Dixie: 00:00:02

Welcome to Animal Posse, the podcast dedicated to the

2

: 00:00:05

people and rescues making a

difference in the lives of animals.

3

: 00:00:09

Today's guest is Bill Barse.

4

: 00:00:11

He is the founder and

director of DoggoneExpress.

5

: 00:00:15

com.

6

: 00:00:15

Hi, Bill.

7

: 00:00:15

How are you today?

8

: 00:00:17

Bill: Well, I'm fine Dixie

and you happy new year.

9

: 00:00:20

Dixie: Happy new year to you.

10

: 00:00:21

I'm great ! Not Looking

forward to this weather though

11

: 00:00:24

Bill: it'll come and it'll go

12

: 00:00:25

Dixie: so can you give us

a brief bio on yourself?

13

: 00:00:29

Bill: Sure I was born and raised for

the most part in Massachusetts In New

14

: 00:00:37

England and went to college in Ohio.

15

: 00:00:39

I was studying pre med to be a

veterinarian, and then I had an

16

: 00:00:44

accident playing ice hockey which

eliminated my career as a veterinarian,

17

: 00:00:50

and I lived in the Washington, D.

18

: 00:00:52

C.

19

: 00:00:53

area up until the year after Katrina hit

down here, and during Katrina and Rita

20

: 00:01:00

My brother and his family and all their

pets came to stay with me in Maryland,

21

: 00:01:04

and they tried to convince me to leave

what I had up there and where I'd lived

22

: 00:01:09

for 22 years to come to Louisiana and be a

real estate commercial industrial broker.

23

: 00:01:16

That was my background, and I

agreed eventually to do that, and

24

: 00:01:21

I came down here one year to the

day after Katrina and Rita hit.

25

: 00:01:26

Yeah.

26

: 00:01:27

And worked as a commercial industrial

real estate broker, primarily for

27

: 00:01:32

offshore companies with heavy industrial

land and some commercial strip

28

: 00:01:38

shopping centers that we're trying to

rebuild and reestablish themselves.

29

: 00:01:43

But during that time, I also.

30

: 00:01:45

continued my work with shelters, animal

shelters and befriended and got very close

31

: 00:01:54

to helping the Humane Society of Louisiana

as an investigator for situations that

32

: 00:02:02

may not be very desirable for animals.

33

: 00:02:06

And somehow, some way, I found out

that there was so many dogs primarily

34

: 00:02:14

canines here, struggling after Katrina,

and there weren't enough adoptions,

35

: 00:02:20

and many of the rescues really needed

a way to get the dogs up north where

36

: 00:02:25

they could be adopted, so I took

some of my earnings and bought five,

37

: 00:02:31

four, five double tandem wheel homes.

38

: 00:02:35

enclosed trailers and had them retrofitted

with insulation and air conditioning

39

: 00:02:42

and I lent them to different rescues

that would drive anywhere from 15 maybe

40

: 00:02:50

to 20 25 dogs up north to be adopted.

41

: 00:02:56

I did not do the transports.

42

: 00:02:59

But I lent out the equipment

and the generators and they

43

: 00:03:04

just had to bring back.

44

: 00:03:05

The trailers cleaned out and

gas and the generator and I just

45

: 00:03:12

provided that equipment for free.

46

: 00:03:15

And to make a long story short, at

one adoption event, I was introduced

47

: 00:03:23

to a woman's daughter who was like

13 or 14 as the man who transported

48

: 00:03:31

all these dogs up north for adoption.

49

: 00:03:34

And I said, well, that's

not actually what I do.

50

: 00:03:36

I provide the equipment and the

young girl said, well, what's

51

: 00:03:39

the name of your business?

52

: 00:03:41

And I said, well, my business is

I'm a real estate broker, but I

53

: 00:03:45

just do the transport equipment.

54

: 00:03:49

For those organizations and need it.

55

: 00:03:52

And she said, well, you don't have a name.

56

: 00:03:54

And I said, no, I just do

what they know who to call.

57

: 00:03:58

And she goes, oh, okay,

well, I'll get you a name.

58

: 00:04:01

And I said, okay.

59

: 00:04:02

And I didn't pay too much attention to it.

60

: 00:04:05

But about three to four months

later, I'm at another adoption event

61

: 00:04:08

on the West Bank of New Orleans.

62

: 00:04:11

And the mother of that child saw me.

63

: 00:04:14

And she says, oh my gosh, I

gotta get my daughter Catherine.

64

: 00:04:18

And I said, Oh, and I really didn't

remember her or her daughter, but

65

: 00:04:23

her daughter came out of the Petco

store where we were doing an adoption

66

: 00:04:28

with the Plaquemines Animal Welfare

Society, and she goes, Oh, my gosh.

67

: 00:04:32

Oh, my gosh.

68

: 00:04:33

Stay here.

