How Rescue Dogs Ended Up Inside a California Prison
A California prison dog training program pairs incarcerated individuals with rescue dogs, creating transformative results. Over 11 years, the program has graduated approximately 1,700 students and 800 dogs while reducing prison violence and fostering cooperation among rival gang members and racial groups.
Summary
The transcript describes the origins and success of a dog rescue and training program implemented within California prisons. The speaker was inspired after witnessing the dramatic positive change in a formerly incarcerated friend named Robbie when he interacted with a rescued dog named Shadow. Robbie, who had spent 15 years in prison from age 18 to 33, initially displayed social dysfunction including avoidance of eye contact and aggressive demeanor. However, his entire demeanor transformed when engaging with the dog—he began smiling and opening up, revealing a relatable person beneath his guarded exterior. This experience motivated the speaker to pursue a larger initiative: bringing rescued dogs into California state prisons to help with both dog rescue and prisoner rehabilitation. Initially, institutions were resistant to implementing prisoner programs. However, in 2015, California City Correctional Facility Superintendent David Long embraced the concept and agreed to participate, requesting 10 dogs immediately. The program required consistent commitment, with trainers visiting weekly for 3-4 hour sessions to work with incarcerated students. After 11 years of operation, the program has successfully graduated approximately 1,700 students and 800 dogs. The results extended beyond individual rehabilitation: the program created a cultural shift within the prison. Members of rival gangs and different racial groups began working together, living on the same prison block, and cooperating peacefully. Violence and drug activity decreased measurably. The speaker notes that this cultural shift was particularly significant because prison environments typically punish kindness and friendly behavior as weakness, which can make individuals targets. By establishing positive behavioral examples through the dog training program, the initiative opened pathways for hope and opportunity throughout the institution.
About this episode
Before Pawsitive Change ever reached a prison yard, it was one man watching a friend come home after years inside. What he saw happen when that friend adopted a rescue dog became the start of something he wanted to try where almost no one thought it belonged. In this clip, program founder Zach Skow tells the story of how rescue dogs first made their way into a California state prison, from the early resistance to the warden who took a chance, and what began to change on the yard once the dogs arrived. 📩 Email Us YOUR Story: [email protected] 👉 Read California News: https://californiainsider.com/ Views expressed in this video are the opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of California Insider. -------------------- 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 Watch our Documentary "Leaving California" at https://leavingcamovie.com/ 🟡 Sign up for our newsletter: https://californiainsider.com/email-signup-page 💟 Support us: https://donorbox.org/california-insider-2024-donation • Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/CAInsiderShow/ • X (Twitter) - https://twitter.com/CA_Insider • Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/california.insider/ -------------------- #California #CaliforniaNews #CaliforniaInsider
Key Insights
- A formerly incarcerated man named Robbie who spent 15 years in prison (ages 18-33) experienced a complete behavioral and emotional transformation when interacting with a rescue dog, shifting from withdrawn and wild to smiling and open, which inspired the creation of a larger prison dog training program.
- California City Correctional Facility Superintendent David Long agreed to launch the dog training program in 2015 with immediate commitment, leading to weekly trainer visits and eventual graduation of approximately 1,700 students and 800 dogs over 11 years.
- The prison dog training program created a measurable cultural shift where members of warring gangs and different racial groups began working and living together cooperatively, resulting in decreased violence and drug activity—outcomes the speaker attributes to the program setting examples of kindness in an environment where such behavior is typically viewed as weakness.
Topics
Transcript
[0:00] The positive change program was designed in a very interesting way . I had a friend named Robbie who had just gotten out of prison. When he got out of prison, he was a pretty wild man. He was there from the age of 18 to 33, and he had a hard time reintegrating into society. He avoided eye contact, but when he came to my house with my mom to pick up Shadow—the dog that had been shot—you would see how everything about him changed, his whole demeanor. You started to see him smile, you started to see him open up, and the person I was, frankly, afraid of when I opened the door became someone I could…
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