Program brings puppies and prisoners together

(New York-WABC, June 19, 2006) (WABC) -- A new and very unconventional pilot program pairs puppies with hardened criminals behind bars. It sounds like an odd combination, but it is for a good cause: to train puppies for the disabled.

Sarah Wallace was granted unprecented access at Otisville correctional facility in Orange County and she joins us.

This prison program is a win-win for everyone involved. It takes a tremendous commitment of time to raise a dog to be a service companion for someone with a disability. How perfect then to seek out someone who has nothing but time and is also looking to give something back to society.

It's not a side of convicted killers and other criminals you'd ever expect to see. Acting downright silly. A concerned, caring side.

What's behind this outpouring of emotion? Call it a canine challenge.

Sarah Wallace: "What have you learned about yourself?"

Prisoner: "That I still got compassion. I'm still basically a human being."

Throughout this intensive three month training course at Otisville Correctional facility, these select candidates must prove to human instructors from the non-profit organization Puppies Behind Bars, and their four-legged trained assistants, that they're prepared.

They prepare to raise a puppy who will grow up, just like their parents, to be a working dog for someone with a serious disability.

Gary, Prisoner: "I did so much bad in the community. I want to do something good."

Sarah Wallace: "What did you do?"

Edwin: "Murder. I'm giving back. I can never give back a person's life to a mother that lost her child, but this is my way of doing something to reparate in some way."

We were on hand when five chosen men finally received their pups.

Sarah Wallace: "How does it feel?"

Prisoner: "It feels good. It's like a baby."

There are a lot of firsts here at Otisville. This is the first time the prison has had puppies and it's also new for the Puppies Behind Bars program. A handful of other correctional facilities raised puppies to be guide dogs for the blind or bomb-sniffing dogs, but this is the first time the puppies are being raised to be service dogs for the disabled, so these men are true pioneers.

Prisoner: "I felt like an expectant father, like the stork delivered a big furball."

But make no mistake, this is not a pet project. It's a 24 hour commitment, even at bedtime, for the next 16 months.

Gloria Gilbert Stoga, Puppies Behind Bars: "We're constantly are evaluating the men. If we think that a man isn't doing what we expected from him, what we needed from him, then he's not going to stay in the program."

These inmates, some serving life terms, do understand that their canine companions will return to the community long before they do.

Prisoner: "I'm going to miss him, sure. But hopefully he'll be on to bigger and better things."

Prisoner: "She's going to be doing something, making somebody happy and I'll be a part of that. So that's how I reason myself not to be brokenhearted when she leaves."

After they graduate from prison the puppies will receive additional training in a community-based service school before being placed with a disabled person.

We've been invited to follow their progress and we'll bring you updates over the next year and a half.

Get more News »

• Email
• Print
• Report a typo
•