NYCLASS

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A New Dawn for the Ridglan Beagles
For years, Ridglan Farms in Blue Mounds, Wisconsin has been ground zero in the battle to stop the breeding of beagles for painful experimentation. Now, that narrative has shifted in a historic victory for animal welfare. In a monumental breakthrough in the "Ridglan Beagle Saga," an agreement has reportedly been reached to transfer about 1,000 beagles from the breeding facility into the compassionate hands of rescuers. This extraordinary news broke without many details which we will hopefully get NOW as a news conference begins in Madison, Wisconsin.
This extraordinary deal follows a period of extreme tension and physical confrontation. On April 18th, the saga reached a fever pitch when approximately 1,000 animal activists surged toward the facility in a dramatic rescue attempt. The demonstration turned volatile as authorities deployed tear gas and rubber bullets to repel the animal lovers. The encounter left numerous would-be rescuers injured and led to multiple arrests, underscoring the desperate urgency felt by the animal advocacy community.
Now, that desperation has turned into a diplomatic triumph. Big Dog Ranch Rescue and the Center for a Humane Economy have reportedly successfully negotiated a confidential agreement to secure the release of many of the dogs. Exactly how many? We should learn that now. This development marks a definitive turning point for animal rights in general and animal experimentation in particular as activists said they were spurred to do their own rescue after authorities failed to act despite whistleblower testimony that beagles had been subjected to painful surgical procedures without anesthesia by non-veterinarians.
Leading the news conference:
• Lauree Simmons, president and founder, Big Dog Ranch Rescue
Wayne Pacelle, president, the Center for a Humane Economy and Animal Wellness Action
The Road to Recovery:
Scale: An estimated 1,000 beagles are being liberated from the Dane County facility, although we should get specific numbers now.
Mission: Big Dog Ranch Rescue will provide immediate medical exams, vaccinations, and rehabilitation.
Placement: A nationwide network of rescue partners will help place these dogs in permanent, loving homes.
The press conference in Madison will provide the first full look at the logistics of this massive rescue operation. After the chaos and injury of recent weeks, this announcement offers hope of a peaceful resolution. Ridglan denies the cruelty allegations and is invited on any time.

🚨BREAKING: A Central Park pedicab driver is speaking out against horse carriages.

Tiffany Thomas, a New Yorker from Brooklyn now living in Harlem, works alongside the carriage trade and sees the cruelty up close.

🐴 Tiffany is calling on Speaker Julie Menin and the City Council to reintroduce and pass Ryder’s Law so these horses can be freed from suffering and danger.

Horses are meant to run free, but in the chaos of New York City, that instinct turns into deadly danger.

It’s time to protect public safety and end this cruelty.

➡️🔗Go to this link to contact the NYC Council and ask them to support to phase out horse carriages and rehome the horses to waiting rescue homes where they can finally safely run free: https://nyclass.org/stophorseabuse/

🎉Ryder’s law is also a win-win for people: carriage drivers will be offered higher paying safer jobs with real benefits and worker protections, and Midtown Manhattan will be safer for everyone.

The Day of Judgment: Stopping Big Pork’s "Save Our Bacon Act"
The day of judgment has arrived. This week, the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on the "Save Our Bacon Act"—the pork industry’s latest and most desperate attempt to destroy state-level animal protection laws. Tucked into the "skinny farm bill," this legislation is a direct assault on mercy, state sovereignty, and the basic decency of our food system.
TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY: CALL YOUR CONGRESSPERSON
Call 202 224-3121 - This Congressional Switchboard will connect you with your congressperson. If you don’t know who it is, they will ask you for your zip code and still connect you with him or her. CALL NOW! Say SUPPORT THE LUNA AMENDMENT!
The Torture Behind the Bill
The primary target of this bill is California’s Proposition 12, a landmark law that effectively banned the use of gestation crates. To understand the stakes of this vote, one must understand the horror of the crate: a metal cage so small that a mother pig cannot even turn around, stretch her limbs, or scratch herself for nearly her entire life.
Pigs are sentient, social, and highly intelligent beings—often considered more intelligent than dogs. Under the psychological torture of being pinned in a space the size of their own bodies, these animals go mad. They exhibit heartbreaking signs of distress, such as incessantly chomping on metal bars until their mouths bleed. This is not "farming"; it is extreme, systematic cruelty.
A War on Animals and the Environment
Beyond the physical torture of animals, the intensive confinement model pushed by "Big Pork" is a disaster for our planet. These industrial operations consume massive amounts of water and are leading drivers of land degradation and water pollution.
The "Save Our Bacon Act" (the current vehicle for the disastrous Food Security and Farm Protection Act) seeks to reward this destructive, regressive industry by stripping away the rights of states to demand better. If passed, it could ultimately nullify Prop 12 and jeopardize over a thousand other state laws governing everything from environmental protection to child labor.
The Final Stand: Support the Luna Amendment
We have a chance to stop this nightmare. As this bill comes to the House floor, our primary defense is the Luna Amendment. This amendment is designed to thwart Big Pork’s attempts to undo state protections. It acts as a shield for the animals, ensuring that federal overreach cannot force cruelty back into states that have explicitly voted against it.
TAKE ACTION IMMEDIATELY: CALL YOUR CONGRESSPERSON
Call 202 224-3121 - This Congressional Switchboard will connect you with your congressperson. If you don’t know who it is, they will ask you for your zip code and still connect you with him or her. CALL NOW!
The vote is happening THIS WEEK. This is the moment to send a pointed message that the American people will not tolerate intensive confinement or federal overreach at the behest of lobbyists.
Call your U.S. Representative NOW: Tell them the "Save Our Bacon Act" is an act of cruelty and a violation of states' rights.
Demand a "NO" vote on the Save Our Bacon Act in the Skinny Farm Bill.
Urge them to support the Luna Amendment: This is the only way to preserve the progress we have made for animal welfare and public health.
Now, UnchainedTV’s Jane Velez-Mitchell gets the latest from Matthew Dominguez, the U.S. Director for Compassion in World Farming.