Hundreds of beagles rescued from Wisconsin lab find new home in Florida

LOXAHATCHEE, Fla. (WINK) — Hundreds of beagles rescued from a research breeding facility in Wisconsin are getting a fresh start in Florida.

It's part of a massive rescue operation to relocate the dogs after investigators found probable cause of animal cruelty at the lab.

Rescue groups in Southwest Florida and across the state are coming together to save the beagles.

More than 300 beagles are now at the Big Dog Ranch Rescue in Palm Beach County.

For so many of them, they spent their lives confined to cages and laboratory tests. It's the first time they've ever spent time outside.

"They are thriving in our care right now loving our giant play yards over here and getting a lot of love from our staff and volunteers," said Evan Nader with Big Dog Ranch Rescue.

Nader said every dog in their facility has been checked out by veterinary staff. It's been a massive undertaking for the animal rescue group which is the largest cage-free, no-kill dog rescue in the United States.

"We just felt like, you know, we wanted to help these beagles," Nader said. "And you know, not really focus on where they came from, but really focus on making them be dogs again."

Where the dogs came from gained national attention when a group of animal advocates broke onto the property of Ridglan Farms in Wisconsin and tried to recover the dogs.

The Wisconsin facility breeds the beagles for biomedical research. Last year, a special prosecutor found that Ridglan performed procedures on the beagles that constituted animal cruelty.

The company denies that it abuses animals. Ridglan Farms has agreed to shut down its commercial breeding operations by July 1st.

A settlement allowed the facility to avoid criminal charges in exchange for surrendering its state breeding license, following findings of mistreatment by a special prosecutor.

Big Dog Ranch Rescue and the Center for a Humane Economy struck a deal with Ridglan Farms to recover 1,500 of the 2,000 beagles that were in Ridglan's care.

"I mean, I'll be honest, it's something I wasn't super familiar with," Nader said. "It's kind of shocking it still happens in 2026 but I think this is an opportunity for us as a nation to really grow and, you know, just start loving the dogs a little bit more."

Closer to home, Sherri-Lee Mercuri with Guardians of Florida Animal Rescue personally drove to Wisconsin to bring 18 beagles to Southwest Florida. The dogs are adjusting well to their new environment.

"They're coming along great," Mercuri said. "We've got some of them that are a little more outgoing than the others. Everyday we're seeing a little more personality coming out."

Co-founder Dana Bursch said there's been an all-hands-on-deck approach within the animal rescue community to care for these beagles. The effort requires coordination across multiple organizations. "It's a huge undertaking," Bursch said. "It's an undertaking no one rescue can do by themselves. Even one state of rescues can do by themselves."

All of the dogs will be available soon for adoption. Visit Big Dog Ranch Rescue at https://www.bdrr.org and the Guardians of Florida Animal Rescue Group at https://gofar.dog/.

Guardians of Florida Animal Rescue will hold a benefit on Saturday, May 30 at Mike Greenwell Regional Park in North Fort Myers as part of Food Fest and Craft Fair.