Prisoners rehabilitate death-row dogs

LANSING, Kan. - The prison yard is filled with the sounds of men grunting as they lift heavy barbells that clang noisily when iron hits concrete. But Jerry McMullin is oblivious, focused only on a young German shepherd named Tess.

On his hands and knees in the nearby grass, McMullin gently talks to Tess, smiling as he coaxes her to lie down.

“Tess down,” he says, and she obeys.

“You want this?” he continues, handing her a chewed up red rubber ball. “Good girl.”

The scene is something of a paradox: sweaty, muscled men heaving to the rhythms of their workout while a kennel's worth of puppies are doing what puppies do best. Yet it's a fairly common setting at Lansing Correctional Facility, where 2,500 criminals are serving time.

Since August 2004, the Safe Harbor Prison Dog Program has brought animals destined for doggie death row at area shelters to inmates like McMullin for training as pets.

On any given day, about 50 dogs are being trained by some 100 inmates at the combined medium- and maximum-security prison. They frolic in a penned area in the shadow of guard towers and high fences, or splash in a plastic wading pool. Because they can be trained quicker as pets than as service animals, they're ready for adoption in just a couple of weeks.

More than 1,000 dogs adopted
About 1,200 dogs of all breeds and ages have been adopted under the program, financed by donations and a $150 adoption fee covering vaccinations, spaying or neutering.

More adopted dogs means more that can be rescued.

"We still want to save as many as we can,” says Janet Florence, the program's president.

Warden David McKune thinks so much of the program that he kept it alive even after founder Toby Young in February spirited a convicted murderer out of prison in a dog crate in her van. The pair were caught about two weeks later in Tennessee.

“Closing that program wasn't a thought that occurred to me. That program is much bigger in its accomplishments than one person,” said McKune, whose prison is where killers Richard Hickock and Perry Smith, profiled in Truman Capote's novel “In Cold Blood,” were executed in 1965.

McKune says what he believes to be the largest prison-based dog adoption program in the country helps reduce violence among inmates. “They may be having a crummy day and a dog comes up and starts licking them and things look better for them,” he says.

“You don't want to work with them too long or they stop paying attention. They get bored,” he says. “I use no force or fear, positive reinforcement only. You've got to get them to do what you want and make them think it was their idea.”

First program was started by nun
The first prison program to train service dogs was started in 1981 in Washington state by Sister Pauline Quinn, a Dominican nun. Similar programs to train dogs as service animals or pets sprang up across the country, including California, Massachusetts, Missouri, Maine, New Hampshire and Wisconsin.

Australian roaches acquire pet status!

Workers in Australia's pet industry say the demand for insects as pets has risen in the past five years because of more cramped urban living conditions.

Cockroaches are particular favourites, especially as the largest of the species is native to Australia.

"Admittedly they are a bit of an unusual pet," John Olive, one of the major suppliers of giant cockroaches to the Australian pet market, told the Reuters news agency.

"But the kids can play with them without getting hurt and they are very low maintenance."

Suppliers and pet shop owners are keen to point out that the pet cockroaches are not the brown-winged pests which may be seen feasting on rubbish or scurrying under kitchen units.

Macro bugs

The cockroach believed to be most suited to pet life is the giant burrowing variety - or rhinoceros cockroach - that is native to Australia, and found in the warm, north-eastern state of Queensland.

They are also known to live up to 10 years.

Some pet shops rename the creatures "litter bugs", "rain beetles" or "macrobugs" to escape the cockroach stigma.

Supplier Sue Hasenpusch, from another supplier, the Australian Insect Farm, told Reuters: "These really are charming creatures. They're clean, they're not stinky at all and there really is nothing horrible about them except for the name cockroach."

Insects have long been popular pets in Japan, where live beetles can be bought from vending machines, and stick insects are popular in the UK.

Pet names

Cockroach pets can be kept in a medium sized tank with a few inches of sandy soil and be fed dry eucalyptus leaves.

One firms sells "giant litter bug" kits, which include an insect house, sand, some food and three young little bugs, for $71.50 Australian dollars ($45).

Some owners say they enjoy being stroked and will respond if called by name.

Peter Nobbs, executive officer of Australia's pet welfare group, the Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC), said urban living often prevented people from keeping a dog or cat but insects or small reptiles were ideal for life in an apartment.

Guinea Pigs - Fascinating Creatures

Description: These attractive and lively rodents, also known as the Domestic Cavy, have a long history of domestication. Native to South America, the domestic Guinea Pig comes in an ever-increasing range of colors, patterns and coat lengths and makes an ideal pet for children.

Size: Most Guinea Pigs weigh somewhere in the neighborhood of 1.5 to 4 pounds. The boars (males) are usually larger than the sows (females).

Compatibility: Guinea Pigs enjoy being housed together if done so at an early age. Boars can be aggressive toward each other and sows are generally more tolerant. Guinea Pigs can also be housed with smaller breeds of rabbits. Large rabbits can accidentally injure them and are not suitable housemates.

Appeal: Guinea Pigs can be kept either indoors or outdoors if properly housed. If handled from an early age they can become quite tame and even affectionate. They are easy to pick up and handle, and will feed out of your hand. Short haired varieties have minimal grooming requirements.

Drawbacks: They are more expensive than other types of rodents. They require more room than smaller rodents. It is difficult to tell the age of Guinea Pigs when buying them from a store. Long-haired varieties require daily grooming.

Diet: Commercially produced Guinea Pig food, green foods, root vegetables and hay. In sort, a diet very similar to that of a rabbit.

Problems & Health Issues: These animals are especially susceptible to mites and other skin problems, many times the result of a vitamin C deficiency.

Lifespan: Healthy Guinea Pigs can live from 5-8 years.

Interesting Facts: Guinea Pigs, as the second part of their name suggests, are somewhat pig-like in appearance and make a distinctive "oinking" and squealing noises. There are several thoughts regarding the "Guinea" part of their name. One suggests that they were bought and sold for the price of a guinea (a British coin from the 1600-1700s).