Kitties Changing Lives in the Clink: The FORWARD Program

Welcome to Feature Rescue Friday! This week we’re featuring an amazing program, FORWARD (Felines and Offenders: Rehabilitation with Affection, Reformation and Dedication), a program run in the Indiana State Prison by the Animal Protection League.  The program is teaching inmates love, compassion, and important life skills about what it is to be human through the warmth and affection of their feline friends.

Using animals in prison as a form of rehabilitation is not a new concept. Dating back to the early 1900’s in Asia, it has since spread across the globe with animals ranging from felines to equines. There are many programs that work with inmates to train seeing-eye dogs, however there are only a few that work with cats. Nonetheless, the notion that cats would not do well in the system, being smaller and somewhat more vulnerable, is proven wrong by the inmates in Indiana.

The program functions with the needs of local no-kill shelters to give the animals more room to move with better space than the overcrowded shelters can provide.  In their cells, the prisoners are provided with handmade cat trees and beds.  Additionally, there is a room in the ward kept entirely for the cats complete with  trees and houses constructed by inmates, litter boxes, toys, and plenty of volunteers to play with them before they go up for adoption within or outside the prison walls.  This provides huge a relief to the staff of the shelter, who receive the extra help and space.

The food and litter is donated by the shelter and once an inmate adopts a cat they become financially responsible, using the money made working in the prison to pay for them, or they have family members sponsor their four-legged friends.  The program is virtually no cost to the prison or tax payer (only the initial investment of $1,000) but is paying off big time in teaching the inmates important social skills as well as calming some very fiery tempers.

The prison has seen a dramatic change in the behavior and self-control of the individuals participating in FORWARD.  This change is associated to the gentle demeanor these cats instill in their people. Also, if an inmate misbehaves there is virtually no way to reclaim their cat.  The way the program is set up, inmates take their furry friends with them once they leave the correctional facility, so the bond they develop with their little jungle king is one intended to last the rest of the animal’s life.  It is a connection not many individuals would risk.  Before they had nothing to lose but now they have a reason to behave.  Inmates have testified about how the cats have changed their lives, not just within the walls of the prison, but also by giving them something to live for once they get out.

As many may be wondering, the safety of the cats is paramount.  Each inmate goes through an extensive application process before being able to adopt a cat in the program and no inmate has ever harmed their own cat. Typically, if a prisoner has an issue with cats they are moved to a different part of the prison to help ensure the cat’s safety.

Though there have been no official studies on the recidivism rates of inmates in these programs, it is clear to prison personnel that the cats greatly affect the mood of the inmates in the programs. According to this study, a direct correlation has been shown between the way one treats an animal and way one would treat a person.  These programs change prisoner’s entire outlook on life and change the way they look at other people.  In some cases, these cats are the first beings the inmates feel they have ever loved and felt love from in return, so the prospect of losing something that significant is a consequence taken very seriously and a lesson that accompanies them once they leave the confines of the facility.

FORWARD, and programs like it, are testimonials to the powerful bond between humans and beasts of all kinds.  Demonstrating how love can make all the difference. To stay up to date on the latest news from FORWARD and The Animal Protection League, follow them on Facebook or to donate, visit their website!

Do you think that the bond between people and their pets has the power to dramatically change a life? Tell us in the Comments below.