69

: 00:04:33

Don't go anywhere.

70

: 00:04:34

I got something in my car.

71

: 00:04:36

So she went into the parking lot.

72

: 00:04:38

She came back.

73

: 00:04:40

I'm going to call it an artist portfolio.

74

: 00:04:42

It's like a large, like a leather or maybe

vinyl case where people put the artwork

75

: 00:04:48

that they carry around all their flats and

nothing framed, but just pieces of paper

76

: 00:04:54

that, you know, had art or things on it.

77

: 00:04:57

And she says, I came up with

a name for your business.

78

: 00:05:00

And I'm going, excuse me,

what are you talking about?

79

: 00:05:02

She said, Yeah, I told you I'd

come up with a name because you

80

: 00:05:05

take dogs and you get them sent

quickly up north to be adopted.

81

: 00:05:10

And I go, Yeah, I do.

82

: 00:05:11

But I don't do it.

83

: 00:05:12

My equipment doesn't.

84

: 00:05:13

She says, Well, the name of your

business should be DoggoneExpress.

85

: 00:05:18

And in all fairness and all sincerity at

that time, the hair on my arms went up.

86

: 00:05:24

And I just thought that was a name

that I thought it was pretty unique

87

: 00:05:29

and clever and so I said, you know

what, I would like to buy that name

88

: 00:05:33

from you and she said no, it's free.

89

: 00:05:35

It's free.

90

: 00:05:36

And she says, Oh look what I drew.

91

: 00:05:38

And she pulled out a picture of a

dog that didn't have feet but had

92

: 00:05:42

wheels, which we've now branded

as our logo called speed dog.

93

: 00:05:49

So I convinced her mother to allow me

to give her a check for 150 for the

94

: 00:05:54

exclusive rights for dog on express.

95

: 00:05:57

And speed dog, which we have as

I speak today over the course of

96

: 00:06:04

being with DoggoneExpress I tried

to find ways to help shelters get

97

: 00:06:10

more dogs adopted down here along

with dogs being exported up north.

98

: 00:06:15

And the people I talked to would

say, yeah, I'd love to adopt

99

: 00:06:18

the dog, but I just don't have

time to train it or whatever.

100

: 00:06:22

And these were shelter dogs.

101

: 00:06:23

So we really didn't know their

background or their history.

102

: 00:06:27

So I guess I went online one night and I

looked up dog training and whatever and

103

: 00:06:33

I found that there was a Dominican nun

who lived in Wisconsin, Sister Pauline

104

: 00:06:42

Quinn, who started the first inmate dog

training program for shelter dogs in the

105

: 00:06:49

state of Washington at a women's prison.

106

: 00:06:52

And I thought, oh, that's clever.

107

: 00:06:54

That's a good thing for not only the

dogs, but for the inmates, you know,

108

: 00:06:59

and the Department of Corrections.

109

: 00:07:02

So I contacted her and ended up,

she called me back and she said,

110

: 00:07:08

well, we'll sell you our program.

111

: 00:07:09

We have it in operations successfully

in five prisons in California

112

: 00:07:15

and the state of Washington.

113

: 00:07:17

So I ended up giving them money to

acquire the program called Pathways

114

: 00:07:22

to Hope, which became our program.

115

: 00:07:26

And my senior vice president and our

attorney who's on our board, the Honorable

116

: 00:07:33

Judge Diane Lundeen and I approached

and had a meeting with the Secretary

117

: 00:07:41

James LeBlanc of the Department of the

118

: 00:07:43

.

Public safety and corrections in Louisiana and proposed to Secretary LeBlanc free of

119

: 00:07:51

charge that we would provide some inmate

training for a general obedience for dogs

120

: 00:07:58

out of shelters and the agreement, which

became the memorandum of understanding

121

: 00:08:04

that was signed by the Department of

Corrections and by Doggone Express gave us

122

: 00:08:10

The segue or the lead in to both a women's

prison in Saint Gabriel and into a men's

123

: 00:08:17

prison and Angie Louisiana called Rayburn.

124

: 00:08:23

Now, 13 years later, we are starting.

125

: 00:08:28

Programs in four different prisons

over and beyond the one that's

126

: 00:08:33

been in existence for 13 years.

127

: 00:08:37

And we also have along with from

the big house to your house.

128

: 00:08:43

And that's what we call the inmate

prison programs and dogs that from

129

: 00:08:49

that are primarily service dogs and

emotional support animals that are

130

: 00:08:54

needed and utilized by a lot of veterans

and quite a few families where they

131

: 00:09:00

may have a child who has a spectrum of

autism and for people who have physical

132

: 00:09:06

challenges, whether they can't bend over,

they may be confined to a wheelchair.

133

: 00:09:12

And we train dogs That come from shelters

to do specific task, and they do qualify

134

: 00:09:20

under the American Disabilities Act

section two and three as service dogs.

