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Date: 10/27/2020
HAMPDEN COUNTY – Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi has added a new component to the rehabilitation services at the jail: three emotional therapy dogs.
While other jails have such animals. Cocchi said this program – Emotional Support Division – is unique in Massachusetts.
The three new dogs will be used to boost morale among both inmates and staff, Cocchi added. They will be deployed in the mental health unit, the Section 35 unit in which people are undergoing treatment for drug addiction and the medical department.
The sheriff noted that all inmates at the facility have to go though the meical department and the dogs will be a friendly face.
"Anything to lighten the dramatic experience of [entering the jail],” Cocchi said.
The dogs were the result of an intensive search, the sheriff said. The temperament of the dogs is very important, he added.
The three dogs are:
• Molly: A four-year-old lab who is loving and loves being pet, is handled by Stephanie Fahey, a mental health clinician with the department since 2017. Molly will be helping Fahey with group and individual therapy with the men and women.
• Tess: This four-year-old lab is described by the Sheriff Department “as a sweet dog who seems to love everyone she encounters.” Tess will be working with Maribeth Moss, a registered nurse with the medical department since 2007.
• Jazz: A two-year-old hound that came from Fluvanna County, VA. She was found as a stray there and lived a few months at a shelter before being selected for the program. Trudy Wagner, a member of the Training Department since 2014, handles her.
“These animals have the ability to decrease the tension in a room, and relieve anxiety with just their presence. It really is remarkable,” Cocchi said. “Expanding the team of therapy dogs just made sense given our evolving role in the community and the various groups of people we engage.”