Animal Welfare Professionals

Have any of you tried a prison foster program for large dogs with behavior problems? If so, how did it work out? Are you still using it? Do you think such programs can be part of the solution for getting such dogs ready for adoption?

For my thinking, it would depend on what the behavioral issues are and how skilled the inmates are, specifically in tackling those behavioral issues. Another issue would be whether or not the shelter or rescue partnering with the correctional facility had the time and resources to train the inmates as well as oversee the program.

My shelter partners/partnered with our local correctional facility a few times. Twice for a dog and puppy with minor to moderate separation anxiety and both were adopted successfully, as well as with several puppies with some behavioral issues (one wouldn't stop biting, and not always playfully). 

It worked out well for us but it is a time investment. Our B&T manager was constantly running over there and staying in phone/email contact with the officer running the program. 

One of the biggest barriers, I had heard, was actually getting the whomevers-in-charge of the correctional facility on board with the whole thing. They still aren't entirely and from what I heard they make things rather difficult for expanding the program. I had also heard they won't allow us to send an "pit-ish" looking dogs there. 

As for your final question, my answer is, I don't know. But I don't think it could hurt.

Thanks for replying. That's a good point about whether the correctional-facility management will support the idea. We have so many contract prisons these days, so there's probably a wide variety of management styles.