"The dog loves you even in prison": how to help each other inmates and homeless dogs

American organization Karma Rescue saves dogs from overcrowded shelters where they can sleep. One of its programs is called Paws for Life: it lets inmates train homeless dogs, then animals could find a home. Photographer John Dubois six days spent in prison and filmed the participants Paws for Life with their Pets, and then told me that he learned about the criminals and humanity.

(22 photos)

Source: Feature Shoot

In 2014, the prisoner of the California men's prisons Treville wrote an essay to participate in the program, Paws for Life: "I understand what it's like to sit in a cage. Paws for Life gives me the chance to do something for the benefit of others, to repay the society that I cheated".

Just when Treville wrote his essay in the program, Paws for Life has worked as a volunteer photographer John Dubois. Their colleague Shaun Crawford invited to photograph the first group of five dogs which were sent to the prisoners. The photographer with the operator six days spent in jail for dangerous criminals, watching the animals and their temporary guardians.

The program was to prepare dogs to receive a "Certificate of law-abiding dog" (Canine Good Citizen) — this distinctive sign to draw attention to families willing to shelter an animal.

In the California prison acts for the fourth level of security, and many inmates here are serving life sentences. That men were able to participate in the program, Paws for Life, some of them lowered the security level to the third.

The program lasted 12 weeks. Dogs chewy, Oreo, Eddie, Randall and Shelby gave a temporary home, and each appointed his prisoner. All the participants several weeks have prepared by studying methods of training dogs. When people first meet their future Pets, many of them were weeping. One man remembered that once at liberty he had a favorite dog.

Dogs slept in their kennels in a common area of the cellblock. Almost all the work for the care of animals were performed by the prisoners themselves, and they led a professional coach.

After school people could enjoy watching dogs in their cells. The stories of Dubois, they watched TV together, walked, played and cuddled. Before bed temporary pet owners had to take them back to the cages.

Three months later, the prisoners came to an end, and the dogs are certified Canine Good Citizen — this meant that the animals are ready to keep in the family, outside the prison walls.

"Most tears shed at the end of the program when the dog was taken into the family and carers had to say goodbye to them", — told the photographer Paws for Life.

The majority of prisoners with whom Dubois and Crawford met in 2014, sentenced for life, and they will never get a second chance to succeed in the outside world. But they helped get this chance animals from the shelter: all five dogs found loving owners.

After breaking up with your pet Treville, which we mentioned in the beginning of the text, reported on it in Huffington Post:

A few months in jail came a new batch of dogs from Karma Rescue, and the program started again.

Each prisoner Dubois the memory left a printed photo. He used to stop communicating with the people he met in prison: "to listen to their history seriously, and that emotional stress can greatly affect you". But now the photographer is going back to prison and check on those with whom he's become friends: "I Think all of them except one, and still sitting in Lancaster".

Dubois recognized that due to the dogs he saw in the criminals of humanity: "During the program we were constantly doubt my perception of prisoners and revised ideas about who they are. Some men told us that dog again has taught them to love and accept love."