The DU Lounge

is so successful in care homes, hospitals, and recovery and rehab centers, why not prisons. One year, while teaching at a tiny rural school, a stray cat showed up on the porch outside my classroom door that led to the playground. She was obviously pregnant and started coming in and out with the kids. I got permission to keep her as a class pet and it was wonderful. One of my students lived right across from the school and he looked after her on the weekends. She had four kittens and four of my students gave them homes. When summer came, she lived with the family across the street. They became attached to her and when they relocated, she went with them. Another time this same class and I went out to watch a prison crew working on and repairing a lot of the broken playground equipment. They also repainted the fence and the cross walks. The kids were so open and kept chattering away with them. The kids complemented them and kept thanking them and you could tell how glad it made them to do something for the children. One of them painted the fire hydrant to look like a firefighter. The kids loved it and he was proud of it. Cats could provide this atmosphere every day, not to mention the benefits of joy and affection. Thank you for sharing this post. I had never heard of this program.