PAWS pairs TJJD youth with shelter dogs and service dog candidates. Qualified boys and girls age 15-18 are responsible for providing daily care, training, and companionship to their dogs. The dogs live with their human trainers for a minimum of 12 weeks while they while... they increase their adoptability by training them for the Canine Good Citizen (CGC) Certification, a test designed to ensure basic good manners, while the youth gain skills such as relationship-building, patience, communication, perseverence, teamwork, and how to set and achieve goals to help them as they prepare to reintegrate into society. Youth who are interested in the PAWS program must apply and meet strict behavior criteria, while the dogs are fostered from local animal shelter partners after being tested by behavior consultants for appropriateness for the program.
We have up to 40 youth and dogs in the program at a time in Brownwood, Gainesville, and Giddings.