New Leash on Life USA (New Leash) is a nonprofit organization that reintroduces individuals who were formerly incarcerated into society as productive citizens and rescues at-risk dogs from animal shelters to be adopted by caring pet owners. New Leash combines dog training with social service and employment support to provide opportunities for inmates to succeed in the community. And we take formerly unadoptable dogs, train them, and then place them.
Some supporters of New Leash are primarily interested in our work with prisons and the successful recidivism rates. Others come to New Leash because of our success in training and adopting dogs from shelters. The connection between the two issues is at the heart of our methodology. It is our differentiator. New Leash’s methods and motivations build on social science literature that links the restorative role of companion pets and the connection between pro-social behavior and learning empathy.