Prison Program Continues to Evolve

With about 250 dogs and puppies at any given time on their way to being certified Can Do Canines, our pool of dog hosts is critical. 

Our Prison Program is one way to aid in this process. In 2024 alone, 224 inmate handlers helped raise and train our dogs.

Last year, we were excited to resume partnership with our first prison—Faribault Correctional Facility—bringing our count of prisons to eight at that time. Earlier this year, we added Fox Lake Correctional Institution to the mix. 

However, recent government uncertainty has meant a temporary removal of dogs from our Duluth prison partner. This is one of two prisons where we typically wean litters from their mama. Chippewa Valley Correctional Facility is the other, and while we aren’t currently able to wean litters there either, we are experimenting with a new “puppy early learning” model with these inmates. Puppies that are newly weaned spend at least a few weeks in their care.

Weaning has been temporarily added at our Whelping and Growth Center, where we are keeping newborn puppies in our direct care for a longer period of time. 

As we wait to see how plans progress with our current prisons, we are in talks with one prison in Wisconsin and a few other Minnesota facilities about new partnerships. 

We are pleased to report that the new structure of Puppy Program staff for our various prisons is going well. While our Wisconsin Prison Coordinator, Mona, is responsible for weekly visits to multiple prisons in that state, other staff members visit a prison each week. Puppy Program staff members Josie, Meghan, and Tori lead programs at our Waseca, Rochester, and Stanley prisons, respectively, while Laura H., a Client Services Coordinator, handles duties in Faribault. We are grateful to currently have volunteer Erin Whitfield helping at Chippewa Valley. Not having a majority of prisons dependent on just one or two staff people alleviates potential challenges if a position transition occurs. 

We look forward to announcing new partnerships and updates soon.