135

: 00:09:27

So we've had a great success with that.

136

: 00:09:29

As of the end of last year, we

had placed over 770 dogs were.

137

: 00:09:38

in shelters and or pulled from shelters,

which means shelters if they become

138

: 00:09:46

overpopulated and they have animal control

that normally they just go down a list for

139

: 00:09:53

the dogs that have been there the longest.

140

: 00:09:55

And they are euthanized.

141

: 00:09:57

It's unfortunate.

142

: 00:09:59

It's a sad commentary on our society.

143

: 00:10:02

We definitely need to have

more spay and neuter laws.

144

: 00:10:06

But in the meantime, we pull

as many dogs from shelters.

145

: 00:10:11

And from rescues who pull from shelters

and run these dogs through our programs.

146

: 00:10:16

We don't sell the dogs.

147

: 00:10:18

We ask a recipient and that is somebody

who would get a service dog from our big

148

: 00:10:25

house to your house program to donate.

149

: 00:10:28

150.

150

: 00:10:31

That basically helps us offset

our insurance, our gasoline, our

151

: 00:10:36

transportation, you know, Our

veterinarian bills and dog food,

152

: 00:10:40

all of which we have to provide.

153

: 00:10:43

The Department of Correction

does not provide any of that.

154

: 00:10:47

So the donation is tax deductible,

and it's not a requirement, but

155

: 00:10:53

it is something that we need.

156

: 00:10:55

And, you know, advertises

we're seeking that donation

157

: 00:10:59

to help continue the program.

158

: 00:11:02

We have another program called

Companions for Life and Companions

159

: 00:11:07

for Life is where we offer veterans

who have a DD 214 or discharge papers

160

: 00:11:14

or sometimes active military who

are being treated for any number of

161

: 00:11:20

physical as well as psychological.

162

: 00:11:23

Challenges, whether it be PTSD,

anxiety, depression or they may have

163

: 00:11:30

some prosthetic devices that encumber

their ability to cope in our society.

164

: 00:11:39

So we provide some canine

training for these veterans.

165

: 00:11:44

And it's getting ready to restart

because we had a slowdown due

166

: 00:11:50

to covid and due to funding.

167

: 00:11:53

And we also had to have a facility

in Jefferson Parish that was ADA

168

: 00:11:58

compliant, which has now been completed.

169

: 00:12:01

So in Harahan, we will.

170

: 00:12:04

Offer free dog training to any veteran,

male or female, for whatever reason,

171

: 00:12:10

once a week, and then we will also

provide them a YouTube channel password,

172

: 00:12:17

where if they can't attend the training

in person, they can actually go to

173

: 00:12:21

any number of our courses that we

will offer through a YouTube channel.

174

: 00:12:26

And then once a month, we hope to do live

broadcast for anybody who is involved

175

: 00:12:33

in the Companions for Life program so

they can watch and possibly interact

176

: 00:12:39

with their laptops, their computers, or

their smartphones as we are demonstrating

177

: 00:12:45

a specific skill or training technique

or proper animal care, which includes

178

: 00:12:51

heartworm prevention, making sure their

nails are not too long, making sure

179

: 00:12:59

that their ears are cleaned of mites

and basic grooming, all of which are.

180

: 00:13:06

Very important for proper canine care.

181

: 00:13:11

So, that's what we've got going on.

182

: 00:13:14

We are also proposing to construct

some sea container kennels.

183

: 00:13:22

We don't have a project name for it

other than the sea container kennels.

184

: 00:13:26

Where we take a 40 foot sea container.

185

: 00:13:29

And we modify it so we can house up

to 10 dogs in the stainless steel

186

: 00:13:36

kennels on the inside, climate

controlled, with a 6 foot by 10 foot

187

: 00:13:41

exterior chain link run, covered.

188

: 00:13:45

on the outside.

189

: 00:13:46

And these sea containers can be offered

to shelters that need more space.

190

: 00:13:52

But they also could be sent to

parishes that have nothing in terms

191

: 00:13:57

of any type of containment or shelter

for canines and any number of the 30

192

: 00:14:04

parishes that have absolutely nothing

in the state of Louisiana for canines.

193

: 00:14:12

So over and beyond that, I personally

am a deputy with the Washington

194

: 00:14:21

Parish Sheriff's Department

and I handle animal issues.

195

: 00:14:26

So if there is animals that

have been abandoned, mistreated,

196

: 00:14:32

abused be it livestock.

197

: 00:14:35

cattle, horses, goats, pigs,

chickens and or canines and cats.

198

: 00:14:43

And we've had in one situation a hamster.

199

: 00:14:48

It's not a happy story, but I did

get a call from a deputy one night.

