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Behind prison walls, cats and inmates rehabilitate each other through animal care program

Jordan Erb

October 19, 2020 |

IndyStar (The Indianapolis Star) |

Multi-Media |

1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Pendleton, Indiana

In Indiana's maximum-security Pendleton Correctional Facility, the FORWARD program (Felines and Offenders Rehabilitation With Affection, Reformation and Dedication) puts incarcerated men in charge of caring for cats rescued from abuse or the streets while the cats await adoption. The men learn job skills and can feel empathy for a dependent animal, which research has shown can improve behavior both inside prison and afterward. The caregivers say their job gives them purpose and greater self-esteem. About 20 have been hired after prison by Indiana's Animal Protection League, which helps run the program.

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Americans are starting to give up their pets because of COVID-19 hardships

Jen Reeder

October 02, 2020 |

NBC News |

Multi-Media |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States

As the coronavirus pandemic takes a toll on the U.S. economy, some people are struggling to afford the cost of care for their pets, so a network of animal services leaders have joined together to transform the role that animal shelters play during the crisis. From providing food pantries and free veterinary care to housing animals whose owners have been hospitalized, the network of leaders are turning shelters into "pet support centers and resource centers" rather than intake centers.

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The latest shortage? Dogs and cats, as folks foster and adopt pets during quarantine

Chris Erskine

April 02, 2020 |

Los Angeles Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Los Angeles, California

To manage isolation and the lockdown provisions during the coronavirus, many people are turning to fostering or adopting a new pet. Rescue organizations are implementing social distancing protocols for these adoptions and transfers, as cats, dogs, and rabbits make their way to their new homes to comfort individuals and families during the pandemic.

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Why More Homeless Shelters Are Welcoming Their Clients' Pets

Jill Kestler-D'Amours

March 25, 2020 |

Next City |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Colorado Springs, Colorado

Studies show that between 5-10 percent of people living in homelessness are believed to have a pet, which could be a barrier to folks looking to spend the night in shelters that do not allow animals. Springs Rescue Mission in Colorado Springs is one of a number of shelters that are beginning to allow pets to board along with their owners in an effort to bring more people in. Animal companionship is a very important relationship and source of comfort and stability for someone experiencing homelessness. Some barriers still exist, however, like shelters that have little funding for sheltering pets.

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Dogs are helping save Florida's citrus groves from a devastating disease

Duncan Strauss

January 14, 2020 |

The Washington Post |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Perry, Florida

Dogs can detect plant disease earlier than visual inspection and faster than lab testing. In Florida, dogs are helping farmers detect Huanglongbing (HLB), a bacterium with devastating consequences for the citrus fruit industry in the state. So far, HLB has decimated the citrus industry. With their sense of smell, the dogs offer an important tool for farmers who are struggling to stay ahead of infection.

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In northern Uganda, therapy dogs are helping the survivors of war cope with their trauma

Evelyn Lirri

January 08, 2020 |

Equal Times |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Uganda

Animal-assisted therapy offers benefits to those suffering from trauma. In Uganda, the Comfort Dog Project pairs victims of the country's decades-long civil war with companion animals. The dogs help victims, many of whom suffered as child soldiers, cope with post-traumatic stress, stigma, and isolation. The Comfort Dog project trains the dogs and helps to educate the new owners about pet care.

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When pet love comes to seniors, everybody's tail wags

Lauren J. Mapp

November 19, 2019 |

San Diego Union-Tribune |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, San Diego, California

Several San Diego organizations bring pets into senior-living facilities and hospitals to provide the scientifically proven benefits of a pet's companionship. The focus on elderly people, including those with dementia, becomes a high point in the facilities' schedules. Research has shown pet therapy's benefits go beyond momentary comfort to emotional and even physical benefits.

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There are too many wild horses out there. Here's why that's a problem for the West

Amy Joi O'Donoghue

October 23, 2019 |

Deseret News |

Multi-Media |

Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Salt Lake City, Utah

After struggling to control the rapidly growing wild horse population in the West, organizations and local governments across the region collaborate to plan adoptions, humane roundups, and other techniques to control the multiplying population. Though governments struggle to incorporate horses into urban life, they have seen an increase in wild horse and burro adoption in the past two years because of their efforts.

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How giant African rats are helping uncover deadly land mines in Cambodia

Fred de Sam Lazaro

September 10, 2019 |

PBS NewsHour |

Broadcast TV News |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: Cambodia, Battambang

Cambodia is littered with unexploded land mines, posing a huge threat to people even decades after the conflict. In order to help locate and remove mines, a unique organization named Apopo trains rats to sniff them out. Rats have extremely sensitive noses and have found about 500 mines and more than 350 unexploded bombs in Cambodia since 2016. The drawback is the pace of the long, tedious, and dangerous work.

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Soothing Victimized Dogs With Bach and Beethoven

Michele C. Hollow

August 19, 2019 |

Tenderly |

Text |

800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York

Martin Agee, an accomplished violinist who has performed at Lincoln Center and on Broadway, volunteers for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and got an idea when he saw how reading to dogs could calm them down. He put his skills to use and began playing violin for the dogs, who instantly relax and respond to his performance.

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