SAFE HUMANE
201 N Westshore Dr Apt 1705, Chicago, IL 60601 safehumanechicago.org

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Organizations Filed Purposes: Public outreach, education, charitable and scientific purposes: issues related to dogs and other companion animals in communities. Our mission is to create safe and humane communities by inspiring positive relationships between people and animals.

Court Case Dogs. The Safe Humane Chicago (SHC) Court Case Dogs TM Program is a first-of-its-kind in the country. It saves the lives of dogs impounded at Chicago Animal Care & Control (CACC) as a result of criminal proceedings against their current or former owners, and improves the quality of their lives during impoundment. It is a collaboration of SHC with CACC, law enforcement, the criminal justice system, and the animal rescue community and depends on funding from numerous individual and business cash and non-cash donations as well as grants. Court Case Dogs are impounded as "evidence" associated with the criminal court cases of their owners, whether their owners were cruel, abusive, neglectful or convicted felons. Each year hundreds of these dogs are trapped in the legal system and suffer from the unjust and incorrect perception that they are "damaged goods." In fact, they are dogs who have "done the time but not the crime" and show themselves to be resilient. What began in January 2010 as a partnership between SHC, Best Friends Animal Society and CACC to advocate for, support and re-home these animals is now a thriving program managed by SHC with support from other programs built to engage under-serviced or justice-involved people who have been impacted by trauma. Court Case Dogs are given a second chance at a great life by a long line of heroes: police; animal control officers; the justice system; Court Advocates; CACC; veterinarians; volunteers, professional dog trainers and behavior consultants; partnering rescue groups; and the families that welcome them into their homes. SHC offers them lifetime behavioral support as needed, free of charge to their shelters, fosters or owners. Court Case Dogs beat the odds. Whereas about 2% of them made it out of impoundment alive before the program began, the program saved 97% of them in 2019. During its first nine years ending 12-31-2019, the program saved 1,350 dogs, 1,324 of whom were reported as adopted. With only 4 dogs in the program at CACC as of 12-31-2019, 1,349 have been transferred to more than150 partner rescue groups for rehoming. Their average length of stay at CACC (part of which they were not yet owned by CACC because of ongoing legal matters) has been improved from an average of 256 days at program start to an average 45 or so days by 12-31-2019. Keep in mind that length of stay at CACC is affected by many different actions, decisions and communication, legal constraints, shelter and adopter perceptions, and available resources of professionals, staff, community members and organizations, including the following: offenders / owners at time of impoundment; laws and policies; police; CACC; prosecutors; judges; available veterinary, behavioral, transportation and homing resources; inter-agency communications; social networking; and marketing, all of which is not under the control of any one organization but is monitored by SHC and part of our extensive network. In addition, Court Case Dogs give back to our communities by being model companions, service dogs, therapy dogs, ambassador dogs, sports stars, demonstration dogs and loved pets, among others. You can read their stories on our website (https://safehumanechicago.org) and on social media. All of this requires recruiting, training, managing and supporting community volunteers, and our staff devotes considerable resources to this. Program successes are measured in numbers of Court Case Dogs saved and successfully homed, including returns; decrease in time impounded or fostered; and successful rehoming. In 2019, 75 or so volunteers donated up to 2,000 hours to Court Case Dog program activities. Court Case Dogs are also included in the playgroups that SHC manages at CACC. In 2019, volunteers devoted approximately 3,000 hours in playgroups with Court Case and other CACC dogs. Including all activities with the Court Case Dogs at CACC in 2019, more than 150 volunteers donated approximately 7,000 hours to the program. Demographics of program beneficiaries: A majority of the animals helped by the Court Case Dog Program are, of course, dogs and of those, approximately 70% are perceived to be or labelled "pit bull" dogs. A small number of cats were saved as well. But four-legged animals are not the only ones who benefit. The Court Case Dog program brings numerous community members together to help animals as well as people and their families; and the program serves as a foundation for all the other Safe Humane programs: Lifetime Bonds, Community Re-Entry, youth programs, Collaborative Justice and community outreach efforts.

Program services provided by Safe Humane Chicago (SHC) at Chicago Animal Care and Control (CACC) other than Court Case Dogs: playgroups, manners classes, in-kennel enrichment (IKE), out-of-kennel enrichment/walking, and corporate volunteer days as well as helping with almost weekly rabies vaccinations for recently impounded dogs, dog behavioral assessments and volunteer training. Following are some specifics: During 2019 SHC continued to manage and maintain playgroups for CACC dogs' mental and physical exercise, trying out and facilitating play for more than 1,300 dogs. Note that SHC facilitated the building of playlots. In 2012 SHC received funding from Animal Farm Foundation to build playlots and begin running and managing playgroups. Every year, additional funding helped maintain the playlots. In 2016 a Court Case Dog adopter and SHC donor and volunteer donated funds for a second playlot to be devoted to dogs who are recovering or exposed mainly to upper respiration infections, dogs who cannot be mixed with the healthy population. In 2019, work was completed on new dog runs for the isolated or unhealthy dogs. In other programs, by 2019 year-end, SHC hosted 4 to 6 days of playgroup per week, 2 formalized enrichment sessions per week, and additional enrichment opportunities throughout the week as they arose. 3 days of weekly manners classes were also maintained. Current metrics track how many dogs are evaluated each month, participation in programs by each dog, and each dog's outcome. In addition, during 2019 a majority of dogs at CACC were also helped by more accurate assessments of dog-dog sociability and handling as well as regular mental and physical exercise. In addition, the SHC Playgroup Coordinator led a team of 3-6 volunteers with SHC pro-bono veterinarian and Board member J.B. Bruederle, DVM, to vaccinate more than 1,400 dogs so they could be tested in playgroup and participate in off-side events and programs, an increase over the numbers in 2017 and 2018. More than dogs than ever before were in playgroup in 2019 while maintaining an average live release of approximately 95% for all dogs assessed in group (pass, retest, or decline). Some 60 volunteers devoted approximately 3,000 hours in playgroups with Court Case and other CACC dogs. More than 7,500 human-canine interactions were tracked in enrichment activities for year ending 12/31/19. SHC also engages volunteers to help adopt out animals or transfer them to rescue groups, provide support for low-cost and free services for companion animals, and provide education and training for community residents or CACC visitors. Including all activities at CACC in 2019, more than 175 volunteers (not including our corporate volunteers) donated between 8,000 and 9,000 hours. The populations served/included in SHC programming at CACC are diverse in species, race/ethnicity, income, education, employment and age; and they live throughout Cook and its collar Illinois counties.