200

: 00:14:53

When he did a welfare check on an

individual who had been sick and the

201

: 00:14:58

individual had passed away within the

last week and nobody knew it, and they

202

: 00:15:03

didn't know what to do with the hamster

that was in a cage, so I told him, bring

203

: 00:15:08

it into the station and I would rehome the

hamster, either with a school or we would

204

: 00:15:14

find a good home for the hamster, so.

205

: 00:15:17

Doesn't make any difference

what the size is.

206

: 00:15:20

I don't re home fish and I don't really

get actively involved in wildlife even

207

: 00:15:26

though I do get calls about coyotes and

Bear sightings because we have those in

208

: 00:15:34

the Mount Hermon, Washington Parish area.

209

: 00:15:39

Other than that, I take care of 8

horses, 3 donkeys, 1 pony, 2 cats,

210

: 00:15:46

and presently where I am at the Humane

Society Sanctuary in Mount Hermon.

211

: 00:15:52

We have 10 dogs, 5 of which are

being scheduled to go into our prison

212

: 00:15:57

program as we get other dogs adopted.

213

: 00:16:01

I don't have any spare time.

214

: 00:16:03

So that's what I do.

215

: 00:16:05

Dixie: Well, you're very busy.

216

: 00:16:06

Some remarkable programs, so

I'd like to ask questions, too.

217

: 00:16:10

Like about the general program.

218

: 00:16:12

So when you go to select

the dogs, specific?

219

: 00:16:16

I know in the shelters we

see a lot of mixed breeds.

220

: 00:16:19

Is it a specific type of dog that you're

looking for to put into those programs?

221

: 00:16:25

Bill: Well, that's an excellent question.

222

: 00:16:27

Here's what I try to train

shelters to watch for.

223

: 00:16:31

I want a dog that's dog friendly.

224

: 00:16:35

Number one.

225

: 00:16:36

I want a dog that preferably

is medium to large size.

226

: 00:16:43

And it's not that I have anything to eat.

227

: 00:16:45

With smaller dogs, it's just they

are harder to contain in the prison

228

: 00:16:51

environment because if they go under

a fence in one of our dog yards,

229

: 00:16:57

the trainers can't go after it.

230

: 00:16:59

A correctional officer has to go after it.

231

: 00:17:02

So all of the dogs we look

for are number one prefer.

232

: 00:17:06

They can't be dog aggressive.

233

: 00:17:09

We don't care about the breed.

234

: 00:17:11

We prefer heartworm negative

only from the standpoint of

235

: 00:17:15

cost of getting them treated.

236

: 00:17:18

But that's kind of a rare situation

now is to find dogs that are

237

: 00:17:22

heartworm negative in a shelter.

238

: 00:17:25

We look for a dog that can focus.

239

: 00:17:27

In other words, if I'm doing it myself,

I'll take a treat or something and

240

: 00:17:33

let the dog in the kennel smell it.

241

: 00:17:35

And then I'll hold it up to my forehead.

242

: 00:17:38

And see how long that dog will

focus on that one little treat.

243

: 00:17:43

And then I'll reward the dog with it.

244

: 00:17:45

And if a dog can focus, and he's not

off the wall crazy, and you know,

245

: 00:17:52

pretty stable on all fours, then we'll

consider that dog in our program.

246

: 00:17:58

They have to be neutered or spayed.

247

: 00:18:01

That's a requirement by the

Department of Corrections.

248

: 00:18:04

But other than that, we've had.

249

: 00:18:07

Everything, every type of dog.

250

: 00:18:09

You can imagine.

251

: 00:18:10

We've had some purebreds.

252

: 00:18:12

We've had a lot of petty mixes.

253

: 00:18:16

We've had a lot of Labradors, a lot of

shepherds, a lot of golden misbehaviors.

254

: 00:18:21

That's what I call them.

255

: 00:18:22

But golden retrievers and, the

trainers have done a wonderful job.

256

: 00:18:28

They're with the dogs 24 7.

257

: 00:18:31

The dogs sleep in a kennel under the

inmate trainers bed, caught in a dorm.

258

: 00:18:37

So they get a lot of attention and they're

trained seven days a week, usually from

259

: 00:18:43

the hours of 7 30 or so until dusk.

260

: 00:18:47

When it's dark, the dogs

have to clear the yard.

261

: 00:18:50

They can't be out in the

dark in the dog yard.

262

: 00:18:53

Dixie: And then how long do they

normally stay in the program before

263

: 00:18:57

they're trained and ready for adoption?

264

: 00:18:59

Bill: Well, that's another good question.

265

: 00:19:02

Sometimes it'll range maybe

eight weeks since we've got to

266

: 00:19:07

make sure that they have all of

their general obedience recall.

267

: 00:19:12

That is, you call their name,

that dog's gonna come to you.

268

: 00:19:16

That's name recognition recall.

269

: 00:19:18

Sit, down, stay, leave it.

270

: 00:19:21

Are all very important.

271

: 00:19:23

Leash or heel walking.

