NCJ Number
187035
Journal
Corrections Technology and Management Volume: 5 Issue: 1 Dated: January/February 2001 Pages: 59-61
Date Published
2001
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article describes the "Friends for Folks" project at the Lexington Assessment and Reception Center Correctional Complex (Oklahoma), in which volunteer inmates train dogs from local shelters for adoption to senior citizens and nursing homes.
Abstract
The animals are examined for health problems before they come to the corrections center. The animal stays in the cell with the trainer during the 9 weeks of learning the basic commands. Inmates understand from the beginning that the dog is being prepared for placement in the community after graduation at 10 weeks. To be eligible for becoming a trainer, an inmate must have a 6-month record of no disciplinary write-ups. There must be no indications in the pre-incarceration history of cruelty to animals. The cell-mate of the trainer is also screened, since he must agree to feed and give water to the dog and take the dog out to relieve himself if the trainer is absent. All inmates who participate in the program are volunteers; it is not part of a job training program. The program gives inmates the satisfaction of making a contribution to the community while saving abandoned and mistreated dogs from euthanasia.