Brenda Grove-White is like other animal control officers in that she catches stray dogs and impounds them. But unlike past dogcatchers, she doesn’t put the strays down if they haven’t been claimed in 72 hours. She finds homes for them.
“Anything that’s healthy and adoptable I don’t put down,” she says.
Grove-White is the Town of Slave Lake’s Animal Control Officer, but the policy of finding homes for dogs is her own.
“I just did it,” she says.
What she did was start searching for homes for the dogs, and finding them.
“I just couldn’t see putting down healthy dogs. Since July I’ve found about 30 homes.”
Grove-White advertises her dogs on the radio and by word of mouth. She also monitors animal rescue sites on the Internet and has found a place for a few dogs that way. If all else fails, she takes the dogs to the Edmonton Humane Society - a service that costs her $30 per animal out of her own pocket.
“That’s not in the (Town’s) budget,” she says.
Neither is food for the dogs for more than 72 hours, which is why Grove-White is eager to publicize her program and encourage donations of dog food.
“St. Mary’s School gave a donation last week,” she says.
Something else Grove-White needs for her program of keeping dogs alive and finding homes for them is foster care. Dogs do well in a home environment, especially if there’s some training involved, and it sets them up better for eventual adoption. Grove-White does some fostering herself, but can’t handle it all. (Last week she had five dogs in the pound.)
It sounds like a full time job, but she is only paid for 25 hours a week. Having re-written her job description, she has plenty of work on her hands and could use some help. Anyone interested in making a donation or fostering or adopting a dog can reach her at 805-2135.

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