272

: 00:19:25

In other words, not pulling on

a leash when they're leashed up.

273

: 00:19:28

Cause dogs have to be off a

leash, on a leash, excuse me,

274

: 00:19:33

when they're off their property.

275

: 00:19:34

That's a state law.

276

: 00:19:36

Some exceptions to that leash law

are service dogs that are working

277

: 00:19:41

with somebody who is in a wheelchair,

and then they don't necessarily,

278

: 00:19:46

by law, have to be on a leash.

279

: 00:19:48

But any other dog in the state of

Maryland, whether it's a service dog,

280

: 00:19:52

emotional support dog, a pet, has

to be on a leash off its property.

281

: 00:19:58

The Training, like I said, can

range from maybe eight weeks or so.

282

: 00:20:04

We do have a proficiency evaluation

procedure where we evaluate a dog over

283

: 00:20:11

a couple of weeks to see if it hits

80 percent or higher on various tasks.

284

: 00:20:18

That not only the trainer has the dog

do, but somebody else has the dog do.

285

: 00:20:23

So it's not just the trainer

giving the dog the command.

286

: 00:20:27

It could be another trainer or it could be

someone like me for more advanced training

287

: 00:20:33

where we train a dog to retrieve by name.

288

: 00:20:38

In other words, we could tell a

dog get glasses and a dog will

289

: 00:20:43

go and try to find eyeglasses and

bring them back to the recipient.

290

: 00:20:48

Get meds.

291

: 00:20:50

The dog will go into a kitchen

or a bathroom where there may be

292

: 00:20:54

prescription bottles out on the

counter and bring One prescription

293

: 00:20:58

bottle at a time to the recipient.

294

: 00:21:02

We can't train the dog

to read the prescription.

295

: 00:21:05

So it just continues to get the

bottles until the recipient gets the

296

: 00:21:09

medication that they're requesting.

297

: 00:21:12

We also train the dogs to pick up things

that somebody who may have titanium

298

: 00:21:17

rods in their back or may have back.

299

: 00:21:20

Or arm issues where they can't bend over

and pick up things, a dog will immediately

300

: 00:21:27

pick up anything that's dropped and raise

it up so that the recipient can handle

301

: 00:21:33

that which has been dropped since the

recipient can't bend over and get it and

302

: 00:21:39

some of the training can last over a year.

303

: 00:21:42

I'm going to say in the average, probably

90 days to 120 days is probably average.

304

: 00:21:50

three to four months.

305

: 00:21:51

Dixie: Not too bad.

306

: 00:21:52

I thought it would be a

little bit longer than that.

307

: 00:21:54

Now, how many dogs have you adopted out

from the program since its inception?

308

: 00:21:59

Bill: We've placed over 770

dogs as of the close of: 2024

309

: 00:22:06

Dixie: Wow, that's amazing.

310

: 00:22:07

Now what is the adoption process like if

somebody was interested in adopting a dog?

311

: 00:22:13

Bill: Well, we do have an application.

312

: 00:22:15

They contact us.

313

: 00:22:16

We get a lot of referrals from the

VA, the Veterans Administration.

314

: 00:22:21

Many people search online.

315

: 00:22:24

And Doggone Express pops up on the

first or second page of Google now.

316

: 00:22:31

I'm not exactly sure, but if you looked up

service dogs in Louisiana, DoggoneExpress.

317

: 00:22:38

com would pop up.

318

: 00:22:40

You could contact us by phone or by email.

319

: 00:22:43

We send out an application.

320

: 00:22:45

We review the application.

321

: 00:22:47

We call the recipient, proposed recipient,

to get a little bit more information.

322

: 00:22:52

Kind of get a gauge on

their type of lifestyle.

323

: 00:22:56

Because we're not going to place a

high energy service dog with someone

324

: 00:23:01

who is basically I am not using this

negatively, but like a couch potato,

325

: 00:23:08

somebody who's not very active who

just wants something to be next to

326

: 00:23:12

them and cuddle with them as they watch

TV or knit or whatever they're doing.

327

: 00:23:19

So we.

328

: 00:23:20

Kind of do a informal profile of the

recipient so that when we send them

329

: 00:23:26

videos, which we do, they can see

the videos of the dogs being trained.

330

: 00:23:32

So, you know, if one of them is

interested in a medium sized dog.

331

: 00:23:38

Preferably a male, whatever, then we

can send them videos of dogs that may

332

: 00:23:43

have some of the skills and trained

to meet the needs of the recipient

333

: 00:23:49

and they can watch the dogs over a

period of time as they go through their

334

: 00:23:54

training so they can see their process.

335

: 00:23:56

In some situations, if they get clearance,

in other words, if they don't have any

336

: 00:24:02

felonies or pending legal situations,

we can actually get clearance for them

337

: 00:24:09

to actually come into the prison and

meet the trainer and meet the dog.

