Kent SPCA takes over dog control

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The Daily Times

No changes in service, just a new number to report strays

By Katie Wais


Instead of the Delaware Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals handling dog control statewide, now stray dogs in Sussex County are going to have to go through the Kent County SPCA.

On July 1, dog control in all three of the state's counties was taken over by Kent County, resulting in major changes as far as SPCA organization is concerned -- but hopefully not in service, according to Murrey Goldthwaite.

"Hopefully it won't be a change for the worse, it'll be a change for the better," Goldthwaite, the Kent County SPCA director of services, said. "We want to provide better service for the public and for the safety of the animals."

The only change Sussex Countians ought to notice is a different phone number to call for dog control issues, which include unlicensed dogs, dogs at large, held strays, potentially dangerous dogs, kennel inspections and theft or poisoning of dogs. A single toll-free telephone number, 1-888-352-7722, will be available for residents throughout the state.

The Kent County SPCA is working to assign animal control officers to various districts in Sussex and New Castle Counties, which means hiring 14 new officers and purchasing more vehicles. Currently, animal control officers are located at the central dispatch in Camden, but Goldthwaite says that by the first week of August, officers should be stationed throughout the counties.

Negotiations are in the works to set up substations in both Sussex and New Castle Counties to allow animal control officers to respond more quickly to calls. Georgetown, Ocean View and Selbyville have all expressed interest in serving as substations, but Goldthwaite says he will have to wait to see where the SPCA is busiest and where the most accessible roads are.

"Just because Georgetown is the most centrally located," doesn't mean it would be the most practical, Goldthwaite said, because of the high volume of calls coming from coastal towns.

It's the biggest challenge Kent County SPCA is facing so far.

"What is really needed is to get a number of officers on the road to respond to calls," Goldthwaite said.

Taking over statewide dog control is, "a challenge we're looking forward to," Goldthwaite said. "The state is so small, this allows us to standardize service and standardize care. [This way] everybody's treated equal."

Discussion to change statewide dog control began early last year when the Delaware SPCA informed the state it would not apply in 2006 for the dog-control contract in Sussex and New Castle Counties, a job the non-profit organization has performed for decades.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environment Control began looking for a new vendor in April, and when the Kent County SPCA was the only organization to respond, they inked a $2.8 million deal with DNREC on June 14. The one-year contract expires next July.

When the Delaware SPCA began operating dog control statewide 35 years ago, Director John Caldwell said it was mostly because no one else would. But the amount of funding the organization had been annually contracted isn't enough to cover costs, he said.

"We basically got overwhelmed with stray dogs and stray cats," Caldwell said. "We could not keep up with the volume of calls. If we can't respond, then the public gets mad and very critical that we are not doing our job. We didn't have the staff to handle the number of complaints."

According to Caldwell, the main reason the Delaware SPCA did not renew the dog control contract is to allow the organization to focus on projects such as prevention of cruelty to animals, cruelty investigations and prosecutions, spaying and neutering programs, humane education and pet adoptions.

"We want to get away from that stigma of euthanizing animals," Caldwell said. "This will allow us to focus on our original mission" of cruelty prevention.

If Sussex County residents come across a stray dog, the best thing to do is call the Kent County SPCA's toll-free number, 1-888-352-7722, Goldthwaite said.

"We want people to know that we're here and that we will respond," Goldthwaite said. "Even though we're in Kent County, we will handle it."

If the dog is on the loose, animal control officers can be helped if they have a description and know which way the animal was headed, but the SPCA does not necessarily condone capturing dogs because of the possibility of rabies or aggressive behavior.

Goldthwaite reminded dog owners that "they are the ones responsible for their pet," meaning, among other things, making sure they have rabies vaccinations, licenses and are neutered or spayed.

"Identify and spay," said Goldthwaite. "No pet needs to be in a shelter when they can be at home."