In 1997, Puppies Behind Bars ("PBB") my favorite program/charity came into existence and since then has been one of the most remarkable causes I have learned about. I can’t say enough about the benefits of this program, probably because they are so life altering for the prisoners who act as puppy raisers and the recipients of the guide dogs they train. PBB works by offsetting a substantial portion of exceedingly high cost of training guide dogs by enlisting prisoners (carefully selected) to train the puppies. Here is additional information (and a much better explanation) from the PBB website:
Dr. Thomas Lane, a veterinarian in Florida, thought that prison inmates would make excellent puppy raisers, and started the first guide-dog/prison program. Not only do inmates have unlimited time to spend with the puppies, but they benefit from the responsibility of being puppy raisers in ways that are especially important to their rehabilitation: they learn patience, what it is like to be completely responsible for a living being, how to give and receive unconditional love, and -- since puppy raisers take classes and train the dogs together -- how to work as a team.
PBB strives to meet the current needs of the communities in which we work and has expanded its goals accordingly. After the events of September 11, 2001, law enforcement agencies' need for working dogs increased dramatically. To help meet this demand, PBB added the training of explosive detection canines (EDCs) to its program. In 2006, PBB started raising dogs to assist disabled children and adults and launched Dog Tags: Service Dogs for Those Who’ve Served Us, through which we donate fully trained service dogs to wounded soldiers coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan.
The pups live in the cells with their primary raisers, go to classes administered by PBB once a week, and are furloughed two or three weekends a month to 'puppy sitters' who take the dogs into their homes in order to expose them to things they won't experience in prison. These can be as simple as hearing doorbells or the sounds of a coffee grinder, and as complex as learning how to ride in a car and walk down a crowded sidewalk.
The puppies live in prison for sixteen months, after which they are tested to determine their suitability for training as service dogs for the disabled or explosive detection canines for law enforcement. If they are deemed suitable, PBB returns them to the schools where they continue their formal training. If they do not continue on the track to become working dogs, PBB donates them to families with blind children. In either case, these puppies, raised in such a unique environment, spend their lives as companions to people who need them.
PBB pays all of the costs incurred with raising these puppies so anything you could spare, whenever you could spare it to help this cause would surely be instantly gratifying!!! Even if you can't give, it is worth exploring the PBB website to learn more about this amazing charity!
Dr. Thomas Lane, a veterinarian in Florida, thought that prison inmates would make excellent puppy raisers, and started the first guide-dog/prison program. Not only do inmates have unlimited time to spend with the puppies, but they benefit from the responsibility of being puppy raisers in ways that are especially important to their rehabilitation: they learn patience, what it is like to be completely responsible for a living being, how to give and receive unconditional love, and -- since puppy raisers take classes and train the dogs together -- how to work as a team.
PBB strives to meet the current needs of the communities in which we work and has expanded its goals accordingly. After the events of September 11, 2001, law enforcement agencies' need for working dogs increased dramatically. To help meet this demand, PBB added the training of explosive detection canines (EDCs) to its program. In 2006, PBB started raising dogs to assist disabled children and adults and launched Dog Tags: Service Dogs for Those Who’ve Served Us, through which we donate fully trained service dogs to wounded soldiers coming home from Iraq and Afghanistan.
The pups live in the cells with their primary raisers, go to classes administered by PBB once a week, and are furloughed two or three weekends a month to 'puppy sitters' who take the dogs into their homes in order to expose them to things they won't experience in prison. These can be as simple as hearing doorbells or the sounds of a coffee grinder, and as complex as learning how to ride in a car and walk down a crowded sidewalk.
The puppies live in prison for sixteen months, after which they are tested to determine their suitability for training as service dogs for the disabled or explosive detection canines for law enforcement. If they are deemed suitable, PBB returns them to the schools where they continue their formal training. If they do not continue on the track to become working dogs, PBB donates them to families with blind children. In either case, these puppies, raised in such a unique environment, spend their lives as companions to people who need them.
PBB pays all of the costs incurred with raising these puppies so anything you could spare, whenever you could spare it to help this cause would surely be instantly gratifying!!! Even if you can't give, it is worth exploring the PBB website to learn more about this amazing charity!
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