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Contact: Cassie King, (510) 507-8075, cassie@directactioneverywhere.com

VIDEO: Advocates Rally at AG's Office to Urge Prosecution of Abusive Calf Ranch, as Lawyers, Vets Submit Expert Evidence

Grimmius Cattle Company confines tens of thousands of calves in tiny cages with no breaks for months

Photos & Videos from the Rally

Cruelty Footage from Grimmius Cattle Co.
(Credit: Direct Action Everywhere)

November 12, 2026, SACRAMENTO, CA - Approximately 70 animal advocates rallied outside the Attorney General's Office in Sacramento today, urging recently re-elected AG Rob Bonta to prosecute Grimmius Cattle Company for animal cruelty. Bonta's office first received complaints of cruelty at Grimmius in November 2025, including video documentation indicating that Grimmius houses young calves individually in crates of just under 13 square feet, without access to an exercise area, for 85-90 days. Attorneys allege this extreme confinement violates California Penal Code Section 597t, which requires that all confined animals are provided with an "adequate exercise area." Veterinarians say it is incompatible with good animal welfare.

The rally, organized by the animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere (DxE), began with the group entering the AG's office while an attorney delivered a package of detailed evidence to Bonta's office. The package includes legal analysis of Section 597t, a veterinary opinion, and statements from local residents impacted by Grimmius' operations. The group then rallied outside.

"Calves are social, playful, curious animals. They are similar to young puppies in the way they interact and play together. At Grimmius, they spend their first 2-3 months alone in crates where they can barely turn around. This is the period during which they would naturally be learning from their mothers and peers. This level of extreme confinement and isolation is fundamentally incompatible with good animal welfare," said Dr. Sherstin Rosenberg, a UC Davis-educated veterinarian with experience caring for calves and one of the authors of the veterinary opinion delivered today.

Speakers included Dr. Sherstin Rosenberg; Alene Anello, an animal attorney experienced with California's confinement laws; Miguel Alatorre, executive director of the Kettleman City-based nonprofit UNIDOS Network, which is fighting the expansion of Grimmius' Kettleman City location; Lewis Bernier, a DxE factory farm investigator who documented animal cruelty at Grimmius; DxE activist Zoe Rosenberg, who recently served jail time for openly rescuing animals from a slaughterhouse; and Nickolaus Sackett, director of legislative affairs at Social Compassion in Legislation.

Advocates displayed a replica calf crate built to the same dimensions as the crates at Grimmius, 2.7 by 4.7 feet, along with large photos of calf confinement at the company and a banner reading "Factory farms are not above the law."

In addition to intensive confinement, DxE's investigation of Grimmius revealed baby cows violently shoved and thrown to the ground, sick calves dragged and shot in the head, and calves dying from neglect inside their crates. DxE reported this conduct to the Kings and Tulare County authorities, but both counties dismissed the concerns. Under Article V, Section 13 of the California Constitution, the attorney general has the authority to prosecute crimes when local officials fail to enforce the law.

"In a single minute flying over Grimmius, I recorded tens of thousands of violations of California animal confinement law, each one affecting an individual calf whose suffering is real, and whose protection must be a priority," said DxE drone investigator Lewis Bernier. "We need Attorney General Bonta to take action now."

Grimmius is California's largest calf-raising company. Between its two biggest locations, in Hanford and Strathmore, it confines around 200,000 calves, and its Kettleman City location is currently expanding. Grimmius receives newborn calves from dozens of dairy operations across the state. Eventually these calves are either slaughtered for beef or, for some of the female calves, go back into the dairy industry once they are old enough to become pregnant and produce milk. The company is linked to the largest dairy producers in California, including Land O'Lakes and California Dairies, Inc.

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. Visit DxE on Instagram, Facebook, X, Bluesky, and at directactioneverywhere.com.