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Barry Holcomb
Barry J. Holcomb is an inmate at Crossroads Correction Center in Cameron Missouri. Barry has been in the New Leash on Life (NLOL) dog program for a number of years. The dog program affords inmates ...view moreBarry J. Holcomb is an inmate at Crossroads Correction Center in Cameron Missouri. Barry has been in the New Leash on Life (NLOL) dog program for a number of years. The dog program affords inmates like Barry the unique opportunity to train dogs from the local rescue shelters. The dogs that come into the NLOL program are assigned to a set of offenders. The three of them live together in the prison. From that moment on the dog stays with one of the offenders pretty much at all times. The offenders have a kennel in their cell where the dog sleeps at night.The dog program is completely run on donations from the public. No Federal, State, or City tax dollars go to the dog program. The donations received allow the offenders and dogs to be provided with everything they will need for training; i.e. food, toys, treats, kennels, blankets, towels and much more that goes into the training of the dogs. The dogs usually stay with the offenders for a period of thirty to ninety days. Once the dogs pass their Canine Good Citizen Test, they are put up for adoption. Some of the dogs are chosen to receive additional training to be service dogs.Barry has trained an assortment of dogs during his years in the NLOL program. Most of the dogs he trains go to homes where they are lifelong pets. He has also trained dogs for Search and Rescue. He has trained comfort dogs. One of which went to a Veteran suffering from P.T.S.D. The day the Vet met his new dog was the first day the man had smiled since returning from war. Now he and his dog are inseparable, and he smiles a lot more. Barry has trained service dogs for people in wheel chairs and for people who walk with canes and other disabilities.Being in prison has given Barry the time to study an assortment of different training techniques. It has also allowed him to watch the techniques other inmate use for training. Barry has found that the most successful methods for dog training are the reward-based techniques. The techniques in this book are what Barry uses on every dog that he trains. Over the years, Barry has learned that every dog is different, and all dogs require the trainer to possess and use a different level of patience.Of all the dogs Barry has worked with; one always stands out in his mind. Karma, she is a full-blood Husky. When she got to the NLOL program, she was on her last leg. If she did not make it in the program, she was probably going to be put down. There was a twenty-minute meeting that took place between the heads of NLOL program before Karma was let into the program. Barry was told that if she had one incident she would be sent back to the pound. Karma had been through four other professional trainers at the shelter who could not do anything with her. She was wild and refused to listen to anything anyone said. She would turn and chew on anyone who tried to get her to do something she did not want to do. She would chew their hands and arms until they let her go do what she wanted to do. Karma spent seventy days working with Barry. At the end of their time together Karma was one of the top dogs in the program. She passed her Masters test (one of the top skill levels) before being adopted to a home where she is currently a loving pet to a family. She minds them very well, and the family would not get rid of her for all the money in the world.Being in the NLOL program has given Barry the opportunity to work with everything from very aggressive, to scared and timid dogs, and everything in-between. The techniques in this book have worked on all the dogs he has worked with. The NLOL program has taught Barry that the only thing a person needs to train a dog is patience and some good treats. The one thing he tells everyone attempting to train a dog; or who takes home one of his dogs is; REMEMBER SLOWER IS ALWAYS FASTER WHEN TRAINING YOUR DOG!If you have any questions about this book or training your dog, you can contact Barry at:Barry J. Holcomb 514068C.R.C.C.1115 E. Pence RdCameron Missouri 64429Money from the sales of this book will be donated to NLOL dog program and local animal shelters.view less