Pound Pup Legacy

Bland has a large agricultural business program which furnishes meat and dairy products to nine other Western Region correctional facilities.

The primary structures at the Center date back to the early to mid 1950s. A medical building was added in 1982, a multipurpose building was added in 1990, and three modular inmate housing units were added in 1990.

• Special Programs - Project SOAR, PUPS
• Site Additions/Upgrades - 72 bed unit added
• Virginia Correctional Enterprises -NA

Bland Correctional Center and (on external website) St. Francis of Assisi Service Dog Foundation of Roanoke, Virginia, initiated the PUPS Program in June of 2002. The program matches carefully screened inmates with puppies. The puppies live with the inmates at the facility and are raised and obedience-trained under strict guidelines. Later, the puppies are transferred to professional trainers who teach them to perform tasks to assist disabled persons.

In its initial phase, the program matched four puppies with four inmate trainers and two alternates. VADOC is hoping to expand the program in the near future to as many as 10 puppies.