Inmates at a Florida jail will spend their Independence Day cuddling scared shelter dogs during the traditional Fourth of July fireworks.
In a Facebook post, Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey explained that in response to plenty of calls from concerned citizens about animals in shelters during the fireworks displays, the Sheriff's Office decided to introduce a scheme to help the "frightened" animals.
But rather than accept some of the many volunteers to help out, the Sheriff's office decided to give a sense of purpose to the inmates at Brevard County Jail.
"Recently a number of our citizens contacted our agency volunteering to help comfort the dogs at our Animal Care Center because of fireworks on Independence Day," Sheriff Ivey said in his Facebook post on the Brevard County Facebook page.
"Often times dogs will get anxiety and frightened because of fireworks and other loud noises that can be heard on the 4th of July, so a number of our citizens offered to help us this year by comforting them and trying to keep them calm," he added.
"While we greatly appreciate the offer of assistance and truly love the fact that our community partners with us to help our homeless pets, our agency has designed a new program that will not only help our dogs but will also help add purpose to the lives of inmates incarcerated at the Brevard County Jail.
"This year inmates on our Chain Gang and other work crews will be comforting our dogs at the Animal Care Center by reading to them, playing with them, and even feeding them treats during the peak hours of celebration on Independence Day.
"Our goal is to not only help calm the dogs but also to help build and instill [sic] a sense of purpose and compassion in the inmates that will hopefully aid them as they transition back into society once the [sic] have served their time."
While the fireworks go off, the dogs will reportedly be treated with animal-friendly sorbets from the in-jail ice cream maker, and the inmates will also read to them to keep them nice and calm. "I think it’s a win-win for everybody across the board," added Sheriff Ivey.