Change the Lives of Troubled Youth & Shelter Dogs

Project POOCH provides opportunities for incarcerated youth to learn patience, responsbility and compassion for all life through working with shelter dogs. As the say goes, "A student doesn’t learn what has been taught until he can transfer that knowledge to real life situations." At Project POOCH, we can only hope that the lessons we offer working at the kennel will guide the youth once they have served their time and are back in the community. Former Project POOCH youths, BJ, Marcel, and Ricky, are earning A’s and B’s as they experienced their first term at Oregon colleges this fall. Two of the youth hold down part-time jobs to help pay for their college and living expenses. Ricky called to say he got a B in his business ethics class because he used an example from what he learned in Project POOCH. Marcel had a test in which he had to present both sides of an issue, and he chose the topic of positive reinforcement vs. punishment, which he learned while working with dogs. Two of the students earned the Dean's List at their colleges. It is very rewarding to see that given the opportunity to practice the principles of positive reinforcement with dogs has helped Project POOCH youth graduates to succeed in college and in their communities. Project POOCH truly appreciates the support we receive from our donors. We can see first hand how these youth are transformed by the healing power of unconditional love. Dogs are wonderful teachers.

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• Read more about Project POOCH news in our most recent newsletter