338

: 00:24:14

And if there's good chemistry, and

it's usually me who makes the ultimate

339

: 00:24:18

decision, like, yeah, it's a go, or

I don't think this is the right fit.

340

: 00:24:23

Let's just keep working on

another canine or whatever.

341

: 00:24:28

They can take the dog, the canine, for

a week we'll hold the donation check

342

: 00:24:33

if necessary for a week to make sure

it's a good fit, and they can take

343

: 00:24:38

all the medical information we have

on the dog to their vet to have the

344

: 00:24:42

dog checked out, and then after that

one week, We call it a test drive.

345

: 00:24:49

If everything's working out,

then it's a formal adoption.

346

: 00:24:52

We send them the microchip

information, the rabies tags,

347

: 00:24:55

and we consider the dog adopted.

348

: 00:24:58

Dixie: I do have another question,

too, about the adoption process.

349

: 00:25:01

So, as far as the dogs that are

available, do you have a list of the

350

: 00:25:05

dogs that are available or are you

the one that does more of the matching?

351

: 00:25:10

And then the other question is, if

somebody is in another state, do you

352

: 00:25:14

adopt out of state or you primarily do

with the adoptions within Louisiana?

353

: 00:25:19

Bill: The first question is, we have in

the past on our website, DogOnExpress.

354

: 00:25:26

com, have on the very first page,

a place where you can see dogs

355

: 00:25:33

that are available for adoption.

356

: 00:25:36

And you go all the way down to the bottom

of the first page of Doggone Express.

357

: 00:25:41

And unfortunately, we're working on this.

358

: 00:25:45

Most of the dogs that you can

see there now have been adopted.

359

: 00:25:49

We're getting ready to take more dogs in.

360

: 00:25:53

I'm taking two in tomorrow that

will start being on our website as

361

: 00:25:59

Marley and Otis as adoptable dogs.

362

: 00:26:04

These two dogs will primarily be trained

for brace and stability, because I

363

: 00:26:09

have two veterans right now who need

a stability dog because they're having

364

: 00:26:14

problems maintaining their equilibrium.

365

: 00:26:17

And their balance and also when they fall,

they need some kind of dog that's trained

366

: 00:26:24

to brace so they can actually put their

hands on their vest and hold collar as we

367

: 00:26:34

call it and Get back up off the ground.

368

: 00:26:38

Now these air stability brace dogs and

I have two large dogs that are going

369

: 00:26:43

in after a vet appointment tomorrow at

10 30 into Rayburn prison for training.

370

: 00:26:49

Now the second part of the question.

371

: 00:26:55

And I kind of forgot what that was.

372

: 00:26:57

Dixie: That was, if you do adoptions

primarily to, residents of Louisiana,

373

: 00:27:02

or do you do out of state adoptions?

374

: 00:27:04

And then I guess if you do the

out of state adoptions, would you

375

: 00:27:06

do like a transport or do they

have to come pick up the dog?

376

: 00:27:09

Bill: They have to come pick up the dog.

377

: 00:27:11

We do not ship dogs.

378

: 00:27:14

We will not ship dogs.

379

: 00:27:15

We've placed dogs in Michigan,

we've placed dogs in New Mexico,

380

: 00:27:20

we've placed dogs in Texas, we've

placed dogs in Florida, and in all

381

: 00:27:25

situations the people either had to

fly in and then rent a car and take

382

: 00:27:30

the dog out, but we will not ship.

383

: 00:27:34

We will not put any dog on any plane.

384

: 00:27:37

Dixie: You said too that

you had Marley and Otis.

385

: 00:27:40

You're training those to

be like stability dogs?

386

: 00:27:44

Yes.

387

: 00:27:44

So if, what if somebody contacts you

and they say, Hey, we're looking for

388

: 00:27:48

a particular type of service dog.

389

: 00:27:51

Would you be able to potentially

put a dog in the program to make a

390

: 00:27:56

service dog as requested, I guess?

391

: 00:27:59

Bill: For some situations, we can't

train a dog to do a specific thing.

392

: 00:28:06

For instance, we get a lot of

calls from people say, can you

393

: 00:28:11

train a dog for epileptic seizures?

394

: 00:28:14

And we say politely, no, because

that requires the dog to be

395

: 00:28:18

trained with the individual.

396

: 00:28:21

And we can't have individuals

coming into the prison for training.

397

: 00:28:25

We don't do diabetic alert dogs

because the diabetic alert is based

398

: 00:28:32

on a specific smell that comes from a

cotton swab of somebody who's having

399

: 00:28:38

a low blood sugar situation and that's

a specific smell for that person.

400

: 00:28:45

So we don't do epileptic

or seizure alert dogs.

401

: 00:28:49

We don't do diabetic alert dogs.

402

: 00:28:52

We don't do seeing eye dogs.