Lifetime Bonds. Lifetime Bonds (LB) programming in 2019 continued (1) at the Illinois Youth Center in Chicago (IYCC) for incarcerated males ages 13-19 (LB IYCC) in collaboration with Chicago Animal Care and Control (CACC), (2) in Kane County (LB KC) in collaboration with Northern Illinois University, at the Illinois Youth Center in St Charles (LB SC) with Aurora Animal Control; and (3) with the YMCA's Youth Safety & Violence Prevention (YSVP) program at CACC (LB YSVP). Following are more details about each of these programs. (1) and (2) The LB model is built on the success of the programming at IYCC. Initiated in the last half of 2009, LB IYCC is a collaboration among IYCC (and the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice (IDJJ)), CACC and SHC. Working with adult volunteers, youth learn to bond with, socialize, and train shelter dogs, improving the quality of their lives and in fact saving their lives by making them more adoptable. Consistent with role model and leadership development and Positive Youth Development (PYD) principles, incarcerated youth are provided opportunities to participate in structured activities; develop skills; form pro-social relationships with adults, peers and dogs; and engage in efforts that benefit the community through leadership and personal commitment. The Lifetime Bonds goal at IYCC is to help incarcerated youth develop valuable relationships and lifetime skills while in custody and the assets needed to successfully reenter the community and avoid re-offending. The 12- to 15-week session involves weekly, 60-90 minute sessions during which some 10 young men work with adult volunteers and dog trainers. Key objectives for the youth include learning dog handling and training skills using positive, relationship-based reinforcement; learning and practicing communication skills by interpreting dogs' body language and responding appropriately and compassionately; developing a sense of social responsibility by learning about animal abuse and population issues and giving back to the community by saving dogs' lives; learning about facts and fictions regarding dogs, particularly common types; learning about animal-related careers through guest speakers (dog trainers, dog business owners, dog groomers, dog masseuses, and dog agility instructors, among others); and helping to place shelter dogs in loving homes. During the first quarter of each session, trained SHC Ambassador Dogs work with the youth on basic companion, handling and training skills; and during most of the remainder, SHC Court Case Dogs and other CACC shelter dogs are brought to IYCC so that dogs and youth can help and learn from each other. Upon release from IYCC, LB graduates may participate in internships with our Court Case Dog program, helping to socialize and advocate for dogs who are victims in animal abuse or cruelty cases. These jobs allow youth to build on the pro-social skills they learned in the program and further support their successful reentry into the community, significantly reducing the likelihood of recidivism. The key challenge is to connect with social workers who are assigned to help these young men during their re-entry to encourage and facilitate their continuing participation. In 2019, at IYCC 27 new youth graduated from three 12-week-long sessions, working with more than 60 CACC shelter dogs; at IYC SC in 5 ten-week sessions, 28 youth worked with 35 dogs from Aurora Animal Control. LB programming successes are measured in numbers of justice-involved youth and at-risk dogs reached, the surveys and evaluations given to the youth before and after each session, and, if applicable, the recidivism rate of program participants in state institutions. Between 2010 and 2019 Lifetime Bonds at IYCC has served more than 450 youth. By focusing on the assets of court-involved youth, we help young people develop healthy attitudes, behaviors, skills and relationships, while reducing crime and the number of youth reentering the juvenile justice system. We seek to help these youth help the dogs who have been abused. Between 2010 and 2019, more than 150 at-risk dogs have been helped and adopted into loving homes. Last, (3) SHC continued a program with the YMCA's Youth Safety & Violence Prevention (YSVP) teens at CACC to provide them with the skills needed to safely handle, train and socialize at-risk shelter dogs who are impacted by violence. The youth participate in pro-social activities with adult volunteers, and they help to improve the quality of life of shelter dogs. They are also exposed to important messages about compassion, empathy, and the connection between animal violence and human violence as well as kindness to people and animals. They are introduced to job opportunities in the animal welfare community. In 2019 SHC served approximately 20 youth and worked with approximately 50 shelter dogs. The primary populations served by LB programs are youth between the ages of 12 and 21 and adults, primarily of African-American, Hispanic and Caucasian ethnicity and from low-income families who live in the south and west sides of Chicago in communities most impacted by violence (including abuse of both people and animals) and lack of resources for their human family members as well as their companion animals. The majority of LB participants are male, as all are male at the IYC facilities where SHC provides programming. The majority of the YMCA's YSVP participants are female. A minority but significant number of the youth at IYCC are from low-income families who live outside the city of Chicago, in Chicago suburbs and Illinois counties west of Cook (particularly Joliet and Rockford areas), and the youth in LB KC are mainly from Kane County or surrounding areas.

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