Humane Society’s prison dogs all get adopted
Published 12:00 pm Thursday, December 2, 2021
- Amanda M. Usher | The Valdosta Daily TimesMars, adopted by Sierra Dickinson, is one of five dogs currently in the Hamilton Hounds prison dog program implemented by the Humane Society of Valdosta/Lowndes County and Hamilton Corrections Institution.
VALDOSTA – When Sierra Dickinson saw photos of prison dog Mars and learned of his story, she knew she wanted him.
Mars is one of five rescue canines participating in the Hamilton Hounds prison dog program, which was implemented by the Humane Society of Valdosta/Lowndes County and Hamilton Corrections Institution in Jasper, Florida.
Hamilton Hounds partners 10 prisoners with five dogs for training purposes. The handlers work in pairs.
Joining Mars in the program are canines Brooke, Rachel, Savannah and Kermit. All five dogs were adopted as of late November, organizers confirmed Wednesday.
Victoria Grindle, lead dog handler for the Humane Society, said two of the prison staffers adopted Savannah and Brooke.
“They’re all very excited about it,” Grindle said. “Everybody’s already buying Christmas presents.”
Dickinson, who said she loves the Hamilton Hounds program, received a letter from Mars’ prison handler who described the canine as a great, loyal and lovable bulldog mix with an adoration for pools and peanut butter.
She said she was told the program was two-fold: the dogs were saving the lives of the handlers while the handlers were saving the lives of the dogs.
“I just thought that was so sweet because not only are they saving these dogs, the dogs are kind of helping them out, too,” Dickinson said.
She deemed the program amazing and said being involved in Hamilton Hounds gives the inmates something to look forward to during their stay in prison.
When Dickinson adopted Mars, he was one of two remaining dogs waiting for their ‘furever’ home.
“I think one of the best things is that you’re adopting a dog that’s already trained, so you’re not having to bring a puppy up. They’re already trained. They already have their personalities developed. My only concern was that I wasn’t going to get him sooner,” she said.
“You just have to wait it out because you know that they’re in this amazing program and all they have to do is get through those last few weeks. They’re amazing dogs and all they needed was a little extra help and that’s what they were giving them through this program.”
The canine participants will meet with their adopters Dec. 8 during graduation day at Hamilton Corrections. The handlers will lead the dogs through a series of tricks, and then, the dogs will be released to their families.
Going to graduation day will be a family affair for Dickinson. She’ll be attending with her mother, her fiance and her fiance’s mother. She said she is looking forward to the event.
With the first round of dogs nearing completion of the program, Grindle said she couldn’t be more happy with the direction of Hamilton Hounds.
On graduation day, after the five dogs go with their families, the prisoners will receive seven more dogs to train.
Though emotional to say goodbye, Grindle said the inmates are excited to meet the adopters and to meet their new canines.
“I think some of them might start getting kind of nervous because they know that they have to perform a little bit, but past that, it’s definitely just all good feelings really,” she said.
Inmates have made changes since entering Hamilton Hounds.
Grindle said some of them have been reflecting on their families and thinking about the people they want to connect with following their release from jail.
“Everybody’s opened up even more,” she said. “The way that they’ve self-reflected, I think, has made a huge difference.”
Dickinson encourages more adopters for Hamilton Hounds and urges people to not be fearful of the program.
“I know a lot of people will shy away from it because (they are) inmates that are training these dogs but they’re humans, too, and they are just the sweetest people taking care of these dogs,” she said. “They’ll kiss on them and love on them, and it’s something they’ll look forward to all of the time, so I just don’t want people to be scared of the fact that (they’re) inmates and that they’re in the jail but they really are the sweetest people and the sweetest dogs.”
Visit facebook.com/humanesocietyofvaldosta for updated information about Hamilton Hounds.