403

: 00:28:55

But we do cover people

who've had hearing issues.

404

: 00:29:00

We've actually trained at Rayburn

Prison in Angie, Louisiana, deaf

405

: 00:29:06

dogs for people who had no hearing.

406

: 00:29:10

Who then, also the recipient.

407

: 00:29:13

Was had a loss of hearing, and we had a

trainer who would train the dog, believe

408

: 00:29:20

it or not, an American sign language

so that the person who received the dog

409

: 00:29:26

could use American sign language and the

dog would respond by, you know, coming.

410

: 00:29:32

whatever.

411

: 00:29:34

And the way that we had somebody

who was hard of hearing or

412

: 00:29:38

couldn't hear and also was mute.

413

: 00:29:42

The question was, well, how do you train

a dog to come when that person wants them?

414

: 00:29:48

So we trained the dog with

just a vibrating collar.

415

: 00:29:52

That's all it did is vibrate.

416

: 00:29:54

So if you pushed a little sending unit

The collar would vibrate and the dog was

417

: 00:29:59

trained to look for whoever's giving them

the come signal with their hand, which

418

: 00:30:05

is the palm facing out and then bringing

it back towards your face, like, come

419

: 00:30:10

here, but there's no sound or whatever.

420

: 00:30:13

It's just the dog following

the hand signal to come.

421

: 00:30:17

Dixie: Wow.

422

: 00:30:18

That way the dog That's amazing.

423

: 00:30:21

Bill: Well, sometimes the dog's in another

part of the house or maybe in the yard.

424

: 00:30:27

And, you know, you can't stomp

your floor in the house and have a

425

: 00:30:31

dog out in the yard here, but this

little vibrating collar, which is

426

: 00:30:35

rechargeable, and all it does is vibrate.

427

: 00:30:37

There's no shock.

428

: 00:30:39

There's no sound.

429

: 00:30:40

It just vibrates.

430

: 00:30:41

And the dog's trained to look

for whoever is signaling to come.

431

: 00:30:45

And the dog would go to that person.

432

: 00:30:48

Dixie: You got the idea from the

program, that was already, in Well,

433

: 00:30:52

Bill: actually, it was, it's, I didn't

mean to interrupt, but it was actually

434

: 00:30:55

started by a Dominican nun, Sister Pauline

Quinn, and the first, very first inmate

435

: 00:31:03

training program was at a women's prison

in the state of Washington in: 1982

436

: 00:31:11

Now, there's probably 30 states

that have some kind of jail or

437

: 00:31:18

prison dog training programs.

438

: 00:31:20

And they're actually working in some

situations with cats that are being

439

: 00:31:25

pulled from shelters to work with

some of the inmates who have some

440

: 00:31:30

emotional or psychological problems.

441

: 00:31:34

As a companion animal and the cats

are getting a lot of attention and

442

: 00:31:41

the inmates are getting some kind

of emotional support, which can

443

: 00:31:47

be used to modify their behavior.

444

: 00:31:50

In other words, if you want to have a

cat or you're going to train a service

445

: 00:31:54

dog, you can't have any write ups.

446

: 00:31:56

You can't get in trouble.

447

: 00:31:57

You can't be a problem inmate.

448

: 00:32:00

Or you lose that privilege.

449

: 00:32:02

So prisons use it as a

behavior modifier, too.

450

: 00:32:06

Which I have no problem with.

451

: 00:32:08

But a lot of people have asked,

Well, would you give somebody who's

452

: 00:32:11

a murderer a service dog to train?

453

: 00:32:15

And I go I don't.

454

: 00:32:16

have any control over someone's

past, whatever they've done.

455

: 00:32:22

And our judicial system has said, you need

to be incarcerated for a period of time.

456

: 00:32:27

That's already done.

457

: 00:32:29

The only ones I will not allow in our

training programs at any time is someone

458

: 00:32:35

who's been charged with Animal abuse,

not convicted of charged with if they've

459

: 00:32:43

been charged with that, they're not in

our program can't be in our program.

460

: 00:32:47

But . We've had people

who have stolen have.

461

: 00:32:51

Burglarized received stolen

property, sold drugs.

462

: 00:32:56

Yes, that runs across the whole spectrum.

463

: 00:33:00

Other than anyone who's ever

been charged with animal abuse.

464

: 00:33:06

Dixie: Do you ever have people from

other areas reach out to you to ask

465

: 00:33:10

you about starting a program or how

they can start a program like this?

466

: 00:33:15

Bill: Oh, yes.

467

: 00:33:16

Oh, yes.

468

: 00:33:16

We'd be more than willing.

469

: 00:33:18

We invite them to come visit our program.

470

: 00:33:21

I get people from different

correctional facilities who

471

: 00:33:25

want to come see how we do it.

472

: 00:33:28

And as long as they pass the clearance

test, the security evaluation by the

473

: 00:33:34

Department of Corrections and the

ward and say, yeah, they're fine.

