Prison Shelter Dog Training Program Changes Lives
this is PD this is PD he’s a three year
old
Dalmatian lab mix and he’s a great dog
meet Dani and PD an unlikely pair the
two men about three weeks ago Petey is a
local shelter dog who has found a
temporary home at the southeastern
Correctional Institute Dani is an inmate
and also peds trainer he’s extremely
energetic he’s uh he says he loves to be
outside he’s he just likes to run play
he’s fun fun and loving Dani is
preparing Petey for his forever home
Petey was at the Fairfield County dog
shelter but he was often overlooked I
mean everybody so it’s a pretty dog but
then they would walk by him and pick
somebody else because Petey would run
around or was was very active Petey
story is not unique
he’s among a group of dogs at the prison
they’re all part of a dog adoption
program sergeant Brenda Black has been
the program’s coordinator for more than
a year
she calls herself an animal lover which
is why she decided to take on this new
role it was about the animals truthfully
and then the second part of it was the
inmates actually giving back to the
community giving them a sense of
responsibility of taking ownership of an
animal that was at the shelter that was
unwanted not needed maybe needed
training or something bringing them into
the program and having them basically
take over and give that dog a second
chance at life here’s how the program
works
the facility is able to take 20 dogs at
a time each dog has an inmate trainer
who works with them around the clock
they go outside six times a day to both
work and play I like to play fetch with
my dogs the ones that will fetch and
just like walking around with them
playing with them
the dogs also join the inmates inside
they give the dogs baths and share a
living space all this in an effort to
make the dogs more adoptable so many
people are
trying to adopt the perfect dog they
want a house broke and they want it you
know to make its own food whatever I
don’t know but yes it does help a lot of
people come to us and look specifically
for dogs in the program because they
know they’ve gone through the basic
obedience so that also takes the maybe
the misbehave dogs that were turned in
for that reason it gives them an
opportunity to fix those problems before
they get to a new home in order to find
that new home
the dogs are advertised on the Internet
this gives prospective owners an idea of
what dogs are available people from as
far away as Washington State have
adopted through the program some of them
you know you click on the photo and
you’re instantly attached to them you
know you have an interest in them and
all they do is they have to of course go
through an application phase once they
are approved they may come into the
facility and meet with a dog if it’s a
match they go home that day last year
nearly 400 dogs were adopted through the
rescues and the prison black says this
is a great step towards reducing
euthanization rates in the area
specifically in Morgan Carey and
Fairfield County’s Morgan and Perry
County tend to be of higher
euthanization rate anywhere between 40%
and above and when we stepped in we were
able to help cut down the euthanization
rates in those two impoverished counties
and you know help save a lot of animals
if it weren’t for the inmates that train
the dogs many animals would not be safe
at the same time some say the dogs are
the ones saving them definitely helped
you you know responsibility knowing you
got a something you gotta get up for
everyday and take care of and love on
I’ve been working with him probably
about we’ve had him probably three weeks
now and he’s he’s my dog this bond is
hard to break
that’s why inmates say it’s bittersweet
to see their friends go good girl
yeah you get really close to doing it it
hurts when you see them leave but then
again it’s a better thing formally to
get a nice home nice family I have seen
a few of them cry when they you know
when their dogs get adopted but they are
under you know they understand that they
have to let them go
it’s real hard to let go of these dogs
whenever we find them homes and you know
he’s just a great dog and I love them
