Education
Behind Bars: Part II of a Series
Puppies Behind Bars
By
Mitchell Levine
Fans of HBO’s Oz probably recall several episodes of
the drama last year which focused on a guide dog training program
figuring strongly into the series’ final season. While
the Oswald State Penitentiary was strictly fictional, readers
might be interested to know that the service it was based on
is not. In 1997, Gloria Gilbert Stoga began New York’s
first such inmate program in Bedford Hills Prison, Puppies
Behind Bars (PBB), bringing in dogs to bond and be trained
by long-term prisoners in explosive detection and support for
the blind.
Coming from a public
service position in the Guiliani administration, she had
little to no experience with either dogs or corrections,
but found herself fascinated after hearing of the country’s
first prison dog program, begun by Florida veterinarian, Dr.
Tom Lane. Her initiative became a huge success, expanding to
five more institutions, and now employing 400 volunteers.
After carefully screening
inmates by the nature of their crime, emotional and psychiatric
stability, work history and other key factors, PBB matches
Labrador retrievers with selected participants, who usually
aren’t eligible if their first
parole board hearing isn’t at least three years away.
The inmate students are then enrolled in an eighteen-month
class covering basic handling, grooming, biology and the “philosophy
of dog raising.” Since the dogs are raised to be seeing-eye
animals and to detect explosives, much information concerning
the nature of the blind, and the detection of high explosives
are prominent in the syllabus as well.
Much other work needs
to be done as well, which is where the large volunteer staff
comes in. Because guide dogs need to be confident in a wide
variety of social situations and environments, they bring
the animals into their homes and communities to allow them
to experience the world outside lockdown. “Puppy
shuttles” are also sent directly into Manhattan on weekends
to familiarize the recruits with major urban areas.
None of this was easy
to accomplish. In fact, prison officials were initially some
of PBB’s most early obstacles: as
Gilbert Stoga herself notes, the very nature of the program
involves “bending and altering prison rules.” As
an admonition to those that might be interested in following
in her footsteps, she points out that she’s worked sixty
hour weeks for eight straight years, and is constantly fundraising.
But one thing everyone agrees on: Puppies Behind Bars works.
In fact, 87.5 percent of her guide dogs are accepted into formal
training, and a full 96 percent of the explosives detection
dogs. In addition to the five facilities now sponsoring PBB
programs in the tri-state area, the group has just welcomed
its latest institution, the Mid-Orange Correctional in Warwick,
New York.
When asked as to what
the most important thing she could recommend to someone considering
starting a sister program in another prison system, Gilbert
Stoga remarked, “Be prepared to
make a commitment.” For information on dog placement,
or donating to Puppies Behind Bars, visit the organization’s
website at www.puppiesbehindbars.com #
