Facts
Ridglan violations on the record
The five court-relevant violation categories, with statutes, expert testimony, and primary-source citations. Each finding here appears in DATCP inspection reports, sworn affidavits, or Judge Lanford's 23-page probable-cause order of January 9, 2025.
What inspectors and the court found
Each violation below is independently sourced. The statutes cited are the actual code provisions DATCP or the Dane County Circuit Court relied on.
Felony-level cruelty
Devocalization
WI § 951.02
Workers cut the vocal cords of 30-40 dogs per month using a paralytic agent — no anesthesia. The dogs were fully conscious.
- Succinylcholine (a paralytic) used instead of anesthesia — dogs could feel everything but could not move or scream
- 30 to 40 dogs devocalized per month, tracked on a whiteboard in the facility
- Performed by unlicensed workers (Hiltbrandt, Olson), not veterinarians
- After the procedure dogs could only make a hoarse whisper
- AVMA formally discourages devocalization as a 'convenience procedure'
- Purpose: reduce barking noise — performed entirely for human convenience
“Performing ventriculocordectomy using a paralytic agent and no anesthesia is an act of cruelty regardless of the setting. This is mutilation.”
Dr. Sherstin Rosenberg — Veterinarian — sworn testimony, October 2024
Unlicensed veterinary practice
Cherry-eye surgery without anesthesia
WI ATCP 16.20(2)(a) — 308 counts in the 8/11/2025 civil-forfeiture complaint
Unlicensed workers cut out the third-eyelid gland with scissors — no anesthesia, no blood control. Dogs thrashed and bled profusely.
- Proper treatment: delicate repositioning under general anesthesia by a licensed vet
- Ridglan practice: full excision with scissors — removing the gland entirely
- No anesthesia, no blood control, no aftercare
- The gland produces ~40% of the eye's tears; removal guarantees chronic dry eye for life
- Considered flagrant malpractice since Veterinary Ophthalmology, 2nd Ed. (1991)
- Procedures tracked near-daily on a whiteboard
- Lead vet Richard Van Domelen suspended Sept 2025 by the WI Veterinary Examining Board for delegating to unlicensed staff
“The dog's eyes would bleed profusely for several minutes. Sometimes it would start pouring onto my hand before I even let go of the dog.”
Matthew Reich — Former Ridglan employee (2006–2010) — sworn testimony
Chronic injuries documented since 2006
Wire-mesh flooring
WI § 951.02 — adequate shelter
Dogs lived 24/7 on metal wire grating designed for waste to fall through. Paws pushed through the gaps; feet bled. First documented in 2006 and still cited in 2024 inspections.
- Wire mesh designed for waste removal, not for dogs to live on
- Chronic foot and leg injuries from paws falling through gaps
- Dogs could not lie down comfortably or walk without pain
- Untreated injuries that worsened over years
- First DATCP violation 2006; still present 18 years later in the June 2024 inspection
Ventilation failure
Toxic ammonia / ventilation failure
DATCP inspections 2022, 2024
Ammonia levels so high that DATCP inspectors were nauseated. The dogs breathed this air 24 hours a day.
- DATCP inspectors physically nauseated on multiple visits (July 6, 2022 report)
- Dogs confined in this environment 24/7
- Chronic ammonia exposure damages respiratory system, eyes, and mucous membranes
- Ventilation failures cited across 2022 and 2024 inspections
- Repeated citations — never adequately corrected
“The ammonia / odor level in several locations within Ridglan buildings was bad enough that I experienced nausea on one occasion, and my throat and nostrils were irritated for several hours after I left the facility.”
DATCP State Inspector — Inspection report, July 6, 2022 — cited in court order
Chronic — documented 2016–2024
Psychological distress
Expert testimony (Lanford order, January 2025)
Dogs spinning in circles in 2'×4' cages — the canine equivalent of a person in solitary confinement rocking back and forth.
- Stereotypic spinning documented on 2017 undercover footage (Exhibits 6–13)
- Solitary confinement in barren environments with no enrichment
- Behavior indicates severe chronic psychological distress
- Persists across years of documentation (2016–2024)
- Multiple expert witnesses described the conditions as 'torturous'
“The abnormal behaviors were way beyond anything I've ever seen in what I would consider to be a normal dog.”
Prof. Marc Bekoff — Cognitive Ethologist, University of Colorado — sworn testimony
Also documented, never charged
- Dying puppies discarded in garbage bags rather than given vet care or humane euthanasia.
- Mass burning of dead dogs in pyres on the property — earliest complaint 2005.
- Hundreds of dogs in solitary confinement, never allowed outside.
- DA's office received 983 separate emails over six years requesting an investigation. No action taken until the special-prosecutor petition was granted Jan 9, 2025.
Where this comes from
- Lanford Order (Jan 9, 2025) — 23-page probable-cause finding by Judge Rhonda L. Lanford, Dane County Circuit Court. Granted the petition for special prosecution brought by Wayne Hsiung, Dane4Dogs, and Alliance for Animals.
- Civil Forfeiture Complaint (Aug 11, 2025) — Case 149309; 311 counts (308 cherry-eye + 3 daily-check failures); $55,148.50 forfeiture paid; named dogs ZKA-8, FZA-8, FVC-O, FJA-9.
- Carter Affidavit (Mar 11, 2025) — 9-page sworn affidavit naming 10 Ridglan staff and transcribing the cherry-eye technique verbatim.
- DATCP inspection reports — 2016, 2018, 2022, June 2024, September 2024. All public records.
- Veterinary Examining Board — March 2025 stipulation and September 2025 summary suspension of Richard Van Domelen (license #404991). January 2026 voluntary surrender by CVT Georgia Heller.
Cross-checks in the database
The shipping side of the story lives in the archive: /shipments has every CVI Ridglan filed with WI DATCP from April 2023 to present; /buyers aggregates them by destination. If you want to know which research companies were still receiving Ridglan beagles during the period covered by these violations, those two pages will tell you.
Take action
The Lanford order, the civil-forfeiture complaint, and the VEB actions all named Ridglan. They did not name the buyers. The companies still purchasing dogs from a facility a judge declared probable-cause for felony cruelty are listed and contactable: