SPCA boosts safety
Changes follow June dog attack
Robin Grant
Northern News Services
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
The NWT SPCA is beefing up safety standards after a staff member was attacked at the shelter in June.
The NWT SPCA's Abbey Boyd leads Ted the dog back to his kennel last March. The SPCA is in the process of updating and strengthening its safety policies after a staff
member was attacked by a dog in June. - NNSL file photo |
NWT SPCA president Nicole Spencer said the animal shelter will be standardized by developing a handbook with rules for staff and volunteers and designing a new system to colour co-ordinate dogs to their respective safety levels - and staff and volunteers according to their skill and experience levels.
There will also be additional training provided to staff members with an emphasis on safety.
Other changes include revamping the Sunday orientation for new volunteers and reworking the animal shelter's protocols and policies to make them safer for everyone - including the dogs, she said.
"Most times the dogs are coming out of bad situations and we don't want to set them up for failure or their life be put in jeopardy because somebody made a mistake or didn't do something properly," she said. "We want everybody to know that it is a safe place to volunteer."
Spencer said the new policies will likely take effect in a couple of months.
The changes follow an incident in June, when a dog attacked one of the shelter's workers. The Workers' Safety & Compensation Commission (WSCC) is conducting an investigation into the incident.
WSCC acting manager of communications Jacqueline Mo confirmed the investigation is still ongoing. Once complete, the commission won't release the recommendations to the public but "the employer can if they wish," she stated.
Yellowknifer contacted Range Lake MLA Caroline Cochrane about the changes, but she declined to comment.
Most of the provincial SPCA chapters have online staff and volunteer handbooks. The BC SPCA recommends volunteers familiarize themselves with health and safety policies and procedures as well as staff and other volunteers on their shift. It also recommends that volunteers only perform tasks they have been trained to do and ask for assistance when needed.
