Ronald Greene vs the Animal Rights Welfare Police
The Ontario Provincial Animal Welfare Services (PAWS) has arrested a cattle rancher who complained about PAWS inspectors seizing his cattle without due process. He remains in jail, without bail.
Ronald Greene, a 70-year-old beef farmer from Carp, Ontario, has been detained without bail or charges being laid for over three weeks at the Innes Road Detention Centre in Ottawa, following a controversial raid on his farm by the Ontario Provincial Animal Welfare Services (PAWS) agents on May 23rd, 2025.
It looks like he’ll be spending at least another week there. At his first court appearance on June 20th, he was denied bail again and his case was remanded to June 27th.
A quick search of of the dockets for June 20th, 2025 at the Superior Court of Justice and the Ontario Courts of Justice lists case number 0411998251140404400 (R. v GREENE, RONALD G.) which indicates that the trial was at the “bail phase” and that criminal charges are being laid. According to witnesses at the proceedings, the trial will resume on June 27th.
But no one in attendance at the online trial knows the specific charges Greene has been or will be charged with or why he has been denied bail.
All anyone knows for sure is that Greene has been in jail for three weeks because he allegedly expressed anger to someone about an aggressive attack on his farm that killed four of his cows.
The incident has sparked significant concern among local farmers and animal rights advocates, highlighting tensions between agricultural communities and Ontario’s animal welfare enforcement system.
Greene’s situation raises questions about the proportionality of PAWS’s actions, the reliability of the charges against him, and the broader implications for farmers under the 2019 Provincial Animal Welfare Services Act (PAWS Act).
Here’s the background.
On May 23rd, PAWS inspectors, accompanied by horseback riders, raided Greene’s farm, seizing forty-five of his cattle. As outlined in the June 18th, 2025 Farmers Forum post, “Beef farmer jailed for alleged threats after cattle hauled from farm,” the operation was marked by chaos.
Four young animals were reportedly trampled and killed—not by Greene, but as a result of the aggressive roundup tactics employed by PAWS.
No charges of animal cruelty or neglect were laid against Greene. The lack of animal cruelty charges suggest:
…the raid may have been prompted by other concerns, possibly related to property conditions or compliance with PAWS standards, as seen in similar cases like that of Peterborough farmer Walter Ray.
According to the February 13th, 2025 Farmers Forum post, “78-year-old’s $2-million lawsuit against the animal police could be heard in Peterborough court,” Walter Ray, a 78-year-old beef farmer from the Peterborough area, was involved with PAWS in a similar situation almost five years ago.
In December 2021, PAWS seized 101 of Ray’s 170 Angus-cross beef cattle, citing "hazardous debris" on his 200-acre property, though no animal mistreatment was alleged. The cattle were placed in foster care, and Ray was initially billed for substantial costs.
A provincial tribunal later reduced the amount owed to about $14,000, roughly 4% of the original demand. Ray and his wife, Gwenda, filed a $2 million lawsuit against PAWS, which is still in the early stages of the court system.
PAWS agents seem to have initially intended to liquidate all the cows seized in May 2025 from Greene’s property, not just the four calves they killed.
No one knows why.
According to the June 18th, 2025 Farmers Forum post, Jack MacLaren, a sympathetic nearby farmer who later met with Greene said “said his own farm wound up hosting the cattle taken from Greene’s place, at no charge, after the animal police (PAWS) abandoned plans to liquidate the seized animals at a local sale barn after discovering that Greene didn’t own the cattle.”
The post went on to note that Greene:
… had recently sold the herd to a local drover who hadn’t yet taken delivery. As a result, according to MacLaren, PAWS wanted to return the animals to the actual owner but insisted on inspecting the owner’s premises first.
When the drover refused, MacLaren got involved and let them use his place, which underwent the inspection and passed.
No one knows why the cows had to be destroyed, but only if Greene owned them.
The lack of transparency regarding the raid’s justification and the confusion over the ultimate intent of the raiders, has fueled criticism of PAWS, which has faced scrutiny for inadequate resources and inconsistent enforcement since replacing the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in 2019.
Four days after the raid, on May 27th, Greene was arrested for allegedly uttering threats, based on a secondhand hearsay report.
The threats reportedly stemmed from Greene’s frustration and anger over the traumatic seizure of his cattle and the loss of the young animals.
This charge, unrelated to animal welfare violations, appears to be the sole basis for his detention. Critics argue that the arrest, grounded in hearsay, reflects an overreach by authorities, possibly to suppress dissent or deflect attention from the botched raid.
Greene’s case echoes broader concerns about PAWS’s warrantless entry powers and the emotional toll of such interventions on farmers, as evidenced by Walter Ray’s $2 million lawsuit against PAWS for similar overreach.
Greene has been held in custody for over three weeks, an unusually long period for a non-violent individual charged, but not yet convicted, of such a relatively minor offense.
The prolonged detention has raised alarms about fairness, particularly given Greene’s age and the lack of direct evidence tying him to animal mistreatment.
The incident underscores systemic issues with Ontario’s animal welfare framework, including insufficient oversight, aggressive enforcement tactics, and the financial burdens imposed on farmers.
For Greene, the raid’s aftermath—cattle seizure, animal deaths, and his arrest—threatens his livelihood and reputation.
As his bail hearing unfolds, the case may galvanize calls for reform to ensure PAWS operates with greater accountability and respect for farmers’ rights.
Canada has become a hate-filled place. All institutions seem bent on destroying the lives of hard working citizens.