Parole A Pet graduates fetch their diplomas

Parole A Pet trainer Colleen Crummy (right) puts trainers and their canine charges through a final exam during their graduation from the program Sunday, Aug. 28, at Cushing Correctional Facility. The ten-week obedience program allows inmates to train shelter dogs in preparation for their new life as family pets. Trainers (from left) are Daryl Davis and Muggins, Chris Young and Feather, Jacob McKenzie and LadyBird, Jason Cleary and Bea, and Clifton Jones and Roscoe.

They wag their tails instead of tossing their caps in the air, but the pride and sense of accomplishment is apparent among graduates from the Parole A Pet program at Cushing Correctional Facility.
The most recent class, five dogs and ten trainers, completed their final exams and received their certificates Sunday, Aug. 28, at the prison in Cushing, Okla.
The Parole A Pet program matches shelter dogs with CCF inmates, who spend 10 weeks living with them and training them to be obedient and responsive pets.
To participate in the Parole A Pet program, inmates must attain Level 4 status, which is the highest at CCF. Level 4 rewards good behavior with privileges, such as participation in programs like PAP. Inmates who are interested in becoming a PAP trainer must apply and be approved by a case manager. Once approved to participate in the program, inmates are assigned their four-legged pupils. They must attend weekly classes and spend time training their dogs, which live in the cell with them for the duration of the ten-week program.
Inmates don’t necessarily need to have experience with dogs, but instead must have a desire to help the animals and a commitment to stick with their training regimen.
“One of the biggest challenges the trainers face is learning how to deal with a different dog each time,” Colleen Crummy, PAP trainer said. “The dogs come from different backgrounds; some have faced abuse. Others are just easier or more difficult to train.
“We just have to figure out what each dog responds to.”

Bea keeps a close eye on her trainer, Jason Cleary, as she waits to meet her new owners.

Karen Mormando smiles as she meets her new pet, Bea, and Bea’s trainer, Jason Cleary, during their graduation from the Parole A Pet program at Cushing Correctional Facility Sunday.

Crummy and program founder Rebecca Stowers of the Cimarron Valley Humane Society conduct the weekly training sessions with the dogs and their handlers. Then, it’s up to the training partners to work together to put the training into practice.
“We have a very good success rate, and the guys who are in the program work hard to earn the privilege and really enjoy making a difference in the dogs’ lives,” Crummy said. “I’ve never had to kick a student from the program.”
One of this session’s graduates, a female chocolate Labrador retriever named LadyBird, is a good representative of a PAP program success story.
Eddie Bermea, co-trainer of LadyBird, said when the dog came to the prison, she was in bad shape – very thin and frightened.
Bermea said, “She almost looked like one of those starved horses you see in comics. You could see her ribs and bones all sticking out.”
During her graduation Sunday, however, it was easy to see LadyBird had blossomed into a friendly, energetic and playful dog with a full and glossy brown coat.
Mike Munday, PAP case manager, said, “This program probably saved this dog’s life. When she came here, she was just skin and bones, and very scared.”
Bermea, who said he had little experience with dogs before the PAP program, agreed, noting, “Probably the biggest obstacle we face with the dogs is not knowing their history. They have a lot to overcome sometimes.”
Jacob McKenzie, co-trainer of LadyBird, said he had prior experience training bird dogs, so it was easy for him to relate that to training the lab.
Still, McKenzie said he enjoyed learning more about training dogs.
McKenzie said, “The more you do, the more you learn. It’s sad to see them go, it’s kind of like a kid. She’s an amazing dog all the way around.”
Immediately following her graduation, LadyBird went to her new home with a local family.
Daryl Davis, who been in program about one year, said he has trained about seven dogs so far.
Davis and Diontay Perry were trainers for a busy white ball of energy named Muggins.
Davis observed, “Muggins is very intelligent and playful. She’s been fun to train.”
Muggins, a shar pei mix, is recovering from eyelid surgery. Shar peis, which have soft, wrinkly skin, often suffer from maladies involving their facial skin, Crummy said.
Davis said the surgery didn’t slow the playful dog down, however.
Davis said he enjoys being in the PAP program so he can make a difference with the dogs, and perhaps save their lives. He is looking forward to receiving his next canine pupil. “It’s definitely a challenge sometimes, but I enjoy it.”
“If I don’t get started [with a new dog] right away,” he joked. “I’ll get dog anxiety.”
Muggins has been adopted by Dawn and Pat Farrell, who were able to attend the graduation ceremony Sunday.
A bright and friendly little lab mix named Roscoe also participated in the graduation ceremony Sunday. Roscoe’s trainer, Clifton Jones, said the little tan dog with extremely soft fur still has a few weeks left in his training, but he’ll be ready to go home with someone soon.
Rounding out this class were two female border collie mixes, Feather and Bea, who are siblings.
Crummy said she was pleased to be able to keep the dogs together in the program.
Though the dogs both sport a beautiful dark chestnut color and freckled faces and feet, Feather is long-haired, while Bea is short-haired.
John Simpson and Jason Cleary, co-trainers of Bea, also look forward to each new canine pupil.
Simpson, who’s been in the program for about two years, said he thinks the biggest hurdle the dogs face is socializing with other dogs and people.
Simpson said, “The dogs have a lot of fear when they come in. Also, while we’re training them, we sometimes have to deal with guys who don’t like dogs.
“The dogs have distinct personalities, quirks. It can be a challenge, but the rewards are much more than the negatives.”
Simpson added, “The best thing about this program is the joy. That’s tough to find in this place. I really look forward to getting up and working with the dogs. We’re with them in a 10-by-12-foot cell, day and night.
“Without having them in there, well, it’s just quiet. It’s sad.

Feather’s trainers, Chris Young and John Tarepen, said they also enjoy working with the canines.
Young has spent the most time, the past four years, working within the PAP program. He said he had no prior experience training dogs.
Young said, “I enjoy changing the dogs into canine good citizens. We love to watch them bloom.”
Young said he’s trained everything from a Cairn terrier to a shepherd mix. He loves to do research and read books on dog training, and tries to use methods offered by Cesar Milan, who is known as the “Dog Whisperer.”
“It’s fun, but frustrating at times,” Young said. “Not the dogs, but the challenge of training them here.
“Distractions such as noise sometimes make it tough to train the dogs. We figure if they can learn and make it through the racket here, they can deal with just about anything.”
Since the dogs live in the cell with their inmate trainers, all of the training takes place either in the cell or out in a common area shared by all inmates.
Young said he enjoys training the dogs so much, he hopes to make it into a career when he is released.
Feather, and her sister Bea, have been adopted by a Moore, Okla. couple who traveled to Cushing to attend the PAP graduation.

Recent canine graduates from the Parole A Pet program waiting patiently for their final exam.

Graduates of the Parole A Pet program head out of Cushing Correctional Facility Sunday following their graduation. From left are Ralph Zollars with Bea, PAP trainer Colleen Crummy with LadyBird, Karen Mormando with Feather, Rebecca Stowers of the Cimarron Valley Humane Society, and Dawn and Pat Farrell with Muggins.

“This was the first time I got to meet my dog’s new owners,” Young said.
Karen Mormando and Ralph Zollars, who adopted the two border collie mixes, said, they found the dogs through a border collie rescue group online.
Mormando said, “We are thrilled to be able to come to their graduation and meet their trainers.”
Young, who also participates in other programs at the prison, such as learning to play the piano and sing, and becoming part of a praise and worship team, said, “[PAP] is a chance to make a positive impact on [the dogs’] lives, and their new owner’s lives, from behind these walls.”
For more information about the Parole A Pet program, visit http://cimarronvalleyhumane.org, and click the “Parole A Pet” link, or call (918) 225-3785.
Available dogs that have completed the Parole A Pet program may be viewed online at Petfinder.com. Just enter “Cimarron Valley Humane Society” in the search field.

Printed in The Perkins Journal, Sept. 1, 2011