What You Can Learn From A Dog:
Pet Therapy Program at Stonewall Jackson Awarded Grant Funds 

 We have all heard that dogs are man’s best friend, but beyond friendship these pets can offer the youth served by the juvenile justice system much more.  That has been the experience of the staff and students at Stonewall Jackson Youth Development Center, which has operated a pet therapy program since 1992.  Earlier this year officials at Stonewall Jackson were pleased to learn that they had been awarded grant funds from the Governor’s Crime Commission to enhance their pet therapy program.  These additional dollars will help the staff at Stonewall Jackson incorporate the pet therapy program into the new model of care offered at the Department’s facilities. 

The newly enhanced pet therapy project’s purpose will be to utilize dogs as a means to reach desired behaviors in the youth served by Stonewall Jackson Youth Development Center, including: promoting responsibility; building empathy; increasing educational/vocational skills; enhancing social skills,; and developing self esteem.  One of the goals of the grant will be to enhance the curriculum offered to students through the pet therapy program by addressing educational/vocational interests of the youth served. This will be accomplished by focusing on providing the students with tangible skills such as knowledge of animal care and kennel management that will assist students in securing jobs with veterinary clinics, humane societies, higher education laboratories, or pet care businesses. 
  
Through the grant funds, the Department will also work with a contractor who is a licensed psychologist with experience in pet therapy.  This contractor will work to enhance aspects of the program to address social skills, emotional management, and empathy. Furthermore, the contractor will provide guidance in developing the program to emulate the Positive Opportunities, Obvious Change with Hounds (POOCH) program model, which has been empirically assessed to be effective.  Finally, the project will be assessed for effectiveness by looking at implementation, operational, and long-term objectives. 

Department staff are pleased that grant funds were awarded to Stonewall Jackson Youth Development Center to allow this longstanding program to be updated to fit with the Department’s new model of care.