field and burst into flames, killing all on board, authorities said.
Some family members of those who died were at the airport to watch the jump and witnessed the crash, said Bates County Sheriff Chad Anderson.
Authorities have not released the victims' names.
Kevin Payne, who had jumped with seven of the skydivers on the plane, said they were all different in nearly every way, except that they were all brought together as a “sky family.”
“There is a joy and peace and freedom to what we do. That’s what most people never understand,” Payne, of Parkville, Missouri, wrote in an email. “It’s not about the adrenaline. It’s about really flying together with your family in that brief, exquisite instant that people who live their lives on the ground will never understand.”
While it will be about a month before the National Transportation Safety Board issues a preliminary report, weather did not appear to be a factor.
Investigators are already interviewing some of the witnesses, NTSB Vice Chairman Michael Graham said. The plane didn’t have a “black box” like those that record crash data on commercial planes, but investigators will look for other kinds of devices that could provide insights, he said.
Witnesses say the plane was roughly 100 feet (30 meters) from the ground when it made an abrupt left turn before crashing.
It appeared to be losing power, and the pilot may have been trying to reach a highway to land when the plane stalled and went down nose first, said Dennis Jacobs, acting airport manager of Butler Memorial Airport.
The plane was operated by Skydive Kansas City, he said. The crash site in the small town of Butler is roughly 65 miles (105 kilometers) south of Kansas City.
Skydive Kansas City said in a statement that its team and the close-knit skydiving community were in shock.
“This is a devastating loss for everyone connected to Skydive Kansas City and for the wider skydiving community,” the company said. “Our deepest sympathies are with the families, friends, and loved ones of all who were lost.”
The Pacific Aerospace 750XL — a single engine turboprop plane — is a popular model in skydiving because it’s designed for the sport and can quickly take parachutists to jumping altitudes while using short runways.
This particular aircraft, built in 2010, made nine successful flights in the days before the crash, including two on Sunday morning, according to FlightAware, a digital flight tracking company.
Federal investigators have voiced concerns about oversight for skydiving operators in past crash investigations and have cited the need for maintenance guidelines, training for pilots and stronger aircraft inspections. The NTSB said after a crash killed 11 people in Hawaii that the Federal Aviation Administration’s regulatory system isn’t strong enough to ensure the safety of skydiving flights.
The FAA has yet to act on the NTSB's recommendations.
“It’s always frustrating when we see things the FAA hasn’t acted on,” said Graham, of the NTSB. “And then we continue to see accidents in those arenas.”
Skydiving businesses operate under the same FAA rules that apply to any small plane owner as long as their flights don’t venture more than 25 miles (40 kilometers) away. Those rules also cover tourist helicopters and other local flights because the FAA considers those operations less complicated than a charter company or airline.
As a result, FAA oversight of skydiving operators isn’t as stringent as the NTSB has recommended. But aircraft owners are expected to follow the manufacturer's maintenance schedule and recommendations.
The United States Parachute Association, the sport's governing body, said in a statement after Sunday's crash that “a loss of this magnitude is felt profoundly across the entire sport.”
The group said Skydive Kansas City adheres to the safety standards set by the largest skydiving organization in the world, including all FAA maintenance requirements.
The skydiving industry says it has a strong safety record. The association said that last year nearly 3.5 million jumps were completed and that 16 civilians died, the majority from human error.
Associated Press reporters Kristen M. Hall in Kansas City, Missouri; Cathy Bussewitz in New York; Rebecca Boone in Boise, Idaho; and Hannah Fingerhut in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed.
Missouri State Highway Patrol Sergeant Justin Ewing talks to the media about the plane crash at Butler Memorial Airport, in Butler, Mo., Sunday, June 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
A Bates County Sheriff's Deputy mans a roadblock outside the scene of a plane crash at Butler Memorial Airport in Butler, Mo., Sunday, June 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
Emergency personnel investigate the site of a plane crash at the Butler Memorial Airport in Butler, Mo., Sunday, June 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann)
