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They are charlatans! Prison bosses hope letting inmates care for therapy ducks will help them turn their backs on gang culture
- HMP Dovegate has introduced pets as a therapy tool for prisoners with problems
- The report said the prison had ‘exceptional’ grounds and the ducks were well cared for.
- Inmates can also enjoy an in-cell yoga and assistance dog training program.
Inmates seek therapy ducks to help them go straight and turn their backs on gang culture.
HMP Dovegate in Staffordshire introduced waterfowl as part of its Pet Assisted Therapy scheme to encourage prisoners to stop reoffending.
The four ducks, which came from a local rescue center, are not the only meditation tool that has found its way into Serco-managed facilities.
Inmates at the Category B facility can also benefit from in-cell yoga and chess, a choir and plots to grow vegetables and flowers.
A member of staff introduces the therapy ducks, which are part of HMP Dovegate’s pet assisted therapy program
The Muscovy ducks came from Freshfields Farm Animal Rescue Center in Liverpool in October 2020
An Independent Oversight Board report said the prison had “exceptional” grounds.
‘The prison has well-maintained and attractive gardens, with productive areas for growing vegetables and flowers.’
The report adds that the grounds are “exceptional, with prisoner-cared for ponds and ducks.”
He came to the conclusion that the Muscovy ducks had been well cared for during the Covid lockdowns.
said a source Mirror that the ducks had been treated as a joke.
“At first we thought it was a joke. One of the ducks has even been named Crispy. Someone out there must be laughing.
The ducks were named for the sons of the prison staff and are named Marvin, Albert, Fire-quacker and Crispy.
But some people think that duck therapy is truly ‘quack’.
Kevin Moore, former CID chief at Sussex Police, said: “Prison is a place for punishment and hopefully rehabilitation.
“I don’t see how duck therapy is going to make things better.”
The prison also allows inmates to help rehabilitate and train dogs to become service animals and family pets.
Wilba, the latest recruit, is named after William Wilbaforce, who led the Parliamentary campaign to end the slave trade in Britain.
Other dogs in the Restart Dogs scheme have become family pets and service animals after being trained by inmates.
The prison recently adopted a new pup as part of its Restart Dogs program, in which inmates train dogs as service animals.
Wilba, the latest recruit, is named after William Wilbaforce, who led the Parliamentary campaign to end the slave trade in Britain.
Andy Johnson, Serco Prisons Manager at HMP Dovegate, said: “We are delighted that this very positive IMB report has highlighted that we provide many animal-related activities, such as ducks in the garden and the Restart Dogs project, which provide inmates useful opportunities”. activities and help support rehabilitation.’
Successful graduates of the rehab plan become family pets and service dogs.
Similar animal therapy schemes have been run at HMP Swaleside in Kent, where inmates had access to therapy goats.