Prisoners give unwanted greyhounds a new chance at life

The greyhound is an incredible breed of dog and can run at speeds up to 40 mph. It is no wonder that they are so popular in the racing industry. One might be mistaken for thinking that they are running about all of the time with boundless energy and they will require walking 24 hours a day. It is true that they do require a lot of exercise but they are sprinters and so will use up their energy in short bursts. As pets, they are actually incredibly loving and are caring, docile animals.

Sadly, due to the demand in the racing industry, many more greyhounds are bred than can be used in races and so there is an &lsquo-excess&rsquo- of dogs that often struggle to find good homes. Incredibly, this is where the dogs have come together with the prison industry to create a fascinating and wonderful new project. Prisoner Pet Programme is pairing retired and unwanted greyhounds with inmates at two prisons in Australia – Dhurringile and Tarrengower, both in Victoria.

The dogs need lots of love and often need to be taught how to relax. Certainly if they have spent their lives in the racing industry it means that they are often frantic and they are taught to be alert and ready to race at all times. It can be a fantastically therapeutic exercise for both the dogs and the inmates to have the challenge to calm this dog. The inmates are able to build relationships with the dogs and are given full responsibility for their welfare.

It should be said that all of these inmates have only committed minor crimes and so the stress is on getting them out into society again in the shortest amount of time possible. By giving them responsibility to care for and show empathy to an animal, the idea is that these feelings will then rub off on their human neighbors as well once they are out again in the big wide world.

There are therefore major benefits for both the prisoners and the dogs, as well as for the prison service themselves. We often wholly undervalue the therapeutic value of animals in helping humans get through troubled times. This example has shown just how valuable they are. It also provides a loving and caring situation for the dogs who would otherwise probably struggle to survive.