One of the things I love about dogs is that they teach us so much - about them, about ourselves, about responsibility.
If we give them love and nurturing, they will respond with undying loyalty. Prisoners at Pender Correctional Institution in Burgaw, N.C., are learning these lessons well, thanks to the Pawsitive Partners Prison Program that allows them to work with shelter dogs.
A new version of the program began in September at Pender, but the North Carolina Department of Corrections has conducted similar programs since 2004, according to a spokesman. There are now 18 state prisons running the programs.
Monty's Home, a canine rescue organization, is working with Pender officials to get the program on its feet. The prison system built kennels, and Monty's Home, through donations, is paying for vet bills, grooming and training.
Five rescued dogs (including the one pictured above) are currently going through eight-week obedience classes with about 10 prisoners, who work daily with the dogs. Once the dogs have completed the program, they'll be available for adoption by area families.
Given the stark, isolated condition of prison life, it's a good bet prisoners are learning a sense of responsibility - and bonding with their dogs.
"The unconditional love of a dog, there's nothing like it," Barbara Raab, founder of Monty's Home, told the Wilmington (N.C.) Star-News.
So, it turns out we're more like our dogs than we ever realized - at least when it comes to love and relationships.
According to a study released this month, young male dogs will frequently let females win during play, even when the males have a physical advantage or when they put themselves in vulnerable positions and open to attack from other dogs.
Ah, the things men will do to win a woman's heart.
Sometimes, male dogs will even accompany their actions with a bow, "a signal that dogs use when they want to communicate playful intentions to a potential play partner," said Dr. Camille Ward, a lecturer in the University of Michigan's Department of Psychology.
Ward, director of About Dogs LLC, which provides in-home training and behavioral consultations, studied puppy litters with her colleagues and watched how puppies played with members of their own sex and the opposite sex. Males were more eager to initiate play with females rather than males and would go to extensive lengths to keep the play going.
Male puppies would sometimes drop to the ground from a standing or sitting position. "Perhaps males use self-handicapping with females in order to learn more about them and to form close relationships with them - relationships that might later help males to secure future mating opportunities," Ward said.
Ward's study appears in Animal Behavior.
Want your own Beverly Hills Chihuahua?
There's a good chance a shelter near you has a Chihuahua waiting to be rescued, but Santa Barbara County's Animal Services is making an unbeatable offer: Adopt a Chihuahua and get a pink carrying case trimmed in faux black fur as a bonus.
The county's three shelters began an Adopt-a-Chihuahua Week program on Oct. 18, but the response has been so good that Jan Glick, director of Animal Services, said it will continue into November. The county, which has a no-kill policy, currently shelters more than 100 Chihuahuas and Chihuahua mixes, but has adopted out more than 12 since the promotion began.
Glick says the abundance of Chihuahuas has less to do with the movie "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" and more to do with the fact the economy has forced many pet owners to surrender their animals because of home foreclosures.
"Many of ours have been with us longer than the movie has been out," she said, "so it's too early for us to see that as a trend. A lot of people have to give up their pets because of the economy, and they just don't have the money to bail them out."
Chihuahuas that are adopted in Santa Barbara also come with a free ID tag. Glick said she is willing to adopt to residents who don't live in the county, but they'll still have to come to one of the shelters in Santa Barbara, Lompoc or Santa Maria to fill out an application.
Michael Vick, the former pro football quarterback, is expected to plead guilty next week to state dogfighting charges in Virginia - but it's not going to mean additional jail time.
In fact, Vick's plea - if accepted - will probably mean early release from a federal prison and allow him to enter a halfway house to finish his sentence.
Regardless of how you feel about Vick, his willingness to plead guilty to state charges and accept responsibility for taking part in dog fights has shed a spotlight on this horrible practice. Even with this new plea, he won't be released until July 20, 2009, according to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.
A hearing on the motion is set for Oct. 30, with Vick asking to enter his plea in a video teleconference. Doing so would save the government the expense of transporting him from Leavenworth, Kan., where he's serving his 23-month sentence, to Surry County in Virginia.
Once he's released, Vick would be transferred to a halfway house and would have three years of federal probation. Another year of probation on the county charges would be added, although any jail time as a result of the charges in Virginia would be suspended.
Thankfully, many of the dogs that were rescued from Vick's operation did so well in evaluations by experts that they could be adopted. But it took a great effort on the part of rescue organizations and dedicated dog lovers.
If you're old enough, you probably remember the "Lassie" TV show, a Sunday night staple in most houses with kids. One episode I'll never forget was a two-parter in which Lassie somehow gets lost, and Timmy, his companion and owner, just about gives up on finding his beloved Collie.
But just as little Timmy begins to bury Lassie's toys in a field, the dog appears in the distance, running joyously up the road. With tears streaming down his face, Timmy bends down with open arms to welcome his dog home. I cried. My whole family cried.
That's how I imagine the scene will look when Army Sergeant Gwen Beberg comes home from Iraq and sees Ratchet, the black-and-white mutt she rescued from a pile of burning trash in Baghdad. I received word today that Ratchet boarded a flight from Washington's Dulles International Airport to Minneapolis, where Beberg's mom will take care of him until Beberg's tour ends next week.
Ratchet was rescued with the help of SPCA International's Operation Baghdad Pups, which has assisted in bringing more than 60 dogs and cats to the U.S. for soldiers in Iraq. There is currently a waiting list of 16 animals (14 dogs and 2 cats) hoping to be flown to the U.S. for soldiers who will be deployed home for the holidays.
Pets can have a calming effect on soldiers living so far away from home. A stray dog can often remind someone of the pet they left behind, and a bond is often created that helps a soldier cope with the difficulty of fighting in a war. It's no wonder so many military personnel find and care for dogs or cats they rescue in Iraq.
The Army did the right thing allowing Ratchet to come to his new home. It should reconsider its ban prohibiting soldiers from bringing home animals from Iraq. As tough as it was for Beberg and Ratchet to cut through the red tape, the final result might be a good thing.
I can't wait until Ratchet runs into Beberg's waiting arms. To see video of Ratchet's arrival in the U.S. check out this video.
UPDATE: Ratchet landed safely in Minneapolis today and was greeted by Patricia Beberg, Gwen's mother.
