CorrectCare

Detained Youth Learn Life Lessons From Therapy Dog

by Jaime Shimkus

Trudy in her work vest

When Trudy shows up for duty at the Prince William County (VA) Juvenile Detention Center, the youth know it’s going to be a good day. In fact, on mornings that she begins her work in the girls’ unit, it’s likely that those girls will have no sick calls for the day. Her bosses love Trudy, too. She never grouses about the job, seldom takes a day off and works pro bono. Such is life with a certified therapy dog on staff.

“She teaches the children a lot of lessons about how to interact with others, children and adults alike,” says health services administrator Ellyn Presley, RN, CCHP, who owns Trudy. “They see that if you treat her with love and respect, she responds with love and respect. They learn to apply those principles to their own lives.”

The four-year-old black labrador has been a near daily presence at the 73-bed JDC since she was just a few months old. But Trudy’s career path was unusual in that she was not brought there initially for the children’s sake. Rather, she had been assigned to Presley, a puppy trainer for Guiding Eyes for the Blind, who intended to use the facility setting to socialize the puppy.

Trudy returned to Guiding Eyes about a year later to become a service dog, but she didn’t pass muster so the agency permitted Presley to adopt her. It’s a good thing, too, because Trudy is perfectly suited to therapy work.

Positive Career Change
In that first year, after receiving an enthusiastic OK from the facility supervisor, Presley decided to turn Trudy’s visits into a mutually beneficial experience for the youth under her care. She developed a program in which certain youth in the sentenced program (now disbanded) were taught to train the puppy.

About 10 children who had achieved the highest level of good behavior (measured through accumulation of points) would take part in daily structured activities. Following a protocol established by Guiding Eyes for the Blind, they taught the puppy commands and social skills. They also learned responsibilities of dog care such as grooming. This was a special privilege for these children, and they were the only ones who were allowed to call Trudy by name and to give her commands.

Presley relates an anecdote that is amusing, yet telling. At program start-up, one of the boys misunderstood the purpose of a seeing eye dog and thought it was to serve as a guard dog, protecting a blind person from victimization. The puppy training program also had a component to teach the youth about disabilities, including visits from guest speakers.

When Trudy returned to Presley, she joined the staff at the JDC but in a different capacity. She took classes and passed numerous tests to prove that she met the criteria to be a certified therapy dog. Disposition is very important: A dog must be highly obedient and gentle with people, and not become upset by devices, such as wheelchairs and crutches, common to health care settings.

As a graduate of Therapy Dogs International, Trudy wears a vest with a photo ID while on the job. “When I put her vest on, she is in working mode and she knows it,” says Presley. “It changes her whole mindset: ‘We’ve got stuff to do!’”

Trudy is free to roam around the facility but often can be found in the clinic, which is next to intake. “We have a lot of repeat offenders,” Presley says, “and they all ask for Trudy right away.” The dog also carries gear such as bandages and a blood pressure cuff in her vest pockets when making rounds with Presley. “The kids love it, and suddenly they all need Band-Aids.”

Learning Life Lessons
Now that Trudy is a therapy dog, all of the youth are permitted to interact with her, and they do. Beyond enjoying the good feelings that come from petting and playing with a friendly, well-behaved dog, the youth internalize many positive lessons. In group discussions, a child will often make some observation that relates to personal behavior.

For example, when Trudy once stayed with a friend of Presley’s for several days, the discipline she received was more lax and it took awhile to regain her focus. The youth recognized the harm done when rules were not enforced with consistency. Or if a child shows anger or speaks harshly, the dog will walk away, another valuable lesson. They also appreciate that she does not discriminate with regard to demographics or arrest charge.

Despite the troubled backgrounds of many detained youth, none at the Prince William County JDC has ever treated Trudy poorly, and just one made a threat to do so. That child was flagged and lost privileges to interact with her. Mostly, says Presley, “They just love on that dog.”

— About the author: Jaime Shimkus is the editor of CorrectCare. To reach her, write to jaimeshimkus@ncchc.org.

[This article first appeared in the Winter 2009 issue of CorrectCare.]