A Unique, Inspirational Prison Dog
Training Program
SAVING MORE THAN DOGS SINCE 2007
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Issue 18 - December, 2021 |
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- Things NOT in the Prison
- An Adopter's Story
- Adoption Stats 2019 - 2021
- Peppermint Parkway Event
- Animalis Fabula Film Festival
- Piper's DNA Results
- We Give You Thanks
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Prison life is very limited for normal dog experiences. |
An adopted PIP dog lays on a comfy couch with a grandfather and his granddaughter. |
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1. THINGS NOT IN THE PRISON |
When you adopt one of our dogs, he/she may act strangely because of the new home environment after being in prison. Think about the following list to help you help your new companion adjust.
- There are no trees or flowers in the prison yard
- There is no carpet - floors are hard
- There is no kitchen with noisy appliances
- There are no soft sofas or cushy chairs
- There are no children in prison
- There is no TV
- There are no ceiling fans
- All PIP handlers are women
- There are no squirrels/cats/rabbits outside
- There are no windows to the outside world
- They don't ride in cars
- There is no door directly to the outside
Catherine and her team of volunteers will be starting Doggy Furlough Days in 2022, where each dog will get a chance to walk around Lockhart, maybe share a meal in the park and tell us how they REALLY feel about squirrels! We can then be more informed about the dogs' behavior outside of the prison environment and give them that experience before they are adopted. If you would like to be part of the Furlough Days experience, please fill out our volunteer form or send an email to [email protected].
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The purpose of Paws in Prison is to rehabilitate women in prison, save dogs from rural kill shelters and adopt them into forever loving homes; a home like the one provided by Jaymi E. who adopted Piper last May and sent us the following email. Piper's DNA results are at the end of this newsletter - see if you can guess her genetic history! |
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"Piper is an absolute JOY to have in our family. She loves our kids so much and follows them around everywhere, especially the baby. She and the other family dogs are the most adorable pack. They romp, play, and all sleep cuddled on our bed together at night. Piper thinks beds and couches are the best invention ever! She loves to run in our big backyard and climb up into the treehouse with our kids. She has been camping twice now and has a blast taking hikes and looking for deer from the campsite. She also loves to chase grasshoppers. She hops after them!
She is fully potty trained, and thinks the doggy door is a blast to use for full speed zoomies into the backyard chasing her new best friend Gio (another Lockhart shelter dog we adopted from Atticus Rescue two years ago). She also walks on her leash beautifully and remembers all the tricks the Lockhart women taught her (sit, down, wait, shake, with me, sit pretty, raise the roof, who’s the best). She loves to show off her tricks! Thank you so much for allowing us to give Piper a forever home. We just love her so much!"
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(3) Our Adoption Statistics |
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As many of you know, in 2019, Machelle Gaconnet, the Paws in Prison Founder, passed away. The Paws in Prison program was restructured in 4Q 2019 adding two new board members and a new executive director, and as you can see, in 2020, we more than doubled our adoption rate! Because of your encouragement and financial support, our hard-working Board of Directors (Jennifer, Jeri, Diane and Tia), our Executive Director (Catherine) and her assistant (Sylvia), have been able to continue saving more dogs each year, in spite of the challenges added the last two years due to Covid-19 prison restrictions.
But it's not just about the numbers. Each adopted dog represents several inmates who loved and cared for them, working in teams to overcome any training challenges, and earning training certifications to help them find employment after prison release. These inmates are changed profoundly as they work with each adopted dog. Additionally, dogs placed into carefully vetted homes provide love and companionship to individuals and families, like many of you have personally experienced in your own homes. In spite of difficult circumstances, we have soldiered on relying on each other, our volunteers, your prayers and financial support.
We hope you won't forget us when you make your end-of-year donations. We are small but powerful! And with your continued help, we will continue SAVING MORE THAN DOGS!
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Animal Care and Services Night is December 21.
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This year Peppermint Parkway teams up with I Live Here I Give Here to raise awareness and funding for Central Texas causes, like Friends of Paws in Prison! Peppermint Parkway is promoting the "I Live Here I Give Here" Amplify Fund, and giving back to nonprofits by highlighting one of 20 cause categories each night from Dec. 1 through 24. The Animal Care & Services night is Tuesday, December 21 from either 6:30-8:30 pm or 8:30-9:30 pm at Circuit of the Americas. On that night all nightly charitable contributions will go directly to supporting the animal care and services nonprofits who are registered with the Amplify Fund through I Live Here I Give Here.
The entire Central Texas Community is invited to take part in the Peppermint Parkway holiday cheer at Circuit of the Americas, 9201 Circuit of the Americas Blvd. in Austin. Experience a mile of immersive holiday displays, millions of lights, live dancing elves, a walking plaza full of food and activities, and more at Circuit of the Americas. You can learn more on the FAQ (frequently asked questions) page.
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was held on Tuesday, November 26, 2021
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Catherine Laria and Volunteer Misty Campbell respond to questions about Paws in Prison while Misty's dog Dakota supervises. |
On Friday, November 26, Paws in Prison participated at the Mueller Amphitheater during the Animalis Fabula Film Festival, an event that featured films about animals from 26 different countries. We were honored to be selected as one of the participants!
The Paws in Prison episode on “That Animal Rescue Show” was featured with a Q&A session afterwards. Catherine Laria, the Paws in Prison Executive Director, Jennifer Keaton, Board President, and Misty Campbell, volunteer and Paws in Prison program participant along with her Paws in Prison "alumni dog" Dakota, also attended the event.
Tom McPhee, Executive Director of the nonprofit Animalis Fabula Film Festival, stated in his email to president Jennifer Keaton, "From new friends to new ideas presented
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within the Animalis Fabula Film Festival, all attendees consider the Thanksgiving weekend takeover for the animals truly successful and only the beginning. For instance, the World Animal Awareness Society [WA2S], the award-winning parent [nonprofit parent company]...will be creating grant opportunities collaboratively with Paws in Prison. We are hoping to screen the Paws episode of "That Animal Rescue Show" in the near future for their constituents and extended family, using our new state-of-the-art outdoor cinema.
This is a new offering from the WA2S and we're hoping to partner with Catherine to help continue to illuminate the world through our deeds and share with the world through our stories. And it is our full intent to create a new TV/Web series with the entire Paws in Prison family."
Wow! We'll let you know how this unfolds in the future.
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Misty, Catherine and Dakota
posing for a photo op
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(7) WE GIVE YOU THANKS
We're sorry if we omitted any names from those of you who helped us in November, but we do not always know the names of our Paws in Prison angels! Please let us know who you are if we missed your name by sending an email to [email protected] so we can personally thank you.
Marcus L, Debbie M, Diana S, Jennifer K, Annie B, Kim L, Sharon B, David C, Cynthia C, Susan P, Janet S, Janis G, Misty C.
Because of YOU, we are SAVING MORE THAN DOGS!
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Mailing Address:
1711 S Colorado ST., Suite E-204,
Lockhart, Texas 78644
Phone: (833) 341-3523
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