Covance Madison
Covance's Madison, Wisconsin beagle breeding operation — one of the top three US breeders with 3,953 dogs in 2013. Located in Dane County alongside Ridglan Farms, making one Wisconsin county home to two of the nation's largest research dog breeders. Now Labcorp Early Development Laboratories.
Covance Laboratories operated a major beagle breeding facility in Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin — making one Wisconsin county home to two of the nation's three largest research dog breeders alongside Ridglan Farms in nearby Blue Mounds.
The Facility
- Location — 3301 Kinsman Boulevard, Madison, Wisconsin
- Scale — 3,953 dogs reported in its 2013 USDA annual report1
- Current name — Labcorp Early Development Laboratories Inc. (formerly Covance)
- Status — facility continues to operate under Labcorp. Dog breeding operations reduced/restructured.
Corporate History
Covance was described as a "transnational drug development corporation" and one of the top three producers of research beagles in the United States, behind only Marshall Farms.2
| Period | Entity |
|---|---|
| Original | Hazleton Laboratories (Seattle basement origin) |
| 1996 | Renamed to Covance |
| 2015 | Acquired by Labcorp for **$6.1 billion** |
| 2023 | Drug development business spun off as **Fortrea** (NASDAQ: FTRE) |
Covance was historically described as "the world's largest breeder of laboratory dogs" — a title now held by Marshall BioResources.3
The Wisconsin Concentration
A 2019 Isthmus investigation noted that Dane County, Wisconsin was home to two of the nation's largest beagle breeding operations:4
- Covance Madison — 3,953 dogs (2013)
- Ridglan Farms — ~3,200 dogs (Blue Mounds, ~20 miles west)
Combined, these two facilities housed approximately 7,000+ research beagles in a single Wisconsin county. With Ridglan closing in 2026 and Covance/Labcorp's breeding operations restructured, this concentration is ending.
Violations
Covance accumulated 42 violations between its Pennsylvania and Virginia laboratories, including:5
- Starving dogs
- Failure to provide veterinary care for broken bones
- General housing and care deficiencies
The Madison facility's specific violation record is less publicly documented than the Cumberland, Virginia facility that later became Envigo.
Current Status
The facility at 3301 Kinsman Boulevard continues to operate as Labcorp Early Development Laboratories. Whether it still maintains a beagle breeding colony or now purchases dogs exclusively from external suppliers (primarily Marshall) is not confirmed in public records.
Sources
- 1.Isthmus (Madison, WI). "Beagles bred at two Dane County facilities go to labs around the country." Covance Madison 2013 USDA report: 3,953 dogs.
- 2.Isthmus. Covance described as one of only three major US research beagle producers.
- 3.SourceWatch / Covance profile. "World's largest breeder of laboratory dogs."
- 4.Isthmus (2019). Investigation of Dane County beagle breeding operations.
- 5.SourceWatch. 42 combined violations at PA and VA labs.