Corinne Dowling is the Founder, Director and Primary Dog Handler of Give a Dog a Bone, a non-profit program that serves the needs of dogs in long-term shelter care. Give a Dog a Bone was created in 1999 to relieve the isolation, boredom, stress, and suffering of dogs in enforced custody and medical isolation - a population hitherto not served by the dog volunteer program at San Francisco Animal Care and Control (ACC), an open admissions municipal shelter.

These dogs are separate from the ordinary shelter population (strays, surrenders, and dogs available for adoption). A dog can be in protective custody for many reasons, including but not limited to, a cruelty or neglect case, a dog's owner has been arrested, evicted, or hospitalized, there is a legal investigation involving a bite complaint, or a dog is in medical necessary quarantine.

With her dedicated volunteers, Corinne improves the quality of life for these dogs by providing enrichment though emotional sustenance, mental and physical stimulation, socialization and kennel stimuli. When we can, we form play groups to provide canine companionship and provide some novelty and joy in this primary fashion.

Especially challenging is the environmental enrichment of dogs who cannot leave their kennels. For these dogs, we have found we can provide companionship and stimulation via any number of interactions. For example: "Find it" (find the treat tossed into the kennel), recalls, tug, sit, up, down, give paw, go to bed, targeting, dance, and "get me", where we call the dog back and forth in its double run and a variety of other interactions. Your imagination is a kenneled dog's close friend.

While Give a Dog a Bone strives to maintain and improve the quality of life for long-term shelter dogs, it is a program that would be appropriate for any shelter canines. In the planning stages are a video and manual about GADAB techniques that will be shared with other animal agencies upon request.

Many of the enrichment techniques used in Give a Dog a Bone are applicable to homed and foster dogs as well.

Corinne has presented on environmental enrichment at the Conference for Homeless Animals Management Policy (CHAMP), Guide Dogs for the Blind, the California Animal Control Director's Association (CACDA) and the Animal Rescue Conference. Her work has been acknowledged by the ASPCA, the San Francisco SPCA, Animal Farm Foundation, the Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF), the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the San Francisco Commission of Animal Control and Welfare and PetSmart Charities. The San Francisco Department of Animal Care and Control has strongly supported Corinne's Program since its inception.

Over the years, she has shared her home with three well-loved American Pit Bull Terriers and many cherished cats. Currently she lives with an engaging young Min Pin/Chi mix and one elderly chatty cat. She enjoys baseball, gardening, and further educating herself in the field of animal welfare, not necessarily in that order. She is a member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers.

For more information on Give a Dog a Bone, please download our brochure. Click here to download PDF file(880KB).

Whether you call them "custody" animals, long term shelter guests, or by any other name, Animal Control Agencies around this country face a real challenge when trying to care for these animals. Most Shelters, especially ones in densely populated urban areas, are just not set up to house animals for long periods of time. It's an unfortunate fact that such prolonged confinement often causes severe stress, loss of appetite, poor hygiene, diminished motivation, depression, aggressiveness, and in some cases, self mutilation.

Many of these dogs have been rescued from neglectful and cruel situations, others are being held for "Vicious & Dangerous" dog hearings and some are there because their owners have been victims of eviction, in jail, or some other disaster in their lives where they can't take care of their animal(s) right now.

Usually our hands are tied; our criminal justice system might be the envy of the world, but all too often the wheels of justice turn slowly. It is not unusual for us to have to hold an animal for up to a year until the courts decide disposition. Although seen as evidence, animals are not inanimate objects that can be put in a brown paper bag and left in a locker until their case has been adjudicated.

Whatever the outcome, the "Give a Dog a Bone" program goes beyond life saving. It affords every dog in this program "life enrichment activities", which include spending time with the animal, providing treats, attention, exercise and love - all the ingredients that these sentient living creatures need and deserve. For all too often, they themselves are the victims of irresponsible and uncaring owners.

Our hope is that this program will be emulated in those agencies that have the need. For many of these animals it will mean the difference between a sad and dismal life, and one (for however long) that is full of quality, stimulation, and love.

- Carl Friedman
Director
San Francisco Department of Animal Care and Control