Activists Hold Vigil for Calves After Investigation Exposes Illegal Animal Cruelty
For immediate release
Contact: Cassie King, (510) 507-8075, cassie@directactioneverywhere.com
Activists Hold Vigil for Calves After Investigation Exposes Illegal Animal Cruelty
Video released Tuesday shows calves kicked in the face, yanked by their tails, and disbudded with hot irons at a Stanislaus County calf ranch linked to Clover Sonoma
Video from the Investigation
(Credit: Direct Action Everywhere)
May 16, 2026, Ceres, CA - Animal rights activists with Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) held a vigil at Agresti Calf Ranch on Saturday afternoon, following the release of a new DxE investigation showing illegal animal cruelty at the facility. The investigation documented calves kicked in the face, dragged by their tails, and disbudded with hot irons until they collapsed in pain. The footage was published Tuesday on FactoryFarmWatch.org and reported on by The Los Angeles Times.
Activists gathered peacefully on public property by the calf ranch to bear witness to the calves and called on authorities to take action to protect these vulnerable animals. Stanislaus County Sheriff’s deputies were already present when activists arrived and warned them not to trespass. Protesters held signs which read “CA Dairy = Caged Baby Cows” in front of the calf ranch.
Throughout the entire vigil, the company sounded an alarm from the property. For over an hour, two fertilizer vehicles marked “Dores Ag Services” repeatedly dumped a manure mixture onto a field owned by the Agrestis that was directly across the street from where activists stood. This was during 30 mile-per-hour winds, and activists were left covered in manure dust.
“I think this was clearly intentional. They can spray activists with feces but it won’t cover up the fact that this company beats calves in the face,” said Joseph Allman, an investigator with Direct Action Everywhere. “They don’t want us to be here exposing routine instances of violence we see in the dairy industry across California.”
According to DxE investigators and attorneys, the footage depicts conduct that violates California’s animal cruelty statute. A DxE attorney reported these violations to the Stanislaus County District Attorney, Sheriff, and Animal Services. The District Attorney and Sheriff did not respond to the complaint. Animal Services said, “We have coordinated with [the] appropriate organization to monitor what is happening at the location you provided," but it has shared no plans for any enforcement actions against the company, despite follow-up requests for any updates.
Agresti Calf Ranch raises calves born at Double D Dairies, a supplier of milk to Clover Sonoma. Both Agresti Calf Ranch and Double D Dairies are owned and operated by the Agresti family, including Dominic Agresti-Assali who is featured prominently on Clover’s website. In response to inquiries from the LA Times, Clover said it had suspended Double D Dairies after becoming aware of the documented abuse, but the suspension was temporary and Clover has already reinstated Double D. Clover Sonoma markets its products as humane-certified, but DxE’s findings call into question how Clover actually vets its producers.
The California dairy industry is incredibly powerful, as the state’s largest agricultural sector, contributing over $23 billion to the state GDP annually. The California Department of Food and Agriculture has multiple boards dedicated to boosting dairy consumption and shaping public perception of dairy. They have worked with the industry to run multi-million-dollar marketing programs, such as California’s iconic ‘Got Milk?’ campaign and “Happy Cows Come from California.” This state-backed marketing misleads consumers with bucolic imagery of “family-run farms,” while DxE investigations are uncovering the reality of widespread cruelty behind California milk.
"The dairy industry has the government in its pocket,” said Lewis Bernier, a DxE factory farm investigator. “It is free to torture defenseless, baby animals, and instead of stopping the cruelty, the state's ag department will actively help cover it up with a happy marketing slogan."
Direct Action Everywhere (DxE) investigates farms, slaughterhouses, and other facilities to document abuses and rescue sick and injured animals. DxE’s investigatory work has been featured in The New York Times, WIRED, and Vox. In 2022, DxE activists won the first-ever acquittal in an open rescue case. Visit DxE on Instagram, Facebook, X, Bluesky, and at directactioneverywhere.com.
###