474

: 00:33:37

They can come in.

475

: 00:33:38

We set up a time where they come

visit and we'll give them, you

476

: 00:33:42

know, all of the forms that we use.

477

: 00:33:45

And they can model their program

after hours, or like I said, there's

478

: 00:33:49

probably 30 states now who have some

variation of a program like we have,

479

: 00:33:56

we just happen to be the largest in

the state of Louisiana, the women's.

480

: 00:34:03

Prison program is being run by one of

my contract trainers, Brooke Defoe.

481

: 00:34:09

She owns the Dog School of New Orleans,

and she's worked with me and had been

482

: 00:34:15

in our prison program as a trainer,

and she's running the women's program.

483

: 00:34:22

So, we got the prisons covered.

484

: 00:34:27

Dixie: Now I'd like to hear more

about the training for veterans,

485

: 00:34:29

too, in Harahan, Louisiana

486

: 00:34:33

Bill: yes.

487

: 00:34:33

Harahan, St.

488

: 00:34:35

Tammany Parish, and Washington Parish.

489

: 00:34:38

Three parishes.

490

: 00:34:39

Dixie: How would somebody sign

up for that, if that's something

491

: 00:34:41

that they were interested in?

492

: 00:34:43

Bill: Contact me at my email address,

or go to Doggone Express, and

493

: 00:34:50

there's phone numbers and email,

and that's all they have to do.

494

: 00:34:55

One of our trainers will

call them and set up a time.

495

: 00:34:59

We do try to keep the

classes less than 10 people.

496

: 00:35:06

Only because we need to also do

group as well as individual training.

497

: 00:35:12

These classes are once a week, they

can come as long as they want to

498

: 00:35:16

come, there's no certain time frame.

499

: 00:35:19

It's not like a 6 week course or a

10 week course, they can come, we've

500

: 00:35:23

had some come for several years.

501

: 00:35:26

because they like the camaraderie.

502

: 00:35:28

They met other veterans who became their

friends and their dogs got along and

503

: 00:35:34

they look forward to it once a week.

504

: 00:35:39

Dixie: And so everybody has at

your website, it's DoggoneExpress.

505

: 00:35:44

com.

506

: 00:35:44

Is that correct?

507

: 00:35:46

Bill: That is correct, Dixie.

508

: 00:35:47

Yes.

509

: 00:35:47

Dixie: And would you like to give

everybody to your email address?

510

: 00:35:51

Sure.

511

: 00:35:52

Bill: It's the letter

L, like in Louisiana.

512

: 00:35:56

And my first name, William, W I L I A M.

513

: 00:36:01

Last name is Bars, B as in boy, A R S E.

514

: 00:36:05

It's all run together.

515

: 00:36:07

You don't have to have

caps or anything like that.

516

: 00:36:10

It's LWilliamBars at A O L dot com.

517

: 00:36:15

Dixie: I want to thank you for

taking the time to speak with me.

518

: 00:36:18

I really enjoyed learning about

all these wonderful programs

519

: 00:36:20

Bill: Well, this has been the

best podcast I've had all year.

520

: 00:36:25

Dixie: I hope so.

521

: 00:36:27

Bill: Oh, by far.

522

: 00:36:29

And great questions.

523

: 00:36:31

And if any of your listeners have

questions, and they want to contact

524

: 00:36:36

you certainly, I think I know you,

and your co work, and the co hosts of

525

: 00:36:42

your program, podcast, well enough to,

you know, you can refer them to me,

526

: 00:36:47

or you can give them my phone number.

527

: 00:36:49

Dixie: I certainly can.

528

: 00:36:49

And I'll make sure I put all of your

information too in the, description , so

529

: 00:36:53

that way everybody will have your, email

address as well as the doggone express.

530

: 00:36:58

com link.

531

: 00:36:59

Bill: That'll be great.

532

: 00:37:01

That'll be great.

533

: 00:37:03

Dixie: All right.

534

: 00:37:03

Well, thank you so much.

535

: 00:37:06

Bill: Well, thank you.

536

: 00:37:07

I hope you have a great 2025 to

you and your co host and maybe

537

: 00:37:13

sometime if you ever come up to

where I live up in Mount Hermon.

538

: 00:37:18

If you do come up sometime, maybe

we can go out and have dinner.

539

: 00:37:21

Dixie: That sounds like a plan.

540

: 00:37:22

Bill: Thank you.

541

: 00:37:24

Dixie: And that's all the time

we have for today's episode.

542

: 00:37:27

If you are in animal rescue, or if

you know someone that has a story that

543

: 00:37:31

should be told, please contact us.

544

: 00:37:33

We would love to have

you or them on the show

545

: 00:37:36

.

Thanks for listening, and please join us next week as we continue to

546

: 00:37:40

explore the world of animal rescue.