Jill, a year-old black-and-white cat, and her brother were both found abandoned at a soccer field in North Platte.
But the feline has since found a stable home life. One that is definitely secure.
Jill is a full-time resident of the “H” unit at the Lincoln County Detention Center — one of eight cats living with inmates there.
“She likes to roam around (the pod),” said Matthew, an inmate in H unit. “She can tell when you need someone. It’s kind of nice having her in here, something other than just people.
“She’ll come lay in your bed and go play in your cell and your sinks. She loves it. She’ll sleep in anybody’s cell. She’ll sleep on my sink because I have a handicap room. She’ll turn my sink on and play in the water.”
Matthew held Jill in his arms as he scratched behind her ears and pod mate Nathan scratched near her nose. Later Jill perched on Matthew’s shoulders and shortly afterward climbed onto Nathan’s back.
Felines have been part of the Lincoln County Detention Center for the past decade. One cat is housed in each unit except for two pods where the inmates are considered to be higher behavioral risks.
“Their classification level is a little higher and we just didn’t know how the cats would mix in there,” Lt. Penny Ball said.
The cats remain in the units with the inmates through each day except for a short time when detention center staff are making medication rounds. The cats then come out of the units and walk around the rotunda — where the facility’s central command is.
“But they eventually want to go back in (to the pod),” Ball said.
She initially had doubts about the effectiveness of the therapy program with the cats overall.
“I had some concerns just about the basic care of the cats,” Ball said. “Just (questions) if the inmates would take ownership of them. But the cats take ownership of (the inmates), and the inmates definitely take ownership of the cats. They take good care of them. It gives them a responsibility, a purpose.”
The cats also simply provide companionship.
Nemo, a 10-year-old tabby, is the longest feline resident of the detention center. Nemo was one of the first cats brought into the detention center, a donation from the North Platte Animal Shelter in 2012.
“(Inmates) taught him to sit in a chair while they ate lunch,” Ball said. “They would put treats on the table and he would eat lunch with them.
“It gets to the point where the cats usually will bond with one or two inmates and sleep with them for comfort.
“Inmates who are having a bad day will pet the cats,” Ball said. “It’s a kind of a soothing, emotional release for them to be able to care for the cats. An emotional purge.”
Ball said there was one occasion in which a cat was moved from one unit to another because it wasn’t a good fit with the inmates.
But there have been occasions when the request has been to move an inmate instead of the cat.
“We’ve seen units where a new (inmate) has come in and the other inmates didn’t think they were being nice enough to the cat,” Ball said. “They were ringing and talking (to staff) saying, ‘He needs to go. He’s not nice to our cat.’”
Lil’ Cody Park is the newest feline resident. The 7-month-old gray medium-hair cat is named after the place where he was found abandoned.
Lil’ Cody Park has a neurological disorder that affects coordination. In other words, he is a wobbly cat. He is housed in a female inmate worker unit.
“He is very playful and since he has been inside here, he has blossomed,” Ball said. “He acts like a cat as much as a wobbly cat can.”
Ball has had offers from detention center staff members who are interested in taking Lil’ Cody Park home with them for good. It’s not the first time she has received inquiries about adopting one of the facility felines.
“When I brought Jill in, I had a lot of staff members say, ‘Can I take Jill?’ I said. ‘You’ve got to talk to the guys in ‘H’ if they are willing to let her go.’ They didn’t let her go, because she is still here.”
Nathan, an inmate in “H” unit within the LIncoln County Detention Center, follows Jill, who also is a resident of the facility. JIll, who was found abandoned at a soccer field in North Platte, is one of eight felines that live with and are cared for the inmates in the detention center.
Lil’ Cody Park, named after the recreational area that he was found abandoned at, is the newest feline resident of the Lincoln County Detention Center. The roughly seventh-month old special-needs male is housed in a female inmate worker unit in the facility.
Nemo looks out from inside one of the units within the Lincoln County Detention Center. Nemo, a 10-year-old tabby, is one of the first cats to live with inmates in the facilty, a donation from the North Platte Animal Shelter in 2012.
Bitsy, one of the eight feline residents of the Lincoln County Detention center, sits by the door of a unit in the facilty. The cats live with and are cared for by the inmates in the detention center.
Lt. Penny Ball holds Jill, one of eight cats who reside with inmates within the Lincoln County Detention Center. Jill, who is roughly a year old, was found abandoned at a soccer field in North Platte.
Matthew, an inmate in “H” unit in the Lincoln County Detention Center holds Jill as fellow innmate Nathan looks on. Jill is one of eight cats that reside within the facility and are cared for by the inmates.