Dean Wyrzykowski joins Anitha to talk about the incredible recent rescue of beagles from Ridglan Farms.
Located in Wisconsin, Ridglan Farms is the second largest breeding and lab testing facility in the United States, with 2000 dogs bred and subjected to cruel and inhumane forms of testing without anesthetic.
Dean takes us back to 2017, when investigators witnessed firsthand the horrible conditions beagles, one of the most docile breeds of dogs, endure—living in cages that are a mere 2 feet by 4 feet in size, never going outside and having painful procedures performed without any anesthetic.
After almost ten years of protesting, gathering signatures, writing letters and a huge public outcry about what was happening to dogs at Ridglan Farms, it was finally time to celebrate. In May of 2026, several rescue organizations negotiated with Ridglan Farms for the release of 1500 of the 2000 dogs.
Dean hopes that all the dogs will be freed from Ridglan and this facility will forever be closed.
A story that shows that our voices do make a difference.
To follow Dean, check out these links:
As a thank you to Dean for sharing his story, Anitha donated to Save The Dogs, an organization determined to end the breeding of dogs for lab testing. To learn more about what they do, check out their website:
To hear the full episode, click here:
Anitha Rao-